Of The Water

Matthew 3:16-17

And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

 

 

 

When our lives first begin, the instant that two physical cells merge and the spark of life ignites the soul, we are submerged.  We are surrounded, cocooned, enshrouded, in the liquid darkness of the womb.  We remain under this water in order for our bodies to form – heart, brain, kidneys, bones, eyes, mouth – for unless we remain submerged for our forming the pulse of life will not be held bodily.  When this fragile, early formation is complete, all the work that must be done in the sanctuary of sacred waters, we are born forth out of the waters and into the world.  We are taken up into the arms of another upon whose care we are dependent.  And here we live the lives of creatures that are visible, named, fed, taught, and hopefully loved.

 

But, there are other sacred waters.  Though we have been formed and born forth bodily, the business of our bodies may cause us to forget the pulse of our souls.  For what caused the cells of our bodies to first multiply and beat together was the animating principle of life.  As human beings, we begin to be by the breath of God.  And this divine breathing in us is what we need in order to fully be ourselves, fully and truly alive.  The care of the soul is different than the care of the body – but, for both, we need to be submerged in order for formation to begin.  Water sustains the body; Living Water makes healthy the soul.  In baptism, through water and the Holy Spirit, we are born anew, we are born from above.  Enshrouded in sacred waters once more, to touch the abyss, the touchstone of Creation, to be given the gift, the spark of new life in Christ, we are lifted up as the Spirit of God descends upon us, and we emerge as splendid and radiant creatures, God’s Word engraved upon our hearts, to be fed and taught the way of Divine Grace in the world redeemed by God’s love.

 

And, so, too, we will experience another submersion when our physical bodies, limited and imperfect, are no longer able to hold our souls.  We will descend again into sacred waters, there to touch the abyss, the touchstone of Creation, and then to come up by the grace of God, into the Almighty, Ever-Living, Ever-Loving Presence of God, infinitely and eternally.