Chapter Three
Trudy's Baptism
It was a beautiful Sunday morning and the Duncans were getting ready for Mass.
Annie was dressing her brothers as Mother was busy with the baby.
Today was a very special day.
Little Trudy was going to be baptised.
Much preparation had gone into preparing the house for visitors.
Mrs Benson had polished, scrubbed and scoured until the whole place gleamed.
Dad had gone to the market and bought a lot of flowers.
Aunt Theresa, who was going to be Trudy's godmother, had come to arrange them and there wasn't an empty vase or jam jar left in the house.
Annie had helped her aunt with the flower arrangements.
She had mostly done the cleaning up of the stalks and leaves that were snipped off.
"I've been to more courses in my life than I care to remember," she said when Annie complimented her on her handiwork.
"Cordon bleu cookery, cake decorating, dressmaking, patchwork, pottery and flower arranging, you name it, I've done a course in it.
I've been ready to start my own home for the past ten years but it's taken me such ages to find a husband."
She looked down at her engagement ring as if she still couldn't believe her good fortune.
"Well, Uncle John was worth waiting for," Annie commented practically.
"When is the wedding going to be, Aunt Theresa?"
"In four months' time, you beautiful girl.
And I suppose you know who'll be my bridesmaid?"
Annie, though she generally liked the quiet life, had jumped all over the house in a frenzy of excitement, while Aunt Theresa and Mother had followed her, helpless with laughter at her antics.
As Annie put the finishing touches to her brothers' appearance, the glow in her heart persisted.
Life was wonderful.
She had once asked Granny Eckton why it was sometimes called a valley of tears.
"You'll find that out when you're grown up," her grandmother had said quietly.
Annie thought now that she had been very much mistaken. Life was great.
Mother looked around the corner of the boys' room, holding Trudy in her arms.
The children gasped with admiration.
Their baby sister was a vision of delight in white satin, lace and ribbons and Mother looked very proud of her.
"When you were born, Annie, I received a card from a collegaue of Aunt Theresa's," she said.
"Do you want to know how it went?"
"Yes please Ma."
"A little girl, how wonderful," Mother quoted from memory.
"To be dressed in frills and laces, to help Mom in the kitchen and put Daddy through his paces, sometimes a tomboy too, has been sent especially to you, to make all your dreams come true."
Dad was locking up, chasing the brothers to the car, securing the dogs in the backyard and yelling at Mother and Annie to hurry or else they'd be late for Mass.
But when their car arrived at the church they found themselves among the very first parishioners to arrive.
Shortly afterwards Granny Eckton arrived with Aunt Theresa and Uncle John.
They waited for some of their other relatives to join them and soon it was time to go into the church.
To Annie's surprised delight, she spotted Mrs Benson in the congregation.
Looking very smart in a grey tailored suit and white lacy blouse, she was sitting as far from the family as possible.
Dad had noticed her too.
"Well well, look who's here," he whispered sarcastically, "the old dear herself."
"Shame on you, Pat, I asked her to come," Mother whispered, smiling anxiously at the housekeeper and half-raising her hand in greeting.
The latter looked outraged, then turned away pointedly, focusing her gaze on the altar.
"Old crone," Dad whispered angrily.
Annie had noticed before that he hated anyone to be unkind to mother, though he sometimes yelled at her himself.
"Maybe she lipreads and saw what you said first," Mother suggested but her colour had heightened and Annie's heart went out to her.
Mrs Benson certainly knew how to offend people, she reflected privately.
She made it pretty difficult for others to love her.
Mrs Smith, who had just appeared at one of the side entrances, did not appear to feel the same way.
She walked right up to the pew in which Mrs Benson was seated and motioned to her to shift up.
Mrs Benson obeyed, albeit with every sign of reluctance.
Annie suspected her of having a tiny soft spot in her heart for their gentle neighbour.
There was a stir as the congregation prepared to rise for the singing of the entrance hymn.
The organist started playing.
Hymnals were opened and Father Tom, preceded by altar servers, entered the church from the sacristy door.
Annie let the peace and joy of the celebration of Holy Mass flow over her.
How good it was to be in God's house, surrounded by loving relatives and with the sun flooding in through the stained glass windows.
She didn't know it, but she felt deep in her heart the truth of those lovely words from Sacrosanctum Concilium, "In the earthly liturgy we have a foretaste of that heavenly liturgy which is celebrated in the Holy City of Jerusalem towards which we journey as pilgrims."
To Annie this time in God's house was a little bit of heaven.
After Mass was over, Annie's family remained behind and collected in the church foyer.
Here Father Tom came to meet them.
He asked Annie's parents what name they were giving their baby.
"Gertrude Mary," they replied.
Asked what they wanted for Gertrude Mary, they answered: "Baptism."
Jerry and Jimmy started to fidget and Annie's heart sank.
To her relief, Mrs Benson went over to them.
"Behave yourselves," she hissed balefully and the brothers froze.
Annie turned her attention back to Father Tom.
"You have asked to have your child baptised," he said.
"In doing so, you are accepting the responsibility of training her in the practice of the faith.
It will be your duty to bring her up to keep God's commandments as Christ taught us by loving God and our neighbour.
Do you clearly understand what you are undertaking?"
"We do," Mother and Dad replied in unison.
The celebrant turned to the godparents.
"Are you ready to help the parents of this child in their duty as Christian parents?"
"We are," Aunt Theresa and Uncle John answered.
Father Tom welcomed Trudy on behalf of the Christian community, claiming her for Christ our Saviour by the sign of the cross, which he traced on her forehead.
Mother, Dad, Aunt Theresa and Uncle John all followed suit at his invitation.
Uncle Jimmy, Dad's youngest brother, home on holiday from the seminary where he was studying for the priesthood, read a passage from the Bible.
Then Father Tom invited all present to ask Jesus to look lovingly on the child to be baptised, on her parents and godparents and on all people.
Uncle Hugh, Dad's older brothers, reading from a book, said:
"By the mystery of Your Death and Resurrection, bathe this child in light, give her the new life of baptism and welcome her into your holy Church. Lord, hear us."
"Lord, graciously hear us," the family said.
"Through baptism and confirmation, make her your faithful follower and a witness to your gospel. Lord, hear us."
"Lord, graciously hear us."
"Make the lives of her parents and godparents examples of faith to inspire this child. Lord, hear us."
"Lord, graciously hear us."
"Keep her family always in your love. Lord, hear us."
"Lord, graciously hear us."
"Renew the grace of our baptism in each one of us. Lord, hear us."
"Lord, graciously hear us."
"Let us call on the saints to pray for us all," said Father Tom.
"Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us.
St Joseph, pray for us.
St John the Baptist, pray for us.
St Peter and St Paul, pray for us.
St Gertrude, pray for us.
St Monica, pray for us.
St Theresa, pray for us.
St Patrick, pray for us.
St Anne, pray for us.
All holy men and women, pray for us."
There couldn't be a priest in the whole world more clever, kind and understanding than Father Tom, Annie decided.
Surely it couldn't be a coincidence that he had mentioned the saints whose names Dad, Mother, the godmother, Trudy and even she herself bore?
From the broad smiles on the faces of the others she could see that the significance had not escaped their notice.
"Almighty and ever-living God," Father Tom was saying, "You sent your only Son into the world, to cast out the power of Satan, spirit of evil, to rescue humanity from the kingdom of darkness, and bring humanity into the splendour of your kingdom of light.
We pray for this child; set her free from sin, make her a temple of your glory and send your Holy Spirit to dwell with her."
Aunt Theresa now undid the top two buttons of the back of Trudy's robe.
The baby awoke and blinked sleepily as Father Tom anointed her with the words: "We anoint you with the oil of salvation in the Name of Christ our Saviour.
May He strengthen you with His power, Who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen."
Aunt Theresa fastened the back of Trudy's robe.
Then Father Tom led the way to the baptismal font.
He blessed the baptismal water, praying meanwhile that the Lord would bless it and make it holy, and by the mystery of the consecrated water, lead Trudy to a new and spiritual birth.
Having invited the parents and godparents to reject the devil, he led the family in confirming their belief in God.
Annie's answering: "Amen" could be heard above all the other voices, but Mrs Benson smiled bitterly and looked away.
Now the moment of the actual baptism had arrived.
Once again Father Tom asked the parents and godparents whether it was their wish that Trudy be baptised in the faith of the Church which they had professed with him and they repeated that it was.
Jesus was baptised by John. Why not watch
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_dr9njVzKM&list=PL4A73DDEE675FBC39&index=23
With thanks to Mormon Bible Channel and Youtube
Photograph taken by Catherine Nicolette - for use copyright free
No comments:
Post a Comment