Baby Dedication

diaper cake

Today our special event at church was a baby dedication. One of the members saw me taking a picture of the display and told me that we were celebrating a special gift that God had granted to one of the families in our church. He told me that we celebrate the birth when the baby is six weeks old. He called the display a diaper cake. The baby dedication occurred after singing a few praise songs. The first song was for the kids, it was about Jesus being better than Batman, Zorro, and Superman. The family went to the front of the church for the dedication. The pastor said a few words about the Biblical basis for a baby dedication and talked about the baby and the meaning of her name. Then he prayed for the baby and her family, the baby's father prayed, the baby's mother prayed, and another member of the church prayed. The family and all the children went to children's church. Here, it seems that the parents accompany their children to children's church. When the sermon is over, everyone comes back to sing more praise songs and participate in the closing prayer. As is customary, the pastor invites everyone to join him in the courtyard for refreshments and fellowship.

October 24, we had another baby dedication, this time for a baby boy.  After the pastor and parents prayed for the child, the congregation sang a song of blessing that had been written for a baby girl who had been dedicated three years before. The composer has moved on with her husband to Germany. Next week, November 7, we will have another baby dedication. The parents have requested the song be sung for their baby, too.

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