baptism - giving a name

Allow me to share some few thoughts. 

Unlike other gatherings for prayer which almost always start with an opening song and the sign of the cross, the rite of baptism starts instead with a question, what name do you give your child?  Now you may take this question and its answer for granted or you may even take it as stating the obvious by the fact that this has been already established a fortnight ago in their birth certificates.  But this first act in the ritual of baptism is very important.  It defines our purpose today, it establishes the intent of our gathering, it summarizes and therefore simplifies the varied actions in this long ritual into something that is both simple to understand and at the same time expressive of our longing for this child. What name do you give your child?  To be baptized is to be defined – to be baptized is to establish who you are and who you will become.  Thus the question - What name do you give your child?

In Baptism when we answer the question, what name do you give your child, we are defining the child in a new way.  They are not just the fruits of the love of Brian and Princess.  They are not just the result of some random act of nature.  They are not an accident.  They are not just “hey guys.  They have names.  Each of them has an identity which make them different from the mass of humanity, and they have identities that make each of them stand out from the rest of the crowd.  For in baptism we acknowledge that Niko and Noelle were created on purpose and with love – that is why we give them names for like every child they were meant to be.  They are not just one of the children, they are not just one of the students, she is not just one of the girls, he is not just one of the boys.  In God she is an individual – she is Noelle Jones. In God he is an individual – he is Niko Jones

So no this is not just a simple act of naming.  This is not just a simple act of pouring water.  This is identity, who we are  before God and who we must be before others.