“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Rom 6:3-4). Yesterday I got back to Germany from a 10-day trip to Nairobi, Kenya, where Dr. Jon Vieker of Concordia St. Louis, my missionary colleague Rev. Jerry Lawson, and I taught some forty Riga Luther Academy students and local pastors for a week. Some of the men in Jerry’s and my class were seminarians, some were local pastors. At one point, one of the pastors described the Sacrament of Holy Baptism: “Baptism is basically a rite of initiation,” he explained, “like when our young tribal men have to show or endure an act of courage.” I sat up straighter in my chair. “For instance, with the Maasai, the young men have to get an ear slit.” Jerry and I exchanged uneasy glances… “And in other tribes, they break six of your teeth so you can become a man. In other tribes, they circumcise their youth. Just like with Baptism—simply a Christian rite of initiation.” I gently pushed back: “Sorry to say, you’re not correct.” “For starters, if I had to choose a tribe, I think I would go with the Maasai. They seem to offer the least bad of three pretty grim options.” The men chuckled. “But seriously, what you are describing here are all works of man. But Baptism is a work of God. That is why in Acts we see whole families being baptized, with everyone in the family, including babies, receiving the gifts of Christ in Holy Baptism.” The pastor took my correction graciously, actually agreeing that Baptism is a gift of God’s, not something we do to work our way up to the next level, as those young tribesmen have to do. Indeed, in our Baptism Jesus Christ raises us from spiritual death to eternal life, which begins already here on earth—regardless of whether we live in New York City, Nuremberg, or Nairobi.
The Tiews in Germany 