The Baptismal Font
As part of the historic restoration of our church and grounds to mark our first hundred years of mission and ministry, we commissioned a new baptismal font that is more proportionally suited to its central location in our large nave. This has allowed us to move the smaller baptismal font back to its original, historic location in the Chapel of the Holy Spirit, beneath the stained glass windows depicting the Baptism of Jesus by John in the Jordan River.
The design of the tracery work on the sides of the font is taken from the former wooden screens that now adorn our movable forward altar. Since the two primary pieces of liturgical furniture in a traditional church like St. Stephen’s are the baptismal font and the altar—symbolizing the two sacraments ordained by Christ himself, communion and baptism—we are delighted to have those two pieces reflect and complement one another.
Traditionally, baptismal fonts are six-sided (six being a symbol of death, or dying with Christ) or eight-sided (eight being a symbol of new life, “the eighth day of creation,” “the day of resurrection”). Our font and bowl incorporate the ancient symbol of eight sides, in the case of the font, and in the case of the bowl, eight three-sided (trinitarian) flares from the center of the bowl.
Each Sunday, we re-enact the whole of the Christian life in our procession from our birth in Christ symbolized in the font, to the nearer presence of God represented in the altar, a presence we experience now in communion, and fully in the life of the world to come. Water is a universal symbol of cleansing, birth, and new life, and you will always find blessed holy water in our font when you are here. Whenever you enter the church or pass by the font, you are welcome to touch the water (some make the sign of the cross after touching the water) as a tangible reminder of God’s cleansing love for you, as well as a reminder of your true and eternal life in God. For many, this is a way to “come home” or “return to your true life” each time we come to church. All of us go astray; the font reminds us that we can always come home.
Read about Holy Baptism for infants, children, and adults here.