Sermon: "The Foundation of the Baptismal Covenant"
The Right Reverend Charles G. vonRosenberg
Third Bishop of East Tennessee

[This sermon by Bishop vonRosenberg was delivered using the following notes.]

It is a pleasure to be with you again here at St. Thaddaeus. I am grateful to you for your welcome of me.

Thank you, also, for your ministries in this place and beyond … for what you do in our Lord's name in church, at home, and in the larger community. For instance, some of you are active in the life of the diocese, and I am grateful for your involvement. Indeed, I give thanks that you lead your lives according to the Baptismal Covenant that we have with God.

In a few minutes, we all will have the opportunity to renew our Baptismal Covenant, along with our candidates for Confirmation. That Covenant - or agreement, or understanding - begins in affirming our faith in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Then, having that faith, we also affirm how we intend to live out our faith, within the covenant we have with God. For instance, our intentions include lives of worship - "breaking the bread and (saying our) prayers" - our commitment to seek God's forgiveness for our actions when they are inconsistent with God's will; and our dedication "to proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ." Also, our intentions directly impact our lives of service with others - "to seek and serve Christ in all persons", "to love your neighbor as yourself", "to strive for justice and peace among all people", and "to respect the dignity of every human being."

Therefore, our Baptismal Covenant with God states the faith that we share and affirms our intention to live a Christian life, following the example of our Lord.

Amid the church challenges of our day, we can be tempted to divert our attention and energy away from what is basic to our faith. For that reason, as I travel about the diocese this year, I have been upholding aspects of our ministry that focus on our mission as the Diocese of East Tennessee - that is, mission and ministry consistent with the Baptismal Covenant.

In the year to come, we will emphasize four diocesan ministries in particular. Grace Point Camp and Retreat Center provides a wonderful resource for Christian nurture and for spiritual formation, for Episcopalians of all ages. Lay ministry development focuses the attention of us all on living lives consistent with the call and intention of the Baptismal Covenant. Outreach ministries with the people of Appalachia and with the native Americans in South Dakota give us practical ways to respond to Christ's call to love one another, in word and in deed.

During the time following General Convention, some of us in East Tennessee have sensed a time of trial, of sadness, and of challenge - although not all of us have felt that way. However, this year - with a concentration on the ministries I suggest - perhaps we can refocus our attention on the Baptismal Covenant. … Let me point out something else to you also. If you take the first letters of those ministries - Grace Point, lay ministry development, Appalachia, and the Dakotas - then you see that I am proposing a "glad" year for East Tennessee! On the one hand, I think we need it. And, on the other hand, this should bring us in line with our Lord's call to us, through the Baptismal Covenant.

As I have considered more seriously the Baptismal Covenant in recent weeks, I also have become aware once again of how important the theme of "covenant" is throughout holy scripture. Interestingly, too, this theme of covenant was quite important in the Windsor Report of the Lambeth Commission, published a week ago. Indeed, as we concentrate more on the idea of covenant, then we find access to the profound practice of our faith. A covenant is an understanding and an agreement between two parties. Once the two have agreed to a covenant, then certain behavior may be expected as a result. Such is the call within the Windsor Report, and such covenants also are crucial in understanding the Bible as well.

For instance, the theme of covenant is significant in each of our readings this morning. In the First Reading, we heard the word from the Lord, as spoken by the prophet Isaiah, regarding God's covenant with the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The outward signs of keeping the covenant have become meaningless - signs like burnt offerings, solemn assemblies, and feast days. Rather, according to the prophet, true repentance is required for keeping the covenant with God - turning away from evil ways, seeking justice, and caring for the oppressed, for widows, and for orphans, to name a few signs of true repentance. Thus, Isaiah is calling the people back to the spirit of their covenant with God.

In Second Thessalonians, St. Paul praises his readers for keeping the covenant they have with God. The apostle assures the Thessalonians of his prayers and gives thanks for their faith. For instance, he writes, "We must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing." St. Paul's gratitude, therefore, results from the faithfulness of the Thessalonians in their covenant with God.

Finally, we come to the interesting encounter between Jesus and Zacchaeus. Remember that Zacchaeus - who was short in stature - was curious about Jesus but could not see him. Therefore, he climbed a tree where not only could he see Jesus, but - as it turns out - Jesus could see him, too. An encounter between the two of them resulted, and from that, an agreement, an understanding - a covenant - was reached. In the spirit of that covenant, Zacchaeus promised, "Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much." And, then we read that Jesus responded, again in the spirit of covenant, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost." And thus we see this covenant, this agreement, this understanding emerge between Jesus and Zacchaeus.

Therefore, I commend to you this morning the theme of covenant. That theme provides us a significant viewpoint in our reading and study of holy scripture. And, in particular, the Baptismal Covenant identifies our understanding and agreement with God as individual Christians, as a church, and as a diocese. Indeed, our covenant with God is in the forefront of the rite of Confirmation today. We all are blessed by our covenant with God. May we therefore be blessings to God as we live into our covenant with him! Amen.

Copyright © 2004 The Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee