Sermon: "The Baptismal Covenant and All Saints"
The Right Reverend Charles G. vonRosenberg
Third Bishop of East Tennessee

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

I am grateful to be here at St. Mark's once again, and I thank you for your welcome of me. I also am grateful for your ministries in the context of St. Mark's … and beyond this church community as well. Indeed, I give thanks that you lead your lives according to the Baptismal Covenant that we have with God.

This is the Baptismal Covenant that we will soon have the opportunity to renew - each of us, along with those to be confirmed today. The Baptismal Covenant states the faith that we share - our faith, that is, in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. As a part of that Covenant, we also indicate our intention to lead a Christian life of worship, of repentance, and of service to others, in the name of Jesus Christ.

Amid the church challenges of our day, we may 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 am upholding central aspects of our mission as the Diocese of East Tennessee - that is, mission and ministry that are consistent with the Baptismal Covenant.

In the year to come, therefore, we will emphasize four diocesan ministries in particular. Grace Point Camp and Retreat Center provides a wonderful resource for Christian nurture and spiritual formation for all our churches and people. 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 native Americans in South Dakota give us practical ways to respond Christ's call to love our neighbors. Also, these outreach ministries offer us ways to "seek and serve Christ in all persons," to "strive for justice and peace among all people," and to "respect the dignity of every human being" - affirmations from the Baptismal Covenant.

The last year has been one of trial, of sadness, and of challenges for many Episcopalians - although not for all of us in East Tennessee. However, this year - with a concentration on the ministries I am suggesting - perhaps we can refocus our attention on the call of our Baptismal Covenant. … Also, notice the first letters of those ministries I am emphasizing - Grace Point, lay ministry development, Appalachia, and the Dakotas. You see that I am proposing a "glad" year for us in East Tennessee! On the one hand, I think we all need it. And, on the other hand, this will bring our lives in line with our Lord's call, 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, the idea of a covenant among Anglican churches worldwide was quite prominent in the Windsor Report of the Lambeth Commission, published two weeks ago. Indeed, as we concentrate more intentionally on the theme of covenant, then we find a means of access to a profound practice of our faith. A covenant is an understanding and an agreement between two parties. Once the two have agreed to their covenant, then certain behavior may be expected as a result. Such is the call within the Windsor Report, and understanding such covenants also is crucial in reading the Bible.

For instance, our readings today all need to be understood within the context of covenant. In the First Reading, we gain a certain historical perspective, as we hear of our ancestors in the faith; of their gifts from God; and of their faithfulness in responding to those gifts. As the author points out, in referring to these ancestors, "Some of them have left behind a name, so that others declare their praise. But of others there is no memory … These also were godly men, whose righteous deeds have not been forgotten." Thus, their covenant with God is being fulfilled, perhaps in ways that had not been envisioned during their lifetimes.

A similar theme is picked up in the Book of Revelation. That author's vision is of the heavenly city and of those who have found their eternal place there. The elder identifies the servants of God who have lived into their covenant with Him: "These are they who have come out of the great ordeal; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. For this reason they are before the throne of God, and worship him day and night within his temple, and the one who is seated on the throne will shelter them." You see, once again, there is an understanding, an agreement involved - and this reading also portrays the fulfillment of a covenant.

Finally, a portion of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount - the Beatitudes - comprises the Gospel reading. While each Beatitude is worth a sermon by itself, my point this morning is to emphasize the covenantal nature of Jesus' words. He is saying that the behavior of people is blessed, not because of worldly standards but by heavenly ones. Indeed, achievement and success are quite different from Jesus' perspective. And he calls on his hearers to adopt his point of view - rather than the way of the world - as we live into our covenant with him.

Therefore, I commend to you this morning the theme of covenant. That theme provides us with 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. This pertains especially to those being confirmed today, but it applies to the rest of us as well. We all are blessed by our covenant with God. May we also be blessings to God as we live into our covenant with Him! Amen.

Copyright © 2004 The Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee