Her Kitchen Table Altar

~keeping faith & family close to heart in a modern world~

praying in old catholic church

“As the sparrow finds a home and the swallow a nest to settle her young, my home is by Your altars, LORD of hosts, my king and my God. Blessed are those who dwell in Your house! They never cease to praise You.

Blessed the man who finds refuge in you, in their hearts are pilgrim roads. As they pass through the Baca valley, they find spring water to drink. The early rain covers it with blessings. They will go from strength to strength and see the God of gods on Zion.

LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer; listen, God of Jacob. For a sun and shield is the LORD God, bestowing all grace and glory. The LORD withholds no good thing from those who walk without reproach.”

PSALMS 84

Baptism Date: Celebrating Our Special Anniversaries

Birthdays are celebrated all around the world. The date of our birth comes around once a year and gives us a reason to throw a party surrounded by friends and family who care for us – to celebrate the very existence of each and every one of us!

So, why don’t we also celebrate the anniversary of our baptism date??

Every birth is a miracle and a life worth celebrating. When we’re baptized, we’re “made” sons and daughters of God, members of the Body of Christ, and FREED from original sin (think Adam & Eve). This is the date we are reborn as totally new & cleansed creatures, set on the path to eternal life with the Lord. Definitely sounds like something to be celebrated over and over again!

Celebrating the anniversary of a baptism is one tradition I have not yet started within my little family, but this will be the year –

Mac’s baptism anniversary is August 22nd and I CAN’T WAIT to show him just how important the day really is.

He’s two and a half so I’m not expecting great things to be produced immediately … but I have to start somewhere. I can’t expect my kiddos to know what’s truly important in life if I am not the one modeling it before them or intentionally surrounding them with it.

Here is a sweet & simple “Prayer Service” I found at Loyola Press for celebrating the baptismal anniversary of a family member:

Celebrating Baptismal Anniversaries | Loyola Press

Materials needed: bowl with water (holy water, when possible), Bible, candle (baptismal candle, when possible)

Before beginning the prayer service, select one of these readings from the New Testament: Romans 6:3-5, Galatians 3:26-28, or Ephesians 4:1-6. Have a Bible open to the selected passage.

{Romans 6:3-5, NABRE} 3 Or are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life. 5 For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his, we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.

{Galatians 3:26-28, NABRE} 26 For through faith you are all children of God[a] in Christ Jesus. 27 [b]For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.[c] 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

{Ephesians 4:1-6, NABRE} 1 [a]I, then, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, 3 striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace: 4 [b]one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

  • Set the bowl of (holy) water onto a table
  • Place a lit candle near the bowl (use the celebrant’s baptismal candle if it is available)
  • Gather around the table and select a Reader and a Leader
  • Begin the following prayer:


Leader: Today is the day that you, [name], were baptized. On this day you were welcomed as a Christian by your family, and by the Church. Today we will again sign you with the cross, to remember that you were baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Let us listen to the words of the Scriptures.
Reader: A reading from [name of book].
(Reader reads the selected passage.)
Reader: The Word of the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God.
Leader: In Baptism we have been filled with the light of Christ. May we walk always as children of the light and keep the flame of faith alive in our hearts. May we live each day knowing our true identity as beloved children of God. And when the Lord comes, may we go out to meet him with all the saints in the heavenly kingdom to live with him forever and ever.
All: Amen.
>>> Invite the group to make the Sign of the Cross on the celebrant’s forehead; then invite everyone to sign their own foreheads with holy water. Offer hugs all around and celebrate with a special meal or treat! <<<

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