Just recently, a thirty-year-old tourist from New Zealand made global headlines in Rome. Caught by the local police as he and his friends attempted to wade into the historic Trevi Fountain, the man wriggled entirely free from the officers’ grip and launched himself, fully clothed, into the pristine, shimmering waters.
Now, we can debate the wisdom of his choices and the role of Italian hospitality, which quickly caught up with him in the form of a hefty €500 fine and a lifetime ban from the monument. But underneath the sheer, unpredictable bravado of his midnight swim, there is a very human truth: when you see water that pure, that inviting, and that historic, there is a part of the human psyche that just wants to plunge right into the middle of it. We long to wash off the old and submerge ourselves in something greater than ourselves.
This primal, desperate desire to be washed clean sits right at the very heart of the sacrament of Holy Baptism. This coming Sunday (our 5th Sunday in May) during our joint parish Eucharist at St Swithun’s, we are going to witness this beautiful reality first-hand. As a church family, we will gather around the font to welcome a new member, Wilfred (Freddie) into Christ’s flock through the waters of baptism.
Baptism is the ultimate bath. It is the moment where we lay down who we are and who we were born – and are plunged into the life-giving stream of God’s grace. Like that enthusiastic Kiwi tourist, we don’t just dip a toe in; we go all the way under. We are entirely immersed in the love of God.
But unlike the unfortunate traveller in Rome, Freddie being baptised on Sunday won’t find the police or civic authorities waiting on the other side with a penalty notice! There are no fines at the font of St Swithun’s. There are no lifetime bans from the kingdom of heaven. Instead, as we emerge from those waters, we are met not with handcuffs, but with open arms. We are wrapped in a warm towel of church family, anointed with the oil of gladness, and given a candle to carry into the world. We are not excluded; we are radically, completely welcomed.
It is no accident that we are witnessing this baptism on Trinity Sunday. The Holy Trinity – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit – is often described by theologians not as a rigid, static mathematical puzzle to be solved, but as an eternal, life-giving, flowing relationship. The early Church fathers used the Greek word perichoresis to describe the Trinity, which literally translates to a “divine dance” or a “circle dance” of perfect love.
The Father pours Himself out into the Son, the Son pours Himself into the Father, and the love that flows between them is so alive and vital that it is the Holy Spirit. It is a dynamic, swirling ocean of community and life with no discernible beginning or ending.
When we baptise someone into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, we are doing much more than just performing a water-based ritual. We are throwing them headfirst into that divine dance. We are inviting them to jump into the deepest fountain of all existence – the life and love of God.
The truth of Trinity Sunday is that the mystery of God is not an intellectual problem to be comprehended from a safe distance. You cannot understand the Trinity by standing on the dry land of logic, trying to sketch out a map. The only way to truly comprehend the Trinity is to follow the example of our friend at the Trevi Fountain: you just have to jump right in.
You have to leap into the mystery, splash around in the grace, and let the current of God’s love carry you along.
As we gather as a joint parish family at St Swithun’s on the 31st, let’s resolve to renew our own baptismal vows. Let’s remember the lengths to which God went to wash us clean through the cross and resurrection. And most importantly, let’s celebrate that in God’s great, eternal dance of love, the circle is never closed.
The fountain never runs dry. No matter who you are, where you have been, or how dusty your journey has been, there is always room for one more! So, come on in – the water’s lovely!
Revd Paul