“This isn’t just about the baby—this isn’t just about the parents and godparents. This is about all of us, and it is about our faith.”

This realization came to Con O’Mahony, Vicar for Education in the Diocese of Hamilton, Ontario, and pastor at St. Margaret Mary Parish, while attending a baptism at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles. Standing in a full cathedral before John Nava’s magnificent tapestries depicting the communion of saints, he suddenly understood: “We are not doing this alone. We’re not doing this in isolation. We are doing this with the whole church—there’s something bigger than ourselves.”

00:00 – Baptism isn’t just for the baby or the family
02:02 – Meeting contemporary family needs in baptism prep
05:08 – Preaching to diverse baptismal families
12:18 – Con O’Mahony’s homily: God’s unconditional love
19:22 – Baptism as a reminder of our shared faith
26:46 – Pastoral care beyond the baptismal liturgy
34:45 – Preach as though you’ll see them again

Learn more about the Preach podcast:
https://www.americamagazine.org/author/preach/

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