Felipe (baptized August 22, 2004, Sao Paulo, Brazil--from the journal of the sister missionary who taught him)
The baptism was scheduled for right after the church meetings, so we started the font before our meeting in the morning. We checked it before Relief Society (and it was filling fine) and then in the middle of Relief Society we went to turn it off. We arrived in the hallway to find a few people saying “oh my! Look! There’s water in the hall and filling the bathroom! Where are the Sisters?!” Whatever happened to trying to fix the problem, folks?!
We arrived on the scene and started action. Sister B turned off the font (nope, they hadn’t done that) and I got some buckets and squeegees and rags. I started emptying the font with buckets into the bathroom sinks, and Sister B started mopping the floor. Nobody helped us, they just watched and made comments like how dangerous it is to leave the door to the font open because a child could fall in and drown. [Omitted here are a few choice comments about Brazilian culture.] We got frustrated, but we cleaned the bathroom and everything, and the rest of the church meetings went well. Then Felipe was baptized, and that is what was most important.
Showing posts with label missionary baptisms. Show all posts
Showing posts with label missionary baptisms. Show all posts
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Irish Convert
(from Grandma LEB and Grandpa TBB, who served a mission together in Ireland 2001-04)
When we lived in Ireland we helped teach and prepare a woman of about 40 to be baptized. She was a member of another church – The Jehovah’s Witnesses. She lived in one of their group housing complexes and had other family including her mother who belonged to the same church. When they heard of her intention to be baptized they told her she would have to leave the church housing and that her family could never again speak to her. Can you imagine the challenge for a single, uneducated person to consider the impact of being baptized? Well, she went ahead was baptized and great things began to happen to her. She was able to go to BYU Idaho for college and later transferred to BYU. She graduated and met a man in the temple where they got to know each other, dated and eventually were married in the temple. She is now a trained social worker and a happily married woman with a new life and much happiness.
When we lived in Ireland we helped teach and prepare a woman of about 40 to be baptized. She was a member of another church – The Jehovah’s Witnesses. She lived in one of their group housing complexes and had other family including her mother who belonged to the same church. When they heard of her intention to be baptized they told her she would have to leave the church housing and that her family could never again speak to her. Can you imagine the challenge for a single, uneducated person to consider the impact of being baptized? Well, she went ahead was baptized and great things began to happen to her. She was able to go to BYU Idaho for college and later transferred to BYU. She graduated and met a man in the temple where they got to know each other, dated and eventually were married in the temple. She is now a trained social worker and a happily married woman with a new life and much happiness.
Scottish Converts
(verbatim from Grandpa TBB, concerning his mission in Scotland 1961-63)
When I was a young missionary in Scotland his first area was a small rural coal mining village. Our small branch met in a rented public hall. There were not places to baptize anyone very close. We had to rent a public swimming pool for late Saturday afternoons and drive 50 miles. Unfortunately most of the people being baptized could not swim and were terrified of water. Consequently they were nervous even standing in waist deep water. One woman I baptized had to be immersed in the water 6 times to get all of her, including her hair, under water. She was not too happy.
When I was a young missionary in Scotland his first area was a small rural coal mining village. Our small branch met in a rented public hall. There were not places to baptize anyone very close. We had to rent a public swimming pool for late Saturday afternoons and drive 50 miles. Unfortunately most of the people being baptized could not swim and were terrified of water. Consequently they were nervous even standing in waist deep water. One woman I baptized had to be immersed in the water 6 times to get all of her, including her hair, under water. She was not too happy.
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