![]() ![]() UMC is but one of many that treats baptism as a minor event in the life of a believer. Be it baptism by fire or baptism by water, death comes to all.Ī recent article in examined water baptism within the United Methodist denomination. Those who read, those who learn, those who study the archived documents of wars and conflict, who observe the animal kingdom, understand that death comes fast: certainly much sooner than we expect. This is the function of baptism: we accept that though alive, we are already dead. Ambrose, Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you’ll be able to function as a soldier is supposed to function: without mercy, without compassion, without remorse. The only hope you have is to accept the fact that you’re already dead. Captain Ronald Speirs comes along and gives Blithe this advice. In the TV series Band of Brothers private Albert Blithe seems reluctant to engage the enemy, to advance, to do anything other than hunker down. ![]() In one sense it is the first time a soldier dies, for even if they survive the war, they are changed forever. In military circles baptism by fire refers to a soldier’s first time in battle. Often they are led astray down the wide path that leads to destruction and never-ending torment for the soul. Those who cannot read, or refuse to read, follow. ![]()
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