Baptism

When we are baptized in living water, it represents the Living Water that is Christ. Unfortunately, most of us are baptized in dead water (how many living organisms are in any given church's baptismal font? algae? fish? frogs? water skaters? sea life?). Of course, if the symbolism of being baptized in living water is lost on us, I suppose that maybe it doesn't matter anyway - for all the good the symbolism does us.

Then I began thinking of baptism for the dead. Done in temples. Done in dead water. Why? Done for the dead. Seems like there ought to be a connection there.

Strange, isn't it, how some of the symbolism for Christ has eked away without us noticing. Red wine represents the blood of Christ, represents the bitter cup He drank from. A thimbleful of water just doesn't get the same point across as a full cup of bitter red wine. (Someone, I think it was Rock Waterman, said that wine was bitter.)