Living water
by Megan McKenna
Living Water: Baptism as a Way of Life by Klara Tammany
(Church Publishing Co., 2002)

Water! Our bodies are about 80 percent or more composed of water. The world is almost 4/5th water yet a minuscule amount of that is fresh water that humans can drink. It is one of the elements of life, powerful, dangerous in weather and tides and absolutely essential for drinking, cleansing, cooking and other essentials like playing in. When Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well converse it is over water. He claims that he would give her "living water." For Jews and Samaritans at the time of Jesus this was a theological concept. The phrase "living water" was a common expression for the Torah, the Word of God in the Scriptures and the law, so Jesus was telling her that he was a fresh, long cold drink of Torah, of the Word of God! And she knew exactly what he was talking about.

Water! It is the primary symbol of Baptism that initiates us into the faith of believers, into a community and a life that is sourced with the Word of God, with the person of Jesus and with the other sacraments and traditions of the Christian religion. Klara Tammany has written a book on baptism as a way of life, a source book or primer that looks at this sacrament as a jumping-off spot into living that is from the beginning fresh water, a fountain in the desert and foundational to Christian life. Specifically, this is a book for those preparing for baptism and their sponsors and those who pass on the riches of a Church to others. But more so it’s an adult education book for all believers no matter how long they have been baptized, for it re-introduces them to the ritual and so to the prayers and promises they made or were made in their name as infants. It is filled with stories, reflections, quotes, songs, questions and imaginative suggestions for mulling over familiar words to reveal depth and passionate devotion that sources our daily life as individuals and as members of a faith community. There is theology and theory, booklists and rich resources for music, children’s and adult materials, even movies that can be used instructionally and in prayer situations that study and delve more deeply into baptism.

Klara follows the method of gathering, sharing, reflecting and responding within a community setting. The breadth of materials and alternative suggestions leaves lots of leeway for creativity and for structuring sessions to your own people and needs. She discusses the issues of faith, the intergenerational passing on of tradition and practice, the call to justice and peace, the corporal works of mercy and of witnessing to faith individually in moral behavior and as community.

In communities worldwide today, the gift of the water diviner is crucial as never before. With their stick or even their hands and bare feet on the ground they walk the way and sense the energies and the Spirit of water beneath them, releasing and revealing the life-sustaining sources. Klara Tammany has done this for her believing community in the Episcopal Church. But because of its riches it is recommended for any tradition that is searching for this living water and living out their baptisms as a way of life for all to see and desire. Living Water is a long cool drink.