It’s “Official”.

SOMETIME AROUND ten o’clock in the morning, Central Standard Time on Sunday, my firstborn daughter, age 7+ months, became a Christian. Well, what did that actually entail? From her perspective, all there is to remember is that she got dressed up nicely, got taken to another of those big houses where everybody smiles and looks very nice, there’s very pretty loud music and singing. And then her daddy took her for a short walk, and gave her to a very nice stranger long enough to spill some water on her before giving her back, and going back to where they started. By then she was tuckered out enough to deserve a bottle and a very nice nap. After that, a lot of smiles, passes around, and smiling at those little boxes with the flashing light on them.

Then it’s back to “business as usual”. Life goes on. So what’s the significance? What’s changed?

I suppose that what most folks will tell you is that Christians are, number one, believers in a certain creed, and, number two, behave and act most of the time in a fashion intended to benefit those around them as well as themselves. There is a third thing: the paperwork.

It’s an odd thing. What proofs of membership do people carry around with them every day? What privileges and responsibilities are represented by those proofs? If you’re a typical American, your well-organized purse or wallet might state any number of the following: that you are permitted to drive a vehicle; that you are a citizen listed in the nation’s database of current or future Social Security recipients; that you may legally purchase merchandise, goods or services without handing over cash immediately, that you are permitted to vote in any number of various elections, and also support a certain political party; that you are currently employed by a concern that is careful about identifying their employees; that you are listed on the rolls of an organization that protects certain rights you may have as a worker; and perhaps that you’re permitted to travel abroad. That might cover most people.

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