WRIGHT Out, In, Out: Jesus' Blessing 189
opening exhortation to the congregation justifying infant baptism.^4 It was
present in the order for infant baptism in all versions of the Anglican Book
of Common Prayer from 1549 to 1928. In the very earliest English Prayer
Book, in 1549, its reading belonged to that first part of the service which
took place 'at the church door'. As we shall see, this had been its tradi-
tional position, but, in accordance with Martin Bucer's recommendation in
his Censura of Cranmer's first Prayer Book in 1551, from 1552 onwards
the whole of the service was placed within the church building at the font.^5
There the Gospel lection remained until the later twentieth century, read as
dominical warrant 'of the good will of our heavenly Father towards this
Infant' and so removing any doubt 'but that he favourably alloweth this
charitable work of ours, in bringing this Infant to his holy Baptism', as the
baptizing minister's immediately following exhortation declared to the
congregation.^6
The Roman Catholic Church's 'Rite of Baptism for Children' was revised
on the instruction of the Second Vatican Council and promulgated in
- The English text in use in the UK and Ireland, last amended in 1992,
lists Mk 10 among the four Gospel passages of which one or two are to
be read when baptism takes place apart from the eucharist (the others
being Jn 3.1-6; Mt. 28.18-20; Mk 1.9-11). When children are baptized
within the mass, the lections are taken either from those set for that
Sunday or from the lectionary's list of readings for mass with baptism.
This list includes Mk 10 among twelve Gospel texts.^7 A revision of the
Roman infant baptismal rite is at present under way, with the intention to
produce for children a rite of Christian initiation with catechumenate to
parallel the highly significant Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (1972).
Another Church that still finds a place for Jesus' blessing of the children
in the latest infant baptism service is the Church of Scotland. In its 1994
'Order for the Sacrament of Holy Baptism For a Child', Lk. 18.16-17- The Methodist Service Book (Peterborough: Methodist Publishing House, 1975),
p. A7; The Book of Offices (London: Methodist Publishing House, 1936), pp. 83-84. - The 1549 and 1552 texts can be seen in several collections, conveniently in
J.D.C. Fisher, Christian Initiation: The Reformation Period (ACC, 51; London: SPCK,
1970), pp. 91,107. For Bucer's Censura, Fisher, The Reformation Period, pp. 98-99;
E.C. Whitaker, Martin Bucer and the Book of Common Prayer (ACC, 55; Great
Wakering: Mayhew-McCrimmon, 1974), pp. 84-87. - Fisher, Reformation Period, pp. 92, 108.
- Rite of Baptism for Children Approved for Use in the Dioceses of England and
Wales, Scotland and Ireland (London: Geoffrey Chapman; Dublin: Veritas Publica-
tions, 1992), pp. 18, 45, 69, 94, 142.