Holy Trinity, Melbourne, Baptizes 22 in 2025

In what the Rt. Rev. Dr. Justin S. Holcomb touted in his 2025 Diocesan Convention address as a “year of baptisms,” Holy Trinity, Melbourne, has baptized 22 people: 15 minors and seven adults. Twelve of the newly baptized have joined the parish since the Rev. Tom Phillips, rector, arrived in September 2023.

“One man in his 80s wasn’t sure whether he was baptized as a child,” Phillips said. “It was a joy to baptize him.”

At Holy Trinity, Melbourne, every baptismal candidate (and, in the case of a child, the candidate’s family) meets with a member of the clergy, who leads a series of conversations about the meaning of the sacrament, often referencing the story of the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt.

“As we prepared candidates for baptism at Easter, we learned three of them had never heard the story of the exodus,” Phillips explained. “So I asked them all to read it and then watch the Disney movie The Prince of Egypt. As silly as that sounds, it’s a great visual aid to help them enter the story. It’s a great reminder to me that people who are coming to Christ for the first time often have little church background. We can’t assume people know anything about Scripture or the story of salvation.

“It’s a total joy to get to unpack the assurance of salvation implicit in the sacrament of baptism,” he continued.  “I encourage every family to understand why the baptismal font remains in the narthex all year, and I encourage them to remind themselves weekly that, no matter how the week went, their baptism is a steady and sure sign of the cleansing from sin and forgiveness they have in Jesus’ name.”

Two services featured multiple baptisms. Eight candidates were baptized at the Easter Vigil and five on All Saints’ Day.

Some of the candidates chose to have an immersion baptism. These began in 2024 when a young boy told Phillips he wanted to be baptized the same way Jesus was.

“Many of the baptisms involved more than one person from the same family: 8-month-old twins on Nov. 30; a mother, her two teenage children and two other sisters who both attend the Academy at the Easter Vigil; and two teenage sisters whose grandparents have recently become very involved in the new contemporary service,” Phillips said.

The journey to baptism for Taliyah, 12, and Taeliana, 14, began with their grandparents’ search for a new church. Mr. Kenny Schonwit and his wife, Pat, have since enjoyed seeing their two granddaughters baptized. “We were looking for an Episcopal church in Palm Bay or Melbourne,” he explained. “We happened to be investigating different areas, and while on Babcock Street in Melbourne, we were praying to God to guide us to the right church for our family where we could all worship. We saw a sign for Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, and we both shouted, ‘Thank you, Lord, you answered our prayers.’

“We told our son we had found a beautiful church in Melbourne, and the very first thing he said was that we needed to go to the Christmas Eve Mass,” Schonwit continued. “My son and his two daughters came with us. My wife and I loved the church, and so did our granddaughters! They went with us to services, and then they decided they wanted to be baptized. We joined Holy Trinity in December of 2021.

“When we met Father Tom, we mentioned to him that both our granddaughters wanted to be baptized,” he said. “He said he would be more than happy to baptize them. He baptized them at the Aug. 10 contemporary service in the trough. It was so exhilarating watching them be baptized! The girls were very excited to be baptized. They told me they were excited and felt different after their baptisms. They said they felt blessed.”

All the baptisms have taken place during a weekend worship service. “I think it’s significant symbolism that the baptisms take place as part of a principal Sunday service,” Phillips said. “Christianity is a group project, and no one has what they need in and of themselves. Together, the church has every spiritual gift. It’s so important for baptized people to plug into the life and fellowship of the church. We do our best to make a strong case for that with everyone we prepare for baptism.”

Summer grew up as a fifth-generation Christian Scientist and was baptized on All Saints’ Day. “Christian Science does not involve the physical expression of sacraments,” she explained. “The baptism service was very moving. Although I read the Baptismal Covenant and liturgy so many times beforehand, actually hearing and speaking aloud the statements of faith, with the congregation responding in support, was a beautiful experience.

“As I responded in the rhythm of the liturgical response, ‘I will, with God’s help,’ I marveled at the grace of the living God, who knew my whole being and faults, and still sought me; and that my desire to follow him was sufficient to be marked as his own,” she said.

Phillips said the parish clergy haven’t done anything overt to encourage baptisms. “I attribute the baptisms to the working of the Spirit of God through the proclamation of the gospel of grace in Jesus,” he explained. “We’re trying to use the pulpit, small groups and Bible studies for gospel proclamation. Additionally, it’s clear that the Lord is sending people to the church who are interested in the Christian faith and who haven’t been a part of a Christian community before. They are showing up, plugging in and committing their lives to Christ. It’s pretty neat to watch, and I don’t think any of us can take much credit for it. It’s a move of the Spirit.”