With the establishment of the Christianity into Norwegian culture, the Church in Rome instigated baptisms and other holy sacraments. The Church held that all people are born "unclean" with Original Sin. To enter a house of worship, the Church maintained that one must be "clean." The way to cleansing happens via the waters of Baptism.
Our guide explained evolutionary points in the baptismal tradition.
"This has been usedfor 100 years,"
he said lifting
the golden pitcher
and casting it aside.
Then he picked out
the golden bowl
(under the pitcher) saying,
"This is a mere 400 years old"
and he flipped it behind him.
Our guide then
spread out his hands
over the stone font
saying,
"THIS is the original –nearly
one thousand
years old."
He contrasted modern and ancient baptismal customs.
Today a child is brought to the church within its first year or two after birth. A parent holds the child in a prone position with its head over the bowl. The pastor takes the pitcher and pours water onto the child's head, usually wetting his hair and wiping it with a cloth.
This deep font served a different purpose. In the early church, baptism was commonly performed by submersion. Infants were held by their feet and dunked head first into the font three times while the priest prayed: "I baptize you in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit."
Our eyes grew wide at the thought. Our guide offered, "It was quite fast and safe. Few, if any, children drowned. What usually got them was the cold weather."
He explained that no matter what the time of year, ancient families rushed a newborn from the birth bed to the church for immediate baptism. While the baby often weathered the dunking, improper swaddling and carting the child home through the raw elements may have caused illness leading to infant death.
Why the rush to baptize?
Should an unbaptized person die, he or she cannot enter Heaven. In ancient times – with no antibiotics or immunizations to treat common illnesses, infant mortality was high. Church clergy urged families to save their little one's souls before their bodies had a chance to perish.
Our guide explained – during the Middle Ages – the Church taught that not only was a newborn "unclean," but so was a pregnant woman for carrying a child conceived with Original Sin. As a result, congregations built benches along the exterior walls of the church building where pregnant women could sit outside to listen to the worship service because they were forbidden to enter the holy sanctuary.
Our womanly eyes grew wider yet!
Our guide said that those benches can still be seen on some of Norway's ancient stave churches. He noted the Reformation of 1517 sparked changes in many traditions as the Norwegian church pulled away along with Martin Luther. Today pregnant women are honored for the life which grows within them. The church welcomes these women inside its doors blessing them for carrying the Gift of Life.
Our guide welcomed the ladies to come forward for a photo to mark the Gift of Life celebrated circa 110 years ago when their grandmother – Marie Oline Gustavsdatter Bjartnes – was sprinkled at the Stiklestad Baptismal Font.
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