Munich, Germany, Jul 20, 2016 / 03:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In the midst of her stressful overseas voyage to Europe, Vivian, a very pregnant Nigerian woman who departed from the Libyan coast, ended up giving birth on the German naval ship that rescued her and her 654 companions.
Her first request when she saw the military chaplain on board? That her newborn son get baptized.
According to the German Military Chaplaincy, Vivian, who is Catholic and likely fleeing ongoing violence and persecution in her country, was one of 655 people who piled onto four flimsy dinghies in order to reach Europe with the hope of a better life.
On July 6, their first day at sea, a German naval ship saw the boats, and, recognizing the precarious condition of the dinghies, described as “un-seaworthy,” brought them on board.
When military chaplain Fr. Jochen Folz saw that Vivian had given birth on board the ship after being rescued, he and the medical team immediately offered their support. After only a few minutes Vivan made one wish very clear: she was Catholic, and she wanted her newborn son to be baptized.
So Fr. Folz got to work right away with the help of ship's officers and crew: the radio operator enabled the Internet so the priest could access the English texts needed for the rite of Baptism, while others found a sauceboat and matching tray for a makeshift “baptismal” font. A candle also emerged from the officers' wardrobe.
A woman named Martina O., who was also rescued from the dinghies, was allowed to accompany the birth, and agreed to take on the role of the child's godmother.
Though it was dark outside, the medical container was brightly lit by neon lights, and was filled with soldiers who wanted to be present for the special moment.
Fr. Folz began by greeting the attendees and offering a brief introduction to the baptism. The rite then proceeded as usual: Fr. Folz asked Vivian: “What name will you give your child,” to which she replied: “Ikpomosa.”
When the priest asked her “What do you ask of the Church for Ikpomosa?” Vivian smiled and said proudly: “Baptism, faith and eternal life.” The priest then traced a sign of the cross on the newborn's forehead, inviting his mother and godmother to do the same.
After pouring water over the child's head three times with the sauceboat while reciting the ancient biblical formula: “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” the priest then lit the candle and passed to his godmother.
When the time came to place a white garment over the baby as a sign of his new life in Christ, Fr. Folz draped his white priestly stole over the newborn as a symbol of the divine sonship since there was obviously no white baptismal gown.
As a baptismal gift, baby Ikpomosa was given a medal of St. Michael the Archangel, while Vivian and Martina were each given a medal of the Virgin Mary. All three had been prepared by a medical soldier, who tied a ribbon on each so they could be hung or tied somewhere safe.
While this wasn't the first time Fr. Folz has baptized someone in action, it did mark the first time he did so for a refugee child.
The rescue operation marked the priest's first experience in the Navy, after having served in several land operations. While serving in Afghanistan, he baptized two German soldiers and one American soldier, and has administered the Sacrament of Confirmation on several occasions.
However, the baptism in the Mediterranean of a child born to a woman risking her life at sea in hopes of a better life for herself and her child, was something completely new and out of the ordinary.
In light of their uncertain future, Fr. Folz told Vivian and Martina that “the Church offers us a home all over the world, and Ikpomosa is now under the special protection of heaven.”
Article Archive
Baptism at sea – refugee child born during boat rescue
Related Articles • More Articles
A Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish procession honoring the patroness of Cuba on Sept. 7, 2023. / Credit: Sacred Heart of Jesus parish in Havana, CubaACI Prensa Staff, Mar 28, 2024 / 16:00 pm (CNA).The regime of President Miguel Díaz-Canel in Cuba has prohibited several Holy Week processions in different cities of the country, including the El Vedado area of Havana as well as in Bayamo, a town that was the scene of major protests earlier this month.Last week, ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner, reported on the prohibition of processions in the Diocese of the Most Holy Savior located in the Bayamo-Manzanillo area in the province of Granma, due to the regime's fear that new protests would break out. The prohibition has been extended to the capital, Havana, according to a Catholic priest.In a March 25 Facebook post, Father Lester Zayas, pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in the El Vedado business district of Havana, reported that the day before he had been notifie...
The Catholic faithful gathered in the Cenacle in Jerusalem for the Mass of the Lord's Supper that the Franciscan friars celebrated on Holy Thursday, March 28, 2024. The Cenacle is at the center of strong tensions and disputes regarding ownership and rights of access and celebration. An ancient tradition places King David's tomb here and over the centuries Jews and Muslims have leveraged this to first expel the Franciscans and then to prevent Christian worship, which they deemed sacrilegious. / Credit: Marinella BandiniJerusalem, Mar 28, 2024 / 17:15 pm (CNA).On Holy Thursday, the doors of the Cenacle in Jerusalem were opened to welcome the Franciscans of the Custody of the Holy Land. In this "Upper Room," called the Cenacle in the Holy Land, Jesus had his Last Supper, washed his apostles' feet, and instituted the Eucharist. It was here that the Franciscans celebrated the Mass of the Lord's Supper, reenacting those same gestures. (At the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher,...
The Oregon State Capitol in Salem. / Credit: Zack Frank/ShutterstockWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Mar 28, 2024 / 15:00 pm (CNA).The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) is reporting a significant rise in assisted suicide prescriptions and deaths in the state, a move that comes after authorities in 2022 began allowing out-of-state residents to access the lethal services.Since the state's passage of the "Death with Dignity Act" in 1997, assisted suicide numbers have been generally rising there, with a markedly sharp uptick since 2013. OHA on March 20 released its 2023 assisted suicide data summary that reported a considerable increase in suicide prescriptions in 2023. The study found that assisted suicide prescriptions in the state rose from 433 in 2022 to 560 last year.Of those 560 prescriptions, 367 people are known to have died from ingesting the suicide "medications." This is up from the 304 who died from assisted suicide drugs in Oregon in 2022.Over half, or 56%, of the assisted ...