A Statement on the Shutting Down of our Baptism by Park Officers

On Sunday, April 13th, a small group of about 40 people from Life Pointe Church went to Bayfront Park like we have done every two months for the past two years. We had a BBQ under a rented pavilion, threw a football, our kids played in the surf, and 5 people went public with their faith in Jesus Christ through the act of Water Baptism.

Not only is a public baptism a tradition of our church, it is also a 2,000 year old tradition dating back to Jesus being baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan River (Matthew 3:13-17) in public view. We are baptized to follow His example. Jesus also told His followers to make disciples and baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19-20). We are baptized and baptize others to follow His command.

We baptize publicly because we view this as the public profession of faith in Jesus Christ. While it is public, it is also deeply personal. In the two years of doing beach baptisms, we have never interfered with anyone at the beach, engaged people to tell them what we were doing, tried to invite them to church, tried to convert anyone to our faith, or had a single complaint.

Further, churches in Miami-Dade and Broward counties like Flamingo Road Church, Miami Vineyard, University Baptist Church, and Christ Fellowship do beach baptisms. It is nothing out of the ordinary for a church to participate in this open religious expression. It is an acceptable, normal practice of the Church.

The First Amendment of the US Constitution affords us those most basic rights: free speech, free press, free exercise of religion, and the right of people to assemble peaceably. That’s what we do.

So, on Sunday when our baptism was unfortunately shut down by life guards and park officers, I have been left with a dilemma I was not looking for. I do not want to be the sweaty, obese fundamentalist Christian antagonist who rails against any perceived inconvenience and renames it “persecution.” I want our church family to humbly and radically serve our community. I believe we do that such as feeding over 5,000 people hot meals per day following Hurricane Andrew, giving away over $100,000 in gift vouchers at Christmas to needy families, and hosting massive community events at Easter. While I want us to humbly serve, I also want us to be treated with the same appreciation as any other US citizen and have basic rights respected.

The unfortunate situation was captured on video. I believe that the lifeguards and officers were doing their jobs to the best of their ability. I am not looking for anyone to be disciplined. I don’t want an apology. It isn’t necessary. What I want is to find out if disallowing religious expression on the part of individuals is a policy of Miami-Dade County as we were told.

Today, I meet with one of the Directors for the county. That meeting will determine our next step. I hope to communicate that we are community partners. I hope to effectively communicate appreciation for their service to us. I’m hoping for a clarification letter stating that a baptism is indeed permissible. Should we not arrive at a satisfactory resolution, I really have no choice but to press the issue in arenas that can affect change.

For the past several years, Miami-Dade County disallowed churches from building sanctuaries on anything less than 5-10 acres. This effectively eliminated the possibility of small and medium sized churches from owning their own property. That policy would still be in effect if it wasn’t for Pastor David Vega at International Outreach Center pressing action against the county all the way to the Supreme Court. Certainly, that was messy. They were not looking for a fight. But, they pressed and led the way in a cause which has made massive positive implications for all religious speech in Miami-Dade County.

I was not looking for this. But, this situation has found us. As US citizens, our people are not going to feel like they have to sneak around or hide in a corner to thoughtfully, carefully, and in good conscience express their faith. I hope the resolution is swift, clean, respectful, and honors the Constitution, the County, and the mission of not only Life Pointe Church but also every church and religious institution in Miami-Dade County. I’ll keep you updated.

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