Published on: 12/08/2026
‘A man who I helped cross the river, who’s in his 90s, started to tear up and said, “This is what it’s all about”’.
A conversation with a new Christian on an Alpha course helped to lead to a special baptism service by the river in Bradfield. Taking place on Sunday 12 July 2026, the service was shaped around three aspects: making it a personal experience for the candidates; experiencing something new for the current congregation; and the impact on the community of having an outdoor service in Low Bradfield.
A local choir, The Dungworth Singers, provided the sung worship, and communion was shared with each other during the service. Incorporating a family service element into the day, the feeding of the 5,000 was chosen as the theme to preach on, and activities and baptism booklets were provided for the children. Testimonies were shared by some of the candidates, and buckets of water used to help with the baptisms due to the river not being deep enough for full immersion.
Five adults and a child were baptised, and the whole service took place by the river to help encourage church members and anyone passing by in the local community.
Revd Will Gowers, Curate in Charge at Bradfield Church, explains that the idea had originally developed following a conversation after an Alpha course:
‘We ran an Alpha course in January this year, which led to a church member, Jonathan, deciding to get baptised. Bradfield Church has a strong tradition of Christenings, but the church has rarely seen an adult baptism, and especially full immersion. I shared the possibility of a full immersion baptism, and Jonathan asked, due to his Celtic heritage, if it could take place in the river, down in Low Bradfield. It felt like such a great opportunity, an organic kind of celebration which would help immerse ourselves in the story of baptism, in scripture.
‘We opened up the service over the coming months, inviting people to take part, and more people enquired about a baptism for themselves. One lady had come to faith through a Christian influencer on TikTok and had never been baptised. She reached out to us after seeing the poster. After journeying with her about what baptism was, she also decided to be baptised during the service. From one person’s idea from their experience on Alpha, suddenly we had 6 people and a child wanting to be baptised during the service.
‘As a church, we are also exploring more ways we can engage with the community in Low Bradfield, as the church is up the hill in High Bradfield. The service was an opportunity for us to be a witness in the community. For visitors walking past, it wasn’t just an outdoor service or a social event on the field – they witnessed a baptism, which hopefully provoked questions for themselves. It has been wonderful since, hearing the impact the event has had in the community. We have had several comments, including the local pub landlords, saying we need more of this in the village.’
It’s hoped the service will become an annual event at the church and in the village. For other churches considering doing something similar, Will says contextualising everything around the candidates, the church setting and local community is key:
‘I love how it wasn’t an idea we came up with as a church. It was birthed from one of the candidates and us dreaming with them and contextualising it to make sure everyone felt like this was something we could feasibly do. What has been so special is hearing the stories of some of the older congregation members who came down in the camping chairs, some of whom had never seen an adult baptism before.
‘One man who we helped cross the river, who’s in his 90s, started to tear up and said, “This is what it’s all about”. It was just so wonderful to see something light up in him, and since he has been one of the most enthusiastic with actions during some of the children’s songs at our all-age service!
‘There has since been a real wonder and curiosity in trying new things and an impact on people’s faith journey. Anything we can do to help people experience something of what it means to live as Lights for Christ in the world the better! Especially enabling people to experience the richness we can find in a breadth of spirituality.’
Jonathan Cass, who came up with the idea for the river baptism, was brought up in Cardiff and a regular at his local Methodist church. Although he hadn’t been baptised and had spells of not going to church, he says there was always a sense of purpose and more to his life:
‘It was when I married Rachel at St Nicholas’ 13 years ago I felt a sense of the numinous in this place, its beauty and being part of God’s plan. To me faith has never been easy or straightforward, but what has struck a chord for me is the speech of Sir Thomas More in Man for all Seasons:
“God made the angels to show Him splendour, as He made animals for innocence and plants for their simplicity. But man He made to serve Him wittily in the tangle of his mind.”’
Jonathan’s Welsh heritage has been an important factor, with the country’s early roots in the Christian faith being a source of inspiration:
‘It is in honour of that tradition and step of faith and mission that we are here to use the flowing waters and seek God’s blessing. It is also from that same tradition and time that I feel the calling of faith through the sayings of St David: “Be Joyful, keep the faith and do the small things you have heard and seen me do”.
‘To me the message is clear, to serve and be joyful in service, and that no act of service is too small to show love of God’.
