This past Saturday, more than 7,750 people were baptized in the waters off Huntington Beach, California, in what organizers say was the largest single-day baptism event in American history.
More than 300 churches across California came together for a day of worship, celebration and mass baptisms. Participants of all ages publicly declared their faith in the Pacific Ocean and in portable baptistries set up along the beach.
In addition to the baptisms, the event featured worship sets from Bethel Music, Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes and more.
Saturday’s gathering also served as a preview for a much larger initiative already underway: Baptize America, a nationwide event planned for June 8 — Pentecost Sunday — that organizers are calling “the largest synchronized baptism in history.”
According to the Baptize America website, the June 8 event aims to unite churches “under a part of theology we can all agree on, which is the public profession of faith through water baptism.”
“This is not about any single church,” the site says. “It’s about churches across the nation united, pursuing the fulfillment of the Great Commission. If God can do it in California, He can do it in any state. And if He can do it in America, He can do it in any other nation in the world.”
