Baptism

Background

Through Infant Baptism, we welcome a child into the Church as he or she begins the journey of faith in Christ.

The Sacrament of Baptism is often called “The door of the Church,” because it is the first of the seven sacraments not only in time (since most Catholics receive it as infants) but in priority since the reception of the other sacraments depends on it. It is the first of the three Sacraments of Initiation, the other two being the Sacrament of Confirmation and the Sacrament of Holy Communion. Once baptised, a person becomes a member of the Church. Traditionally, the rite (or ceremony) of baptism was held outside the doors of the main part of the church, to signify this fact.

Christ, Himself ordered His disciples to preach the Gospel to all nations and to baptise those who accept the message of the Gospel. In His encounter with Nicodemus (John 3:1-21), Christ made it clear that baptism was necessary for salvation: “Amen, amen I say to thee unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” For Catholics, the sacrament is not a mere formality; it is the very mark of a Christian because it brings us into new life in Christ.

The Form/Ministry of the Sacrament of Baptism

​While the Church has an extended rite of Baptism which is normally celebrated, which includes roles for both parents and godparents, the essentials of that rite are two: the pouring of water over the head of the person to be baptised (or the immersion of the person in water); and the words “I baptise you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

Since the form of baptism requires just the water and the words, the sacrament, like the Sacrament of Marriage, does not require a priest; any baptised person can baptise another. In fact, when the life of a person is in danger, even a non-baptised person – including someone who does not himself believe in Christ – can baptise, provided that the person performing the baptism follows the form of baptism and intends, by the baptism, to do what the Church does – in other words, to bring the person being baptised into the fullness of the Church. In both cases, a priest may later perform a conditional baptism.

In the Catholic Church today, baptism is most commonly administered to infants. While some other Christians strenuously object to infant baptism, believing that baptism requires assent on the part of the person being baptised, the Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, Lutherans, and other mainline Protestants also practise infant baptism, and there is evidence that it was practised from the earliest days of the Church.

Since baptism removes both the guilt and the punishment due to Original Sin, delaying baptism until a child can understand the sacrament may put the child’s salvation in danger, should he die unbaptised.

Adult converts to Catholicism also receive the sacrament, unless they have already received a Christian baptism. (If there is any doubt about whether an adult has already been baptised, the priest will perform a conditional baptism.) A person can only be baptised once as a Christian – if, say, he was baptised as a Lutheran, he cannot be re-baptised when he converts to Catholicism.

While an adult can be baptised after proper instruction in the Faith, adult baptism normally occurs today as part of the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) and is immediately followed by Confirmation and Communion.

The Effects of the Sacrament of Baptism

Baptism has six primary effects, which are all supernatural graces:

• ​The removal of the guilt of both Original Sin (the sin imparted to all humankind by the Fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden) and personal sin (the sins that we have committed ourselves).
• The remission of all punishment that we owe because of sin, both temporal (in this world and in Purgatory) and eternal (the punishment that we would suffer in hell).
• The infusion of grace as sanctifying grace (the life of God within us); the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit; and the three theological virtues.
• Becoming a part of Christ.
• Becoming a part of the Church, which is the Mystical Body of Christ on earth.
• Enabling participation in the sacraments, the priesthood of all believers, and the growth in grace.

If you are looking to have your child baptised in Our Lady and St Dominic Church, there are a few important things to consider. The normal conditions for the request for baptism in these cases are as follows:

Parents should live within the geographical boundaries of Our Lady and St Dominic parish; at least one parent must be a baptised Catholic and will need to include a copy of their own baptism certificate with the application for their child.

• Parents should regularly attend Holy Mass at Our Lady and St Dominic Church each weekend.
• Families who live outside the parish boundaries, but who normally worship at Our Lady and St Dominic Church, may celebrate the Sacrament of Baptism here provided their own Parish Priest has given his approval.
• One Sponsor, male or female, is sufficient; but there may be two, one of each sex. Both Sponsors must be baptised. One, however, may be admitted as a Christian Witness if baptised in another Christian community. (Re. The Code of Canon Law, nn. 873, 874)