Bap$sm & Confirma$on "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God." -‐John 3:5
Sacraments of ChrisDan IniDaDon • Of the seven sacraments, BapDsm, ConfirmaDon and Eucharist are referred to as the “sacraments of ChrisDan iniDaDon” • It is by recepDon of these three sacraments that a person is fully received into communion with the Church and is made a partaker in the divine life of Christ. • BapDsm and ConfirmaDon are unrepeatable and give the recipient an indelible mark.
BapDsm -‐ Etymology • The word “bapDze” means to plunge or immerse; – the “plunge” into the water symbolizes the catechumen’s burial into Christ’s death, from which he rises up with Him as a “new creaDon” (2 Cor. 5:17).
• BapDsm was prefigured several places in the Old Testament. The Church Fathers saw it symbolized: – In creaDon, where water was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit (Gen. 1:2) – In the Flood of Noah, where he and his family “were saved through water” (1 Pet. 3:20). – “The waters of the great flood you made a sign of the waters of BapDsm, that make an end of sin and a new beginning of goodness.”
BapDsm Prefigured • In the crossing of the Israelites through the Red Sea, where the people were set free from slavery and the EgypDans were washed away (Ex. 14). • In the crossing of the Jordan River by the Israelites, where the People of God entered into the Promised Land, an image of eternal life (Jos. 3). • The cleansing of Naaman the Syrian in the River Jordan (2 Kings 5:14). – “It was not for nothing that Naaman of old, when suffering from leprosy, was purified upon his being bapDzed, but [this served] as an indicaDon to us. For as we are lepers in sin, we are made clean, by means of the sacred water and the invocaDon of the Lord, from our old transgressions, being spiritually regenerated as newborn babes (St. Irenaeus, Fragment 34, A.D. 190).
The BapDsm of Christ • There are several reasons why Jesus consented to a bapDsm that, as John the BapDst noted, He did not need: – It is a manifestaDon of His self-‐emptying and idenDficaDon with humanity, which stands in need of God’s grace and forgiveness (CCC 1224 – It inaugurates His messianic mission, wherein He is anointed by the Spirit for His ministry (Luke 4:16-‐20). See also: CCC 536 – In His bapDsm, Christ sacramentally sancDfies the waters for us, prefiguring the bapDsm He was to later inaugurate – His bapDsm reveals what occurs spiritually every Dme a ChrisDan is bapDzed. When we come to the Holy Font, the heavens are opened, the Spirit descends, and the Father pronounces, “You are my beloved son.”
• The bapDsm of Jesus begins His public ministry. Immediately aher this, He goes into the wilderness to face the temptaDons of the devil.
The Rite of BapDsm in the Church • BapDsm is ohen called the door to the other sacraments and is the first sacrament a Catholic receives • As formulated in the Didache, chapter 7: – The ma.er of bapDsm is water – The form of bapDsm is the words, “I bapDze you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (Maj.28:19)
• “But concerning bap6sm, thus shall ye bap6ze. Having first recited all these things, bap6ze {in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit} in living [running] water. But if thou hast not living water, then bap6ze in other water; and if thou art not able in cold, then in warm. But if thou hast neither, then pour water on the head thrice in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
The Rite of BapDsm in the Church • For a valid bapDsm, the water must come in contact with the body. – Immersion, – Aspersion (sprinkling) – Affusion (pouring-‐on)
• The Apostolic method is a three-‐fold immersion, as is taught by Tertullian, St. Basil, St. Jerome, and many other early writers. – This threefold immersion is a symbol of the Three Persons of the Trinity, as well as the three days of Christ in the grave.
Spiritual Effects of BapDsm • It is through the sacrament of bapDsm that the iniDal grace of jus$fica$on (sancDfying grace) is given to us. • BapDsm effects the remission of all sin, original and actual. – Be bapDzed every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins; and you shall receive the Holy Ghost (Acts 2:38).
• BapDsm also remits all of the temporal punishments due to sin
Spiritual Effects of BapDsm • BapDsm also gives man a right to those special graces which are necessary for ajaining the end for which the sacrament was insDtuted and for enabling him to fulfill the bapDsmal promises as well as infuses within him the supernatural virtues of faith, hope and charity. • BapDsm incorporates one into the Church, the Body of Christ, and gives him a spiritual bond with all of the other bapDzed, whether they be on earth, in heaven, or in a state of purificaDon. • Finally, bapDsm confers a special character, an indelible mark, as was covered in the class on sacramental theology.
Necessity of BapDsm • CCC 1257: “The Lord Himself affirms that bapDsm is necessary for salvaDon. He also commands His disciples to proclaim the Gospel to all naDons and to bapDze them…The Church does not know of any means other than BapDsm that assures entry into eternal beaDtude…” • The necessity of water bapDsm applies to – those to whom the Gospel has been proclaimed – those who have the possibility of asking for it
Necessity of BapDsm • The Church knows of only two other means, both extensions of bapDsm, wherein people can receive the grace of jusDficaDon – Bap$sm of Blood: The Church has always held the firm convicDon that those who suffer death for the sake of the faith without having received bapDsm are bapDzed by their death for and with Christ. – This teaching comes from Christ, who said, “Everyone therefore who confesses Me before men, I will also confess Him before My Father who is in heaven” (Maj. 10:32). – Bap$sm of Desire: For catechumens who die before their bapDsm, their explicit desire to receive it, together with their repentance for their sins, and charity, assures them the salvaDon that they were not able to receive through the sacrament. • This is based in the power of love. According to Scripture, perfect love possesses jusDfying power: “Many sins are forgiven her because she has loved much” (Luke 7:47), “He that loves Me shall be loved by My Father” (John 14:21)
Who can bapDze? • The ordinary minister of bapDsm is a bishop, priest or deacon, although in case of necessity, any person can bapDze. • Even a non-‐believer or a hereDc can bapDze, provided he adheres to the form of the Church, and has the intenDon of doing what the Church does. • The reason for this wide applicaDon of bapDsm is God’s will to save all men and the necessity of BapDsm for salvaDon.
BapDsm of Infants • BapDsm confers grace ex opere operato, that is, objecDvely and without regard to the recipient.
– Unless they acDvely will to nullify the sacrament, the recipient receives its graces. Since a child cannot do this, they receive the fruits of the sacrament. – Pope Innocent III said, “Original sin, which is contracted without consent, is by the power of the Sacrament, remijed without consent.”
• St. Paul notes that bapDsm has replaced circumcision (Col. 2:11– 12). In that passage, he refers to bapDsm as "the circumcision of Christ" and "the circumcision made without hands." • The New Testament gives several instances of enDre families being bapDzed without omirng the children (Acts 16:15, 33; 1 Cor. 1:16).
The Church Fathers on Infant BapDsm •
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"BapDze first the children, and if they can speak for themselves let them do so. Otherwise, let their parents or other relaDves speak for them" (St. Hippolytus, The Apostolic Tradi6on 21:16 [A.D. 215]). "Do you have an infant child? Allow sin no opportunity; rather, let the infant be sancDfied from childhood. From his most tender age let him be consecrated by the Spirit. Do you fear the seal [of bapDsm] because of the weakness of nature? Oh, what a pusillanimous mother and of how lijle faith!" (St. Gregory Nazianzen, Ora6on on Holy Bap6sm 40:7 [A.D. 388]). "The custom of Mother Church in bapDzing infants is certainly not to be scorned, nor is it to be regarded in any way as superfluous, nor is it to be believed that its tradiDon is anything except apostolic" (St. AugusDne, The Literal Interpreta6on of Genesis 10:23:39 [A.D. 408]).
The Sacrament of ConfirmaDon • From that Dme on the apostles, in fulfillment of Christ’s will, imparted to the newly bapDzed by the laying on of hands the gih of the Spirit that completes the grace of BapDsm. ... -‐CCC 1288 • In addiDon to the laying on of hands, sacred oil (chrism) was very early on added to the rite in order to bejer highlight the name “ChrisDan,” which means “anointed.”
Effects of ConfirmaDon • ConfirmaDon grants to us an outpouring of the Holy Spirit in a special way. From this fact, ConfirmaDon brings an increase and deepening of bapDsmal grace: It roots us more deeply in the Divine Sonship. It unites us more firmly to Christ. It increases the gihs of the Holy Spirit in us. It renders our bond with the Church more perfect. It gives us a special strength of the Holy Spirit to spread and defend the Faith by word and acDon as true witnesses of Christ, to confess the name of Christ boldly, and never to be ashamed of the cross. – Like BapDsm, it confers an indelible spiritual mark, the “character,” or sign that a person is marked with the Holy Spirit by Jesus Christ. – It perfects the common priesthood of the faithful. – – – – –
Who Can Receive ConfirmaDon? • Any bapDzed person who has not already been confirmed can receive ConfirmaDon. – Though BapDsm and Eucharist are sDll certainly valid without ConfirmaDon, ChrisDan iniDaDon would remain incomplete.
• One must be in a state of grace to receive ConfirmaDon and should have first made a sacramental confession. – Intense prayer should prepare one to receive the strength and graces of the Holy Spirit with docility and readiness to act.
The Minister of the Sacrament • In the West, the ordinary minister of the sacrament of ConfirmaDon is the bishop. This has been the pracDce since the earliest days of the Church. • The main reason that this sacrament is reserved to the bishop is that as ConfirmaDon exemplifies the fullness of ChrisDan life, it is proper that it be administered by those who have the fullness of priestly power: the bishops, the successors of the Apostles. • By an indult (permission) of the Apostolic See in 1947, power was granted to parish priests to administer the sacrament within certain parameters and always under the authority of their bishop.
Biblical References for ConfirmaDon •
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Act 8:14-‐17: aher the Samaritan converts had been bapDzed by Philip the deacon, the Apostles "sent unto them Peter and John, who, when they were come, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost…” Acts 19:1-‐6: St. Paul "came to Ephesus, and found certain disciples; and he said to them: Have you received the Holy Ghost since ye believed…Having heard these things, they were bapDzed in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had imposed his hands on them, the Holy Ghost came upon them…" 1 John 2:20, 27: "Let the uncDon [chrisma], which you have received from him, abide in you." Hebrews 6:1-‐4: "leaving the word of the beginning of Christ, let us go on to things more perfect, not laying again the foundaDon . . . of the doctrine of bapDsms, and imposiDon of hands…” 2 Cor. 1:20, 21: "He that confirmeth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God, who also hath sealed us, and given us the pledge of the Spirit in our hearts…"
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