The Baptism - Start of the Christian life

The Baptism - Start of the Christian life

Baptism is the gateway to faith and provides access to the Church: it is through baptism that one becomes Christian. In Catholic Christian families it is common to baptize the child shortly after birth; but adults who want to become Christians are also baptized. Baptism is the condition to access the other sacraments.

One who understands the language of symbols, will readily recognize the significance of baptism: it is a kind of second birth. A child becomes, by birth, a member of the human community; through baptism, he/she becomes a member of the Church, Christ’s community.

The following symbols show:

– * The water that is poured on the forehead of the child or adult, is an ancient symbol of life and means our reconciliation with God through Christ.
– * The anointing with consecrated oil (chrism) shows that this human now belongs to Christ (“Christ” comes from the Greek and means “who is anointed”: the anointed one).
– * The white garment shows that we are clothed with Christ and His Love, which means that we are ready to model our lives on His own.
– * The candle refers to Christ, Light of the world, through which death has not the last word in this world.

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