Baptism

Catechism of the Catholic Church: ARTICLE 1
THE SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM

1213 Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit (vitae spiritualis ianua),4 and the door which gives access to the other sacraments. Through Baptism we are freed from sin and reborn as sons of God; we become members of Christ, are incorporated into the Church and made sharers in her mission: "Baptism is the sacrament of regeneration through water in the word."5
 
I. WHAT IS THIS SACRAMENT CALLED?
 
1214  This sacrament is called Baptism, after the central rite by which it is carried out: to baptize (Greek baptizein) means to "plunge" or "immerse"; the "plunge" into the water symbolizes the catechumen's burial into Christ's death, from which he rises up by resurrection with him, as "a new creature."6
 
1215  This sacrament is also called "the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit," for it signifies and actually brings about the birth of water and the Spirit without which no one "can enter the kingdom of God."7
 
1216   "This bath is called enlightenment, because those who receive this [catechetical] instruction are enlightened in their understanding . . . ."8 Having received in Baptism the Word, "the true light that enlightens every man," the person baptized has been "enlightened," he becomes a "son of light," indeed, he becomes "light" himself:9
 
 
At Holy Family Parish, we encourage our parish families to present their newborn infants for the Sacrament of Baptism soon after birth, because this sacrament is the foundation of the Christian life. In Baptism the child, freed from original sin, becomes an heir to the Kingdom of God, receiving the theological virtues of faith, hope and charity and the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. Through Baptism the child now has access to the other sacraments.
 
Noah’s ark is seen as a prefiguring of salvation by Baptism, for by it a few were saved through water. When the Jews fled Egypt by crossing the Red Sea, Israel was liberated from the slavery of Pharaoh; in like manner, the baptized is freed from the tyranny of sin and Satan by the waters of holy Baptism.
 
Arrangements for infant baptism must be made in advance.
 
Please contact June Kattar at 952.929.0113 ext. 14 for more information.