For the baptism of a child or an adult
“Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.” John 3:5
Baptism is not only a name-giving or a family custom. It is a new birth by water and the Spirit: original sin is washed away and the child becomes a child of God.
The baptised person becomes a member of the Body of Christ, the Church. The whole parish receives a new member today.
The white garment and the lighted candle are signs of a life to be kept pure and bright. In the Eastern Churches holy Myron (Chrismation) is given together with Baptism, sealing the gift of the Spirit.
The promises made today are kept at home: morning and night prayer, the sign of the cross, Sunday Holy Mass / Holy Qurbana.
Dear parents, godparents and friends, today we bring this child to the font. Jesus said to Nicodemus, “No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.” What happens here is a birth: the child was born once to you; today the child is born to God.
In Baptism original sin is washed away, and this little one becomes a child of the Father, a brother or sister of Christ, and a temple of the Holy Spirit. The child also becomes a member of the Church. That is why we celebrate it in the church and not only at home: the whole parish receives a new member.
The white garment says: keep this life pure. The burning candle says: keep this light alive. But a candle cannot guard itself. Dear parents and godparents, the promises you make today must be kept in your home: in the first prayers you teach, in the sign of the cross you trace on this forehead, in the Sunday Holy Mass / Holy Qurbana you never miss.
Let us thank God for this child, and let us all renew our own Baptism today. Each of us was once carried to the font like this. May we live as children of God. Amen.
At creation the Spirit moved over the waters (Genesis 1:2). God begins again with water.
Noah's ark and Israel's crossing are pictures of Baptism: death to the old, a road to freedom (1 Peter 3:20–21; 1 Corinthians 10:1–2).
Jesus goes down into the river, the heavens open and the Father speaks (Mark 1:9–11). What happened to Him now happens to this child.
From the pierced side of Christ came blood and water (John 19:34): the Church is born from the Cross.
Dear parents, godparents and friends, today a small amount of water will be poured, but it carries the whole history of God's love. The Bible begins with water: the Spirit of God moving over the deep, bringing order and life out of chaos. Every Baptism is a new creation.
Think of Noah. The world was drowning in its own violence, and God saved a family in the ark, carried through the waters into a new beginning. St Peter says plainly that this was a picture of Baptism (1 Peter 3:20–21). Think of Israel at the Red Sea: slaves went into the water and came out free, while Pharaoh's power stayed behind. Today this child passes through the water too, and what stays behind is the power of sin.
Then the Jordan. Jesus had no sin, yet He went down into the river, to stand with sinners and to make the water holy. The heavens opened, the Spirit came down, and the Father called Him His beloved Son (Mark 1:9–11). In a few minutes heaven opens over this child as well. The Father says the same word over this little one: you are my beloved.
And finally the Cross. When the soldier pierced the side of Jesus, blood and water flowed (John 19:34). The Fathers of the Church saw there the two great sacraments, Baptism and the Eucharist, flowing from the heart of Christ. This font is connected to that wound. The life given today is bought at a price.
So, parents and godparents, you are not only arranging a family function. You are bringing this child into the great story of salvation. Tell this story at home. Show the child the baptismal candle every year on this date. Bring the child to the Holy Mass / Holy Qurbana, where the life begun today is fed. The waters are deep, and the love of God is deeper.
Original sin and, for adults, all personal sin and all punishment due to sin are forgiven (CCC 1263).
The baptised becomes an adopted son or daughter of the Father, a member of Christ and a temple of the Holy Spirit (CCC 1265).
Baptism makes us members of the Body of Christ and gives a share in the priesthood of all believers (CCC 1267–1268).
Baptism marks the soul with an indelible spiritual seal; it is never repeated (CCC 1272).
Dear friends, people sometimes ask why the Church baptises infants who cannot yet believe. The answer is the same reason parents feed a baby before it can ask for food. Life is a gift we receive before we understand it. The Church has baptised children from the earliest centuries, because grace does not wait for our cleverness (CCC 1250–1252).
What happens today? First, sin is washed away. This child has done nothing wrong, but every human being is born into a wounded humanity, without the friendship with God that Adam lost. Baptism restores that friendship. Original sin is forgiven, and the child receives sanctifying grace, the very life of God in the soul (CCC 1263, 1266).
Second, the child becomes a child of God. Not in a vague sense, as all creatures belong to God, but by adoption: a son or daughter of the Father, a brother or sister of Christ, a temple of the Holy Spirit (CCC 1265). St Paul says that we have been buried with Christ in Baptism so that we may walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4).
Third, the child becomes a member of the Church. From today this little one belongs to this parish family and to the whole Catholic Church throughout the world. The baptised share in the priesthood of Christ: one day this child will offer prayer and life to God, and will have a right and a duty to be taught the faith (CCC 1268–1269).
Fourth, Baptism leaves a seal that can never be erased (CCC 1272). Even if someone later wanders far away, the door home remains marked with the sign of Christ. That is why parents and godparents promise today to bring the child up in the faith. The sacrament is complete; the growth is your task. Teach the child to pray, bring the child to the Holy Mass / Holy Qurbana, and let your own lives show what a baptised person looks like.
Heavenly Father, you have given this child a new birth by water and the Spirit. Keep the white garment unstained and the light of faith burning, and bless the parents and godparents who will lead this child to you. Amen.