You want your child to begin the journey toward full sacramental initiation which starts with the sacrament of Baptism: Immaculate Conception community applauds this desire. The Catholic Church notes the right as well as the obligation of all parents and sponsors to be properly prepared for the celebration of infant Baptism. Theirs is a significant role. Therefore, IC provides you with this booklet as well as a Baptismal Class. The Baptism of your child will be a significant moment not only for your family and friends but also for the entire Parish. We anticipate that celebration with joy; now is the time for us to prepare. Please read this booklet carefully before you attend the Baptismal Class. Please see insert for dates and times of Baptism Preparation Class.
Rationale for Parent/Sponsor Preparation
Baptism
Parental Responsibilities
Sponsors: Role and Eligibility
Celebrating Infant Baptism Communally
Scheduling the Baptism
Fees
Suggestions
History and Theology of Baptism
In the Catholic Church's current insight regarding Baptism, it is seen as the Sacrament of Initiation into the (local) parish community, the world wide Catholic Church, the family of God and royal priesthood of Christ, as well as the sacramental removal of original sin.
Baptism is the life long and committed rite of belonging; of choosing and accepting the Christian way of life; of being inserted into the Catholic Church through this particular parish or faith community.
For this reason, Baptism is not a private but rather a public act. It is a public affirmation of your faith and a public declaration that you have freely chosen for your child this way of life, this church, this faith tradition. At Baptism, you are committing your child to Christ in, through and with the Church.
There is a deep family, social and spiritual responsibility incurred at the Baptism of your child. This is a profound decision you make, to live the faith, to model it for your child and to nurture the child as he/she grows in faith. Your child will grow in faith by your example of fidelity to the Church, prayer and christian charity.
To have a child baptized, parents must be able and willing to exercise three different responsibilities:
Canon 868 of the Code of Canon Law states "there (should) be a founded hope that the infant will be brought up in the Catholic religion" ....if this is lacking the Baptism is to be deferred and the parent advised of the reasons for this.
Canon 872 identifies two duties attached to the role of infant baptism sponsors:
Most importantly, sponsors MODEL the faith for the child; therefore, parents do well to select as sponsors ONLY those who can have contact with the child and who possess an exemplary Catholic commitment, practice, and spirituality. While one sponsor is sufficient, two are preferred. If only one, either male or female is acceptable. If two, one male and one female are required. Because their preparation is as important as your own, please share copies of this booklet with the sponsors you choose, arrange for them to attend the Baptism Class with you if possible, and provide the parish office with their names.
The specific eligibility requirements according to canon 874 are:
Non-Catholic Christians, since they obviously would not be able to welcome the child into the Catholic community or model Catholic practice, MAY NOT BE SPONSORS. However, in addition to a Catholic sponsor, they may be asked to be a Christian witness for the child.
The following quotes are taken from the General Instructions at the beginning of the Rite of Baptism for Children. Please read these quotes carefully.
"In the actual celebration, the people of God are to be represented not only by the parents, sponsors, and relatives but also by friends, neighbors, and some members of the local church who are to participate actively. Thus, they show their common faith and express their joy as the newly baptized are received into the community of the Church."
"During the rite the community exercises its duty when it expresses its assent together with the celebrant after the profession of faith by the parents and sponsors. In this way it is clear that the faith in which the child is baptized is not the private possession of the individual family, but is the common treasure of the whole Church."
"To bring out the paschal character of baptism, it is to be celebrated during the Easter Vigil or on a Sunday, when the Church commemorates the Lord's resurrection."
"All recently born babies should be baptized at a COMMON celebration on the same day. Except for good reason, baptism IS NOT celebrated more than once on the same day."
"BAPTISM IS TO TAKE PLACE ON A SUNDAY. IT IS TO BE CONFERRED IN A COMMUNAL CELEBRATION FOR ALL RECENTLY-BORN CHILDREN, AND IN THE PRESENCE OF THE FAITHFUL."
IC parish celebrates baptisms on the FIRST and THIRD Sunday's of the month. Baptisms are held in the Worship Center at NOON (immediately following 11 AM Mass). Our pastor and deacon alternate as celebrant. Please see insert for dates and times of Baptisms.
Usually three or four children are Baptized on a Sunday. We ask that you bring your child dressed in what ever clothes you want him/her to wear during the Baptism. Please be prompt. After attending the Baptism Class at the Church, select a particular date from the Calendar of Infant Baptism (see insert) and call the parish office (645-6275) to schedule the baptism.
At times and for various reasons, parents desire to celebrate the child's baptism at a Catholic Church other than Immaculate Conception. Should that situation apply to you, and you need a letter of recommendation from us, speak with the instructor at the Baptism class about it or call the Parish Office. We will gladly provide you with a letter affirming whether or not you:
While it is customary to make an offering to either the minister or the Church, it is neither required nor expected. Some parents like to give a donation to the Church in the name of the child; others offer money to offset the costs of the baptism itself. If you give a donation to the minister of baptism, the minister is required to give a portion of it to the Church. But it must be emphasized that gifts are neither required nor expected.
We hope this booklet has provided you with the answers to questions you have had as well as information you need as you prepare for your child's baptism. We look forward to meeting with you at one of the upcoming preparation classes at the Church. That meeting will provide an occasion for you to ask questions and to review the actual ceremony as celebrated at Immaculate Conception. For your information, a brief history of Baptism follows:
Catholic rites (ceremonies) of initiation express what the community believes about its identity and sense of belonging. To comprehend the meaning of initiation rites of a given historical period, the faith understanding of that period must be examined. History provides the facts; theology interprets those facts with a faith understanding. Therefore, this overview will present the historical development of the rite of baptism as well as the Church's faith understanding about that sacrament.
Early Christian baptism expressed beliefs of the cultural and religious milieu that Christianity inherited from Judaism. The Jewish practice of circumcision and water baptism were the established initiation rites expressing incorporation and purification. John the Baptist introduced two other theological meanings to baptism: repentance leading to the forgiveness of sins and preparation for the coming messianic age. Jesus used the word baptism in reference to his death and resurrection. Therefore,Christian baptism expressed belief in risen life in Christ. The early Church also used baptism to express one's faith con-version and rebirth-recreation into the Spirit-filled Body of the Risen Lord. Therefore, `EARLYCHRISTIAN BAPTISM CELEBRATED INCORPORATION, PURIFICATION, CONVERSION,REPENTANCE, FORGIVENESS, BEING RECREATED INTO THE SPIRIT-FILLED BODY OF THE RISEN LORD, AND PREPARATION FOR THE MESSIANIC KINGDOM -- OR EXPRESSED MOST SIMPLY INCORPORATION INTO CHRIST.'
During this period greater emphasis was placed on adult conversion/initiation; however, given the practice and structure of family life, baptism certainly included infants -- Acts of the Apostles records the initiation of Cornelius and his entire family as well as Lydia "and her household."
Baptismal candidates were prepared through a process called the `catechumenate' consisting of rites that marked one's progress from one period to another toward full membership. This process included instruction on the creed, morality, prayer, and fasting. It sought to aid a participant's faith response to the belief in Christ's death-resurrection and their repentance for personal sin. The first part of the Sunday worship (today called the `Liturgy of the Word') was called the `Mass of the Catechumens.' Following this portion of the service they were dismissed while fully initiated members remained to celebrate the Eucharist. At the annual Easter Vigil celebration, those having completed their formation were fully initiated by immersion in baptismal water, anointing with chrism oil by the bishop, and the first sharing of Eucharist.
The legalization of Christianity by the Edict of Constantine, 312 A.D., enabled the Church to experience widespread conversions. No longer able to preside over all baptisms, bishops of the Western Church had priests administer Baptism and First Eucharist but reserved to themselves the anointing with oil portion of the initiation ceremony in order to retain personal involvement with everyone's initiation. Therefore, the traditional sequence of ritual initiation changed from water-oil-table to water-table-oil with the oiling ritual celebrated separately from the other two. The word `confirmation,' referring to the anointing, first appeared in the fifth century; by the ninth century confirmation was considered a completely separate sacrament. The traditional threefold unity of Christian initiation became fragmented. Soon, the catechumenate process disappeared. When the rite was administered to infants, the ceremony was shortened and became less a matter of community concern or involvement.
The major impetus of infant baptism grew out of a response to a fifth century theological controversy. Against a growing belief that Adam's sin had no consequence on the rest of humankind, St. Augustine emphasized infant baptism to the point where it became the norm throughout the Church. It was the impact of Augustine's theology that initiated the view of baptism as the sacrament for the forgiveness of original sin rather than incorporation into the Body of Christ. Certainly a better theological justification for infant baptism was articulated by St. John Chrysostom in the fourth century: "...in baptism they (infants) are given justice and inheritance of the grace to be members of Christ and dwellings of the Holy Spirit." During the first half of the sixth century infant baptism became more common than adult baptism.
The idea that faith as a response to preaching was a prerequisite for baptism had now to find a different theological support. The belief developed that although infants were not capable of a personal faith, the faith of the Church supplied it for them. Theology continued to strongly emphasize that the sacrament removed the stain of original sin. By the fifteenth century baptism was defined as the sacrament "through which an infant is rescued from the devil's power and adopted as God's child." Baptism by immersion became replaced by baptism by infusion (pouring).
The theology of the Second Vatican Council is more reflective of scripture and Church tradition. In 1963, the Church reached a significant turning point. It called for the restoration of the catechumenate for adults (meaning those seven years of age or older) and the revision of the rite of baptism: initiation as incorporation into the life of Christ and his Church, emphasis on the traditional baptismal method of immersion and the traditional sequence of initiation -- Baptism/Confirmation/Eucharist, and initiation preparation and rites as the concern of the "entire community." Today, initiation practice is now more expressive of belief rather than justification for ritual.
The revised Rite of Baptism for Children was issued in 1969; in 1971, the Rite of Confirmation was published and shows its more intimate connection with the whole initiation process. The sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist are now seen as constituting one unity and continuum by which a person achieves full incorporation into Christ and membership in his Body, the Church. Baptism only begins the initiation journey for an infant. It is a significant beginning -- one deserving our attention and preparation.
