Baptism as a Sacrament

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Baptism was first recorded in the New Testament when John the Baptist submerged Jesus in the River Jordan (Mark 1:9-11). Baptism was already a widely practiced rite of initiation for the Jewish religion as the cleansing of the body was seen as an act of purification in the eyes of God. Baptism actually comes from a Greek word that means to “plunge or immerse”. Of course this sacrament is a rite of initiation into the Catholic Church, and it is one of the few sacraments that is ex opere operato, “by the work worked”, which means that it is only the nature of the person receiving the sacrament that matters, if the priest has sinned or is not of the right disposition than God’s Grace will still visit upon the person. It also means that anyone can perform a baptism, as long as they get the basic words and acts correct. There are five main aspects to the sacrament of Baptism, as explained in Christian Symbol and Initiation, the first aspect is that of the hermeneutic experience, whereby people become Christian, they start to see all things differently, through a Christian point of view, and that is something that cannot be undone, it will always stay with them, this knowledge of what it is to be Christian will define their world view. Presence is the second aspect of Baptism, this is the recognition that God is all around us and the Holy Spirit is shared by all in the community. It is recognisable in the sponsors who prepared and vouched for the initiate, the parents who will guide them and the community of the Church as a whole. Now that the initiate has been baptised they are ready for a life of Service and Maturation, these aspects go hand in hand, as when one grows in spirit so they will grow in love. It is this love that empowers the newly baptised person to go forth and lead a Christian life, one of justness and love. The final aspect of Baptism is Friendship,

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