The Ceremony

The Sacrament of Baptism is broken up into a number of sections.  They are as follows:

The naming ceremony

To give a name to something or somebody has always been important and meaningful in Scripture.  The first man, whom God named Adam (of the earth) was given the privilege of naming all the animals. As the story goes, it was while doing this that Adam found out there was nobody else like him. So God created Eve (mother of the living). The Angel Gabriel told Zachariah to name his announces son John.

We all know that Mary’s son was given the name Jesus, which means God saves, Jesus is the Immanuel which means God is with us.

Jesus himself changed the name of Simon to Peter and the name Saul to Paul.

All these names have special meanings. All names have, and the privilege of naming expresses a privileged relationship between namer and named.

This child has been given a name by his/her parents. This name will always be important to the child, to the Community, to the Church. After the Baptism it will be entered into the parish records for all time, so the American tourists can search our their roots in generations to come!

The Liturgy of the Word

Prayers of the Faithful

Litany of the Saints

Anointing with the Oil of Catechumenate

Blessing of the Water

Renewal of Baptismal Promises

Baptism

Anointing with the Oil of Chrism

Priests and Kings were anointed with oil and set apart as God’s special leaders. In the same way the oil of chrism is a reminder that we share the power of Christ the Priest: to offer praise and thanks to God the Father, we share the power of Christ the Prophet: that we may speak words of peace and encouragement, and we share the power of Christ the King: that we may serve God in the world through our work, making a better world in serving the needs of others.

Putting on of the Baptismal Robe

The new Christian wore the white garment for a week as a sign that he had taken on a new way of life.

Lighting of the Baptismal Candle

Ephata Prayer

Our Father

Final Blessings

If you can give your son or daughter only one gift,
let it be Enthusiasm.

Bruce Barton