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~ INITIATION ~
Baptized into the Kingdom
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." [Titus 3:5;
Jn 3:5] 1215
Christ’s Baptism
 In
his Passover Christ opened to all men the fountain of Baptism. He had
already spoken of his Passion, which he was about to suffer in
Jerusalem, as a "Baptism" with which he had to be baptized. [Mk 10:38;
Lk 12:50] The blood and water that flowed from the pierced side of the
crucified Jesus are types of Baptism and the Eucharist, the sacraments
of new life. [Jn 19:34; 1 Jn 5:6-8] From then on, it is possible "to be
born of water and the Spirit" [Jn 3:5] in order to enter the Kingdom of
God. See where
you are baptized, see where Baptism comes from, if not from the cross
of Christ, from his death. There is the whole mystery: he died for you.
In him you are redeemed, in him you are saved. [St. Ambrose, De sacr.
2, 2, 6: PL 16, 444; Jn 3:5] 1225
The baptismal water
is consecrated by a prayer of epiclesis (either at this moment or at
the Easter Vigil). The Church asks God that through his Son the power
of the Holy Spirit may be sent upon the water, so that those who will
be baptized in it may be "born of water and the Spirit." [Jn 3:5] 1238 For the forgiveness of sins . . .
By Baptism all sins
are forgiven, original sin and all personal sins, as well as all
punishment for sin. [Council of Trent (1546): 1515] In those who have
been reborn nothing remains that would impede their entry into the
Kingdom of God, neither Adam's sin, nor personal sin, nor the
consequences of sin, the gravest of which is separation from God. 1263
The Conversion of the Baptized
Jesus calls to conversion. This call is an essential part of the
proclamation of the kingdom: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of
God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel." [Mk 1:15] In the
Church's preaching this call is addressed first to those who do not yet
know Christ and his Gospel. Also, Baptism is the principal place for
the first and fundamental conversion. It is by faith in the Gospel and
by Baptism [Acts 2:38] that one renounces evil and gains salvation,
that is, the forgiveness of all sins and the gift of new life. 1427
The integrity of the person
Whoever wants to remain faithful to his baptismal promises and resist
temptations will want to adopt the means
for doing so: self-knowledge, practice of an ascesis adapted to the
situations that confront him, obedience to God's commandments, exercise
of the moral virtues, and fidelity to prayer. "Indeed it is through
chastity that we are gathered together and led back to the unity from
which we were fragmented into multiplicity." [Titus 2:1-6] 2340
The Battle for Purity
Baptism confers on its recipient the grace of purification from all
sins. But the baptized must continue to struggle against concupiscence
of the flesh and disordered desires. With God's grace he will prevail
- by the virtue and gift of chastity, for chastity lets us love with upright and undivided heart;
- by purity of intention
which consists in seeking the true end of man: with simplicity of
vision, the baptized person seeks to find and to fulfill God's will in
everything; [Wis 15:5]
- by purity of vision,
external and internal; by discipline of feelings and imagination; by
refusing all complicity in impure thoughts that incline us to turn
aside from the path of God's commandments: "Appearance arouses yearning
in fools"; [St. Augustine, Conf 6, 11, 20: PL 32, 729-730]
- by prayer:
I
thought that continence arose from one's own powers, which I did not
recognize in myself. I was foolish enough not to know . . . that no one
can be continent unless you grant it. For you would surely have granted
it if my inner groaning had reached your ears and I with firm faith had
cast my cares on you. [Rom 12:2; Col 1:10] 2520
The Celebration of Confirmation
In the Latin rite, "the sacrament of Confirmation is conferred through
the anointing with chrism on the forehead, which is done by the laying
on of the hand, and through the words: 'Accipe signaculum doni Spiritus Sancti'
[Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit.]." [St. Hippolytus, Trad
Ap 21: SCh 11, 11, 80-95] In the Eastern Churches of Byzantine rite,
after a prayer of epiclesis the more significant parts of the body are
anointed with myron: forehead, eyes, nose, ears, lips, breast, back,
hands, and feet. Each anointing is accompanied by the formula: [Greek
text here] (Signaculum doni Spiritus Sancti): "the seal of the gift of
the Holy Spirit." [Rom 8:15] 1300 To receive Confirmation
one must be in a state of grace. One should receive the sacrament of
Penance in order to be cleansed for the gift of the Holy Spirit. More
intense prayer should prepare one to receive the strength and graces of
the Holy Spirit with docility and readiness to act. [Acts 1:14] 1310
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