They were deeply shaken. They asked Peter and the other apostles: “What are we to do, brothers?” Peter answered “You must reform and be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, that your sins may be forgiven; then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:37-38)
Are you not aware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Through baptism into his death we were buried with him so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of God the Father, we too might live a new of life. (Rom 6:3-4)
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OPENING
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1584. This chapter begins our presentation of the seven ritual sacraments, and more specifically, of two of the “sacraments of initiation,” namely, Baptism and Confirmation (cf. CCC 1212). In the preceding chapter, the essentials of the renewed vision of sacraments in general were explained. Now we wish to apply that broad understanding specifically to the introductory sacrament of Baptism and its complement, Confirmation.
1585. A deeper link with the former chapters is that this chapter follows the order proposed in this Part III of the Catechism, namely, the Holy Spirit __ the Church __ the Sacraments. Actually, the two sacraments taken up here are the two most explicitly related to the Holy Spirit, whose power and inspiration create, unify and actualize all the realities taken up in this Part III. Moreover, the Church itself, which we saw in the past two chapters constitutes the “Fundamental or basic Sacrament,” grounds these two as well as all seven ritual sacraments.
1586. But one of the most important insights of the present sacramental renewal is the central place of the Eucharist among the seven sacraments. All the other sacraments relate to the Eucharist as the central core of the sacramental life (cf. CCC 1211). Therefore, some catechetical works choose to begin their treatment of the sacraments with the Eucharist. While acknowledging the values of such an approach, this work has opted for the sequence actually followed in Christian sacramental life, and stressed in the Vatican II sponsored Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA; cf. CCC 1210). The best way to bring out the centrality of the Eucharist may well be to literally place its treatment in the center (Chap. 26, between Chaps. 24 and 28). This permits a gradual introduction to the Eucharist by the preceding chapters on the Sacraments in general and the “Initiation Sacraments,” together with the development of the Eucharistic life in the following chapters on the Sacraments of Healing and Vocation.
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CONTEXT
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1587. Baptism is very popular among Filipino Catholics. One reason is surely our basic “family-centeredness” and love of children, both of which are strongly fostered by Baptisms as celebrated in our country. Moreover, given the strong religious dimension of Filipino culture, it is natural that the religious baptismal celebrations play a significant role in creating and fostering important social relationships.
But it is commonly noted that baptisms often tend to become merely social events. Chief concern is given to the numerous ninongs, ninangs, and (especially in the case of the well-to-do) to the lavish feast for the invited guests. Less interest is shown in the explicit religious dimension of the sacrament itself. From a pragmatic view, Baptism seems reduced to mere registration into the Church, parallel with civil registration/birth certificate as a Filipino citizen. Little appreciation for Baptism as initiation into new life in Christ is manifested.
1588. One result of these deficiencies is that many Filipinos baptized as infants never have the chance to “grow up in the Faith.” They are “nominal Catholics” __ Catholics only in name, not in action and deed. This results mostly from being baptized because of the prevalent “socialization process” [we are by tradition Catholics here], not by personal conviction and commitment to Christ.
Much has been done, especially through vibrant, active BECs, to “put faith in Christ” back into infant and adult Baptism. Yet, PCP II has highlighted the crying need for pre-sacramental catechesis, especially for Baptism, Confirmation and Marriage. The Plenary Council emphasized the family as an evangelizing agent, even going into detail by insisting that parents, god-parents and sponsors attend pre-Baptism and pre-Confirmation catechesis. Such directives are truly admirable in their intent, but for a number of practical reasons pose major difficulties regarding their implementation in the Church’s pastoral ministry throughout our country (cf. PCP II, Decrees, Arts. 10, 48).
1589. One factor which constitutes a great part of the actual problem with Baptisms in our parishes and barrio chapels is the sheer number of children to be baptized, especially at particular times such as Christmas, Easter and fiestas. Much greater participation of sufficiently formed lay persons is needed to make really possible an adequate pre-baptismal catechesis in the majority of our parishes.
This raises a second factor: lack of trained catechetical personnel. The NCDP had already admitted that “preparation for adult baptisms may demand a deeper understanding of the faith than the ordinary catechist possesses” (NCDP 361). This is all the more true of the average Catholic parents, god-parents and sponsors. Hence the urgent overriding need in our country for a continuing catechetical effort that effectively fosters a deeper, more personal, and more inspiring “maturing in Christian Faith.”
1590. Some have asserted that Filipino Catholics are “sacramentalized” but “not yet evangelized.” Perhaps it is more accurate to see the greatest need in helping Filipinos “to easily understand the sacramental signs and eagerly frequent those sacraments that were instituted to nourish the Christian life” (SC 59). Toward that goal, the exposition of this chapter begins with a brief general introduction to the sacramental structure, especially the Sacraments of Initiation. The second section then develops the Sacrament of Baptism, comparing the “popular view” with the main insights drawn from Scripture in the Church’s sacramental renewal, and concluding with some contemporary points of special interest. The final briefer section does the same for the Sacrament of Confirmation.
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EXPOSITION
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I. Sacraments and Human Development
1591. The preceding chapter noted how the sacraments are well-grounded in our very nature as embodied spirits. We all naturally use sensible symbols to actualize and make present the spiritual realities of our lives. Now we take up briefly a further dimension of this anthropological basis for the sacraments: the parallel between the stages of our natural, physical/social life, and those of our Christian spiritual life (cf. CCC 1212). Catholic tradition has drawn the comparison between our physical generation and Baptism, our spiritual regeneration; between our growth and Confirmation in which we are strengthened by the Holy Spirit; between nutrition needed for physical life, and the Eucharist, the bread of eternal life. Even the cure of the physical and spiritual ills of natural life are paralleled by Penance/Reconciliation and Anointing of the Sick, while Order and Matrimony relate to the essential natural community needs of leadership and propagation.
1592. While social scientists today take for granted and develop such parallelism, catechists and liturgists are rightfully concerned about the danger of reducing God’s utterly gratuitous Self-giving to us in Christ in the sacraments to simply the natural human growing-up process. Such concern is well grounded, given the common “scientific” and “behaviorist” attitudes so prevalent among us today. What is needed is to bring out both the relationship of human birth, growth, healing and vocation with the seven sacraments, and the uniqueness of the sacraments as uniting us with Jesus. Sacraments keep alive Jesus’ presence within us; through them we encounter Jesus our Risen Lord and Savior. Both natural growth and union with Christ in one person ultimately arise from the one universal salvific will of God who continually creates and redeems all that exists through the Spirit in Christ Jesus.
1593. The affirmation of both the similarity of our natural life with our grace-life, as well as the uniqueness of sacramental life, is exemplified in Catholic tradition by St. Nicholas Cabasilas. “It is thanks to the sacraments __ which proclaim Christ’s death and burial __ that we are born to supernatural life, develop and are united in an admirable way to the Savior. It is through these sacred signs that, as St. Paul says, ‘we live and move and have our being’” (Acts 17:28). The author then focuses on the sacraments of initiation:
Baptism enables us to be and subsist in Christ. It is this sacrament which gives life to those who lie in death and corruption. Confirmation perfects those so born by giving them the energy that goes with this life. The Eucharist preserves what has been received and keeps it alive. Thus, we live by this Bread, we are strengthened by this Anointing, after we have received our being in the bath of Baptism.
1594. The present sacramental renewal continues to affirm this same basic parallelism between the natural human passage and the sacramental life, especially in regard to the sacraments of initiation. These are the sacraments which lay the foundation for the whole of Christian life.
The grace of Christ has a certain analogy with the origin, growth and sustaining of natural life. Born to a new life in Baptism, the faithful are strengthened by the sacrament of Confirmation and receive in the Eucharist the Bread of eternal life. Thus, through the sacraments of Christian initiation, they continually receive more riches of the divine life and advance toward perfect charity (Paul VI, DCN).
A new insight is alluded to here by Paul VI in linking the notions of gradual process and growth in sacramental life to the life of Christian charity, which in our Filipino context certainly includes Christian witness before others in the pursuit of justice and preferential option for the poor.
II. Baptism
Prenotes
1595. In keeping with the Church’s sacramental renewal, our exposition of Baptism shall focus on the Baptism of adults (cf. CCC 1247). For only with adults can the full reality of the sacrament be brought out. But this pertains equally to our common Filipino practice of Infant Baptism. For it is on the adult faith of the parents, the god-parents and sponsors, that the responsibility falls for developing the seed of faith received by the infants in Baptism.
1596. A second prenote concerns the practical aim to directly respond to the popular reductionist idea of Baptism with the Church’s renewed teaching. Most Filipino Catholics have a general idea of Baptism, but little interest in “how it works.” Nor despite the catechesis or religious instruction they may have received, do they have any clear idea of what Baptism has to do with their ordinary daily lives, even their spiritual lives.
Therefore our presentation of the essential Church teaching on Baptism is structured to deepen the popular understanding and reveal the truly inspiring life-giving reality of Baptism. The following table presumes the fundamental CONTINUITY of the Church’s teaching on Baptism, and simply aims at highlighting the renewal inspired by Vatican II.
A. Church’s Teaching on Baptism
1597. Popular Understanding Church’s Teaching
| Baptism makes one think of: | Baptism truly means: |
| 1. a. waterb. washing away original sin | 1. a. New life in Christ,sharing in his dying and rising with him which includes the forgiveness of original sin and all personal sins
b. through the cleansing power of water and the Spirit; |
| 2.a. entry into Church building;b. babies
c. passive reception d. clerical ritual e. works automatically 3. a. once-for-all ritual b. no active influencing power in ordinary life c. single past event |
2. a. Incorporation into the Christian community, Christ’s Bodyb. of adults and babies
c. Sacrament of the Church’s faith d. a personal prayer of those celebrating the sacrament e. receiving the transforming grace of Baptism effecting conversion and drawing to an ever deeper Christian commitment. 3. a. a ritual calling for a life of Christian discipleship b. influencing our daily life by being the permanent source of sharing in God’s own life in Christ; c. a single event grounding the baptized whole future life-process, as manifested in the yearly liturgical renewal of Baptismal vows. |
1598. Baptism, then, is presented here under three major headings: 1) new life in Christ through water and the Spirit, and by dying/rising with Christ in sharing his Paschal Mystery; 2) incorporation into the Church through the sacrament of Faith; and 3) sharing the Trinitarian divine life in an on-going, progressive way that looks ever to the future.
New Life in Union with Christ
1599. Baptism’s first effect is to unite the baptized with Christ, their Risen Lord. How this union is effected is biblically developed in two ways: through the symbol of water and God’s Spirit, and secondly, by sharing in Christ’s “baptism” of his Paschal Mystery. Both ways are superbly presented for us in the Easter Vigil liturgy (cf. CCC 1217).
1. Genesis (Chapters 1-2) presents God’s creation of the world, with His Spirit hovering over the waters. The Church prays: “Almighty God you created all things. . . Help us to perceive your new creation by which you redeemed your people through the sacrifice of our Passover, Jesus Christ.” St. Paul had reminded us that “if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation. The old order have passed away” (2 Cor 5:17).
“And God said: ‘Let there be light’ (Gen 1:3). So the Vigil’s Service of the Light celebrates Christ our Light, symbolized in the Paschal Candle. Baptism is called “enlightenment” because the baptized receive Christ the light of the world, (cf. Jn 8:12), the Word who is “the real light which gives light to every man” (Jn 1:9). So the newly baptized, after having been “enlightened” (cf. Heb 10:32), become “children of light” (1 Thes 5:5). Since they are “light in the Lord,” they are admonished: “Live as children of light” (Eph 5:8; CCC 1216).
2. Abraham’s faith in offering his only son Isaac, (cf. Gen 22) prepares us for Christ’s sacrifice, when God the Father “did not spare his own Son, but handed him over for the sake of us all” (Rom 8:32). Through the Death and Resurrection of Christ, God fulfilled his promise to Abraham, the father of all nations, to increase His Chosen People by His invitation to the new life of grace.
3. The Exodus deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt, the land of slavery, through the waters of the Red Sea, is the Old Testament symbol of our deliverance from the slavery of sin through the baptismal waters. The Church’s prayer proclaims that “the Red Sea is a symbol of our baptism, and the nation free from slavery is a sign of the Christian people.” God who “once saved a single nation from slavery, now offers salvation to all through baptism” (CCC 1221).
4. Isaiah the prophet speaks of the enduring love of the “Holy One of Israel,” Israel’s Redeemer, who will never again deluge the earth with the Flood waters of Noah (cf. Is 54:5,9f). St. Peter explained how Christ suffered and died that he might lead the unjust to God, and by his Resurrection was given new life in the Spirit. This new life he communicates to believers through baptism that cleanses their consciences from sin. As Noah’s family was saved through water, so Christians are saved through the waters of baptism (cf. 1 Pt 3:18-21). Early Christians saw in Noah’s Ark a symbol of the Church, and the dove as symbol of the Spirit.
5. God promised through His prophet Ezekiel (Chapter 36) to “sprinkle clean water” upon his people to cleanse them from all their impurities, and to give them a new heart and place a new spirit within them, taking away their stony hearts and replacing them with natural hearts (cf. Ez 36:25f). So the Church prays to God: “Send your Spirit of adoption on those to be born again in baptism.”
6. The Vigil’s Epistle is Paul’s description of dying-rising with Christ in Baptism. “We were buried with him through baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life” (Rom 6:4). Baptism, then, is how we come to share in Christ’s own death which he spoke of as his “baptism.” I have a baptism to receive. What anguish I feel till it is over (Lk 12:50; cf. CCC 1225). Baptism for us is a radical immersion in Christ, total allegiance to him. So Paul continues: “His death was death to sin, once for all, his life is life for God. In the same way, you must consider yourselves dead to sin but alive for God in Christ Jesus” (Rom 6:10f).
1600. Importance of Biblical Images. This extended sketch of the Biblical images of water and Spirit is intended to correct the unreflected, superficial idea of water in the sacrament of Baptism that is commonplace today. Most Filipino Catholics are surely not thinking of Bap-tismal water as a life-death reality. Nor is Baptism considered as relating us directly to Christ. Yet such is precisely the deep meaning revealed in the Biblical narratives of Creation, the Flood, the Exodus, and Christ’s own Paschal Mystery. A renewed understanding of Baptism for ordinary Filipino Catholics, then, depends in great measure on how well they can grasp the deeper Faith-meaning of the Baptismal symbols. Can water, Spirit, and Light really bring to mind and heart the depth realities of life, death, redemption, and grace?
This goal challenges Philippine catechists today. But at least the true nature of Baptism is now clear. In the “Introduction to the Rite of Christian Initiation” the Church explains: “When people are baptized, they share sacramentally in Christ’s death. . . For baptism recalls and actualizes the Paschal Mystery itself, because by it men and women pass from the death of sin into life” (RCIA 6).
Original Sin and Baptism
1601. Original sin in the context of Baptism refers not to the personal sin committed by the first human beings and described figuratively in Gen 3:1-7, but rather to the sinful condition into which all human beings as descendants of Adam and Eve are born, with the exception of Jesus and Mary Most Holy. Such an inherited “sinful condition or state” consists essentially in the privation of sanctifying grace.
The “originating sin” committed by Adam and Eve had and continues to have also other disastrous consequences, both within each human being and on the environment in which we live. Thus, not only do we experience a painful moral weakness in trying to do what our conscience tells us to be right (cf. Rom 7:13-15), but also a certain inclination to evil, which has traditionally been called “concupiscence.”
As a consequence of concupiscence and our moral weakness and personal sins, we find ourselves in a society which is characterized by sinful structures, injustices, suffering, frustrations and moral aberrations, which clearly stand against God’s original plan for mankind.
1602. Now baptism’s sensible sign of washing with water symbolizes and effects a cleansing from all sin and rebirth to new life in THE SPIRIT (cf. CCC 1263). Traditionally, original sin has been described as a “black mark” to be washed off in Baptism. This image seeks to portray the hereditary privation of sanctifying grace. It is the HOLY SPIRIT that frees us from sin. Put simply, we are in a state of sin when God’s Holy Spirit does not dwell within us. Therefore “sin is removed” by the coming of the Spirit. Baptism takes away all sin, both original and personal for adults, by signifying and effecting the coming of the Holy Spirit. So St. Peter proclaimed at Pentecost: “Be baptized. . . that your sins may be forgiven; . . . then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:37f). St. Paul reminded Titus that God “saved us through the baptism of new birth and renewal in the Holy Spirit. This Spirit he lavished on us through Jesus Christ our Savior” (Ti 3:5).
The core of original sin, then, is the privation of grace, which is removed by the coming of the Holy Spirit effected in Baptism.
1603. This does not mean that the baptized no longer experience any effects of original sin. We all remain in the world marked by the weight of evil that burdens us all. We must all continue to “wrestle with” and resist our inner inclination to sin (concupiscence) (cf. Trent, ND 512). How then does Baptism “take away” original sin? It does so by symbolizing and effecting the baptized’s saving solidarity with Christ, within the Spirit-filled community of his Body, the Church. The struggle against sin must go on, but now the baptized are marked with Christ, indwelt by the Spirit, and supported by the Christian community. How else could the Father “wipe away our sins” except through the loving embrace of the Spirit, joining us to Christ, our Savior, and to one another, members of his Body, the Church?
1604. Summary. The main point of this section has been to explain that Baptism focuses on Christ, not on washing away original sin. The core of Baptism is new life in Christ, a sharing in Christ, a radical change of allegiance to Christ. It is “a new birth; a birth unto hope which draws its life from the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead; a birth to an imperishable inheritance (1 Pt 1:3f).
Christ as the “Primordial Sacrament” means here not only that “when anyone baptizes, it is really Christ himself who baptizes” (SC 7). It also means Christ himself is the goal and fullness for which Baptism is administered. Jesus is the man completely immersed in God, his Father, whose presence completely and perfectly fills Christ’s humanity. Jesus is the “man for others” because he is utterly and totally “for the Father.” “I am the good shepherd, I know my sheep and my sheep know me in the same way that the Father knows me and I know the Father; . . . The Father loves me for this: that I lay down my life. . . This command I received from my Father” (Jn 10:14-18). “The Father and I are one” (Jn 10:30).
All our celebrations of baptism thus derive from Jesus, the Christ (the Anointed One), and are ordered to bringing us into vital relationship with him, the Good Shepherd, our Savior.
Incorporation into the Church
1605. Baptism’s second effect is to unite us with others as members of Christ’s Body, the Church (cf. CCC 1267-70). “The body is one and has many members but all the members many through they are, are one body, and so it is with Christ. It was in one spirit that all of us. . . were baptized into one body. All of us have been given to drink of the one Spirit” (1 Cor 12:12f). This means that our personal relationship with Christ is never any “private affair” we have created by ourselves, but always a loving friendship that originates, develops and grows in union with fellow-members of Christ’s Body, the Church. Our baptismal life is never a solitary, isolated thing, but a communal sharing with others in Christ our Lord.
PCP II describes how, empowered through Baptism, the lay faithful act as the heart of the Church in the heart of the world (cf. PCP II 424).
1606. Some Filipinos misunderstand this to mean merely that the Church is the place where people are baptized. But obviously “Church” here refers not primarily to the physical building, but to the baptized persons forming the Christian community. The Church IS the BAPTIZED PEOPLE! As such it does not just celebrate one action called “baptism,” but is essentially constituted precisely by those baptized as disciples of Christ. Its unity is grounded in the real presence of the Baptized One, THE RISEN CHRIST, the Head of the Body, the Church. The Church __ this community of the baptized __ is really Church only to the extent that it is the SACRAMENT of the Risen Christ for all peoples. It makes the Risen Christ and his Spirit present in the world today.
1607. St. Peter pictures this for us in exhorting his Christians to “Come to him [Jesus], a living stone, rejected by men but approved, nonetheless and precious in God’s eyes. You too are living stories, built as an edifice of spirit, into a holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Pt 2:4-5). Thus, in being “incorporated into the Church,” becoming “living stones” of the spiritual house that is Christ’s Body, the baptized become “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, called out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were ‘no people,’ but now you are God’s People; once there was no mercy for you, but now you have found mercy” (1 Pt 2:9-10; cf. CCC 1268).
1608. Thus, Baptism confers a sharing in Christ’s very mission (cf. CCC 1270). Particularly in his threefold office as Prophet, Priest, and King. Vatican II explains:
The baptized, by regeneration and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are consecrated to be a spiritual house and a holy priesthood, that through all their works as Christians they may offer spiritual sacrifices and proclaim the perfection of him who has called them out of darkness into his marvelous light (cf. 1 Pt 2:4-10). . . Everywhere on earth they must bear witness to Christ and give answer to everyone who asks a reason for their hope of an eternal life which is theirs (LG 10).
1609. Thus, the baptized are called to exercise their sharing in Christ’s priesthood (offer spiritual sacrifices) and bear witness to Christ (proclaim, give answer) who is their Light. But this can take place only in the “spiritual house,” the living community of members bonded together sacramentally in Baptism.
By the sacrament of Baptism,. . . a person becomes truly incorporated into the crucified and glorified Christ and is reborn to a sharing in the divine life. . . Baptism therefore constitutes the sacramental bond of unity existing among all who, through it, are reborn. But Baptism of itself is only a beginning, a point of departure, for it is wholly directed toward the acquiring of fullness of life in Christ. Baptism is thus ordained toward a complete profession of Faith, . . . (UR 22).
1610. PCP II describes how the baptized are called “to live prophetically as Christ lived, to witness as He did, to the luminous coming together of Gospel and life. To the world they manifest and communicate Christ, Christ who loves, Christ who serves, Christ who saves” (PCP II 424).
Sacrament of Faith
1611. Baptism, then, is rightly called the “sacrament of Faith” in two senses. When people request Baptism, they are questioned: “What do you ask of God’s Church?” They respond: “Faith.” They realize they can only believe fully and authentically within the community of believers. But obviously they would not ask for Baptism if they did not already possess some initial faith. Therefore, Baptism is also “the sacrament of that faith by which men and women, enlightened by the grace of the Holy Spirit, respond to the Gospel of Christ” (Gen. Introduction to Christian Initiation 3; cf. CCC 1253-55) .
1612. Both the initial faith which prompts people to ask for baptism, and the baptismal grace deepening that faith, are clearly shown through the catechumenate of the restored Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. It presents us with a model not only for becoming a Christian, but for remaining a Catholic Christian. Its core reality is conversion of adults to Christ and his mission, a dynamic process of Christian Faith formation which involves the whole community in a variety of ministries that focus on the Word of God and dominant Church symbols. The process includes four major periods, each separated by a particular liturgical ritual:
1. Pre-Catechumenate Period of evangelization, leading to the Rite of Enrollment as Catechumens;
2. Catechumenate Period of catechetical instruction leading to the Rite of Election;
3. Period of Purification and Enlightenment, preparatory for the Reception of the Sacraments;
4. Period of Deepening (Mystagogia), or the time of developing the Christian experience by entering more fully into the life and communion of the faithful.
1613. The RCIA clearly shows that Baptism is not something just passively received, but rather demands a “proper disposition of soul” and an active, personal response that continues throughout the faith life of the baptized. Baptism thus is really a PRAYER EVENT that involves a radical “turn around,” a“conversion,” a passage from one way of living to a radically different way. But this change is not produced by any “automatic” or “magical” power of Baptism. Rather, Baptism offers an initial grace, a new relationship with the Risen Christ in the Spirit, within the Christian community. Its perduring effectivity depends on the baptized’s continuing cooperation with grace in personal persevering effort.
1614. This is clearly shown by the numerous apostolic exhortations to recently baptized Christians. To the Ephesians St. Paul wrote: “Lay aside your former way of life and the old self which deteriorates through illusion and desire, and acquire a fresh, spiritual way of thinking. You must put on that new man created in God’s image, whose justice and holiness are born of truth” (Eph 4:22-24). In the Letter to the Hebrews we read: “Let us lay aside every encumberance of sin which clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies ahead; let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who inspires and perfects our faith” (Heb 12:1-2).
1615. Sharing the Divine Life. From this new life in Christ and being united in his Body, the Church, Baptism is the effective symbol of our sharing in the divine life. We become a “new creation” (cf. 2 Cor 5:17), sharers in the divine nature (cf. 2 Pt 1:4) __ not simply creatures any more, but children of God (cf. 1 Jn 3:1), through THE SON, Jesus Christ, (cf. Gal 4:4-7) in the Holy Spirit, who dwells within us (cf. 1 Cor 6:19). Thus Baptism ushers us into sharing the very life of the Trinity. “Baptism is heaven-sent regeneration. . . culminating in the invocation of the Blessed Trinity. Signed with this name, the baptized are consecrated to the Blessed Trinity and enter into fellowship with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Gen. Introduction to Christian Initiation 5). This is expressed in the Baptismal formula: “N. . . , I baptize you in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
The ordinary ministers of baptism are: the Bishop, priest and deacon. In case of necessity, any person, even someone not baptized, can baptize if he or she has the intention of doing what the Church intends to do, and uses the Trinitarian baptismal formula (cf. CCC 1256).
1616. But the problem for many Filipinos with these lofty biblical faith-assertions is that they seem so far away from ordinary daily living, even Christian living. In such a situation, a general rule is to go directly to the Gospels and see what all this means in the life of Christ.
We know that John the Baptist’s baptism was not a sacrament, but a baptism of repentance, ushering in the new age of the coming of the Messiah. Jesus came to be baptized by John as a sign that he IS the new age in person. In the Gospel account of Jesus’ baptism, we can see more concretely what this “sharing the divine life” really means. First, there is the Spirit appearing as a dove, recalling the Old Testament accounts of creation and the Flood. Then Christ’s definitive identity and Messianic mission are revealed: “You are my beloved Son, on you my favor rests” (Mk 1:11). Finally, with the heavenly voice, the Spirit symbolized in the dove, and the Incarnate Son emerging from the Jordan, the Blessed Trinity is revealed to us in action.
1617. More importantly, Christ’s baptism inaugurated his whole public ministry, climaxing in his Passion, Death and Resurrection. Jesus emerged from the waters of the Jordan as he would rise from the tomb at his Resurrection. He was anointed with the Spirit, manifesting his divine Sonship, in which we all share as he promised. The heavens were opened to Christ as he would open them for all persons when he ascended to his Father. What we have in Christ’s own baptism is the anticipation, the ritual enactment, of the whole drama of his redemptive mission. And we have seen how St. Paul claims that through the Sacrament of Baptism, we share in Christ’s very life and mission.
1618. But how? How does our ordinary, daily life, actually share in Christ’s? Briefly, the key is the Holy Spirit, the interior, indwelling source of our life of grace. PCP II warns that “the laity must not be deprived of the exercise of their charisms. By this exercise, they fulfill their baptismal responsibilities” (PCP II 429; cf. LG 18; AA 24).
What this means is that with God’s Spirit within us, we actually share the divine life. The Spirit helps us to have faith in God, hope in God’s fidelity and mercy, and respond to God in love. In other words, the Spirit helps us to begin to think like disciples of Christ, overcome problems, and be outgoing in love rather than turned back on ourselves. This sharing in Christ’s own life is spelled out more practically in terms of the gifts (cf. Is 11:2-3) and fruits (cf. Gal 5:22f) of the Spirit. But this is not any magical formula that automatically “divinizes” us. Rather it is a life-long process that needs to be confirmed and constantly strengthened by our free cooperating with God’s grace.
B. Current Questions on Baptism
1619. Necessity of Baptism for Salvation. The Church teaches that “Christ is the one Mediator, and the Way of salvation. . . In explicit terms, he himself affirmed the necessity of faith and baptism” (LG 14). Jesus warned Nicodemus: “No one can enter into God’s kingdom without being begotten of water and Spirit” (Jn 3:5). Mark’s Gospel has: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mk 16:16; cf. CCC 1257-58).
But what of all those who are not Christian, and have never been baptized with water and the Spirit? We know that God wills “all men to be saved and come to know the truth” (1 Tim 2:4-6). Therefore, the Church also teaches that:
those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the Gospel of Christ or his Church, yet sincerely seek God, and moved by grace, strive by their deeds to do His will as it is known to them through the dictates of their conscience, can attain eternal salvation (LG 16).
1620. This has traditionally been called “baptism of desire,” since by their lives these persons show an implicit desire for baptism. Likewise, those who, although they have never been baptized with water, die for the faith or for perfect charity, are said to have gained salvation through a “baptism of blood.” Moreover, Vatican II has directly linked the salvation of these non-baptized with Christ’s Paschal Mystery:
For since Christ died for all and since all are in fact called to one and the same divine destiny, we must hold that the Holy Spirit offers to all in a manner known only to God the possibility of being made partners in Christ’s Paschal Mystery (GS 22; LG 16; CCC 1258-60).
1621. The same action of God’s loving Providence could confidently be applied to unbaptized children. The Church does not know of another way for infants to be saved except by Baptism. However, she entrust the unbaptized children who have died to God’s mercy upon his will of universal salvation. Contemporary Church teaching, in fact stresses God’s universal salvific will as well as the necessary faith-preparation of the children’s parents. “All the more urgent is the Church’s call not to prevent little children coming to Christ through the gift of holy Baptism” (CCC 1261).
Regarding the infants who die without having been baptized, the Church prays:
Father of all consolation, from whom nothing is hidden,
You know the faith of these parents
who mourn the death of their child.
May they find comfort in knowing that you have taken the child
into your loving care.
Baptismal Seal or “Character”
1622. Three sacraments, Baptism, Confirmation and Orders, imprint a permanent sign or seal, called “character” in technical language (cf. CCC 1121; 1271-74). That is why these sacraments can only be received once. For although the sacramental grace they confer can be lost through personal sin, this “character” remains permanent. It represents the decision of God which cannot be withdrawn. St. Paul reminded the Corinthians: “He has put his seal upon us and given his Spirit in our hearts” (2 Cor 1:22). He admonished the Ephesians: “do nothing to sadden the Holy Spirit with whom you were sealed against the day of redemption” (Eph 4:30). The book of Revelation speaks of “the seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God” (Rev 7:3).
1623. The “character” is Christ’s permanent mark on us, effecting a real change in our relationship to him and to the Church. Through the baptismal character, all share in Christ’s royal priesthood, thereby enabling them to actively participate in the Church’s liturgy, to receive the other sacraments, and to grow closer to Christ through personal sanctification. In terms of the Christian community, the baptismal character is the inner source fostering inter-group communication, while helping to reduce and control the group tensions and conflicts by strengthening the baptized’s self-identity and social bonding with the other members of the community.
Baptism of Infants
1624. With the new stress on Baptism as the Sacrament of Faith, involving commitment and conversion, the practice of baptizing infants has been questioned by some. But the Church has always understood that children should not be deprived of Baptism because they are being baptized “in the Faith of the Church” (cf. CCC 1250-52). Concretely, this means the parents and godparents, who moreover have a serious obligation to see that the baptized children are formed in the Faith by Catholic upbringing as they grow and mature (cf. CCC 1231).
1625. Infant Baptism highlights the fact that Baptism is above all a free gift of God’s grace, not something merited. Secondly, just as the origin and growth of the personal life of every child begins immediately upon birth, so likewise does the Christian life of faith in Christ. Infant baptism simply shows God’s initiative in loving the child, the first step “wholly directed toward acquiring the fullness of life in Christ” (UR 22). More concretely, for believing parents it would be inconceivable that they would not desire to share their life’s basic faith thrust. Out of their common life of faith in Christ, they commit themselves to raising their child not in any artificial religiously “neutral” vacuum, but in their actual Christian family. Contemporary philosophical and social science studies on the development of the person, including the person’s authentic freedom, provide strong, confirmatory support for the Church’s traditional practice of infant baptism.
III. Confirmation
1626. The sacrament of Confirmation is described by Vatican II in terms of its two essential characteristics: closer union with the Church, and strengthening and empowerment by the Holy Spirit to actively spread the Faith.
By the sacrament of Confirmation, the faithful are more perfectly bound to the Church and are endowed with the special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses to Christ, more strictly obliged to spread the faith by word and deed (LG 11; cf. CCC 1285).
The Council also decreed that “the rite of Confirmation is to be revised so that its intimate connection with the whole of Christian initiation may more clearly appear. For this reason the renewal of Baptismal promises should fittingly precede its reception” (SC 71).
PCP II decreed that “a diocesan program for the sacrament of Confirmation should be drawn up, preferably as a part of the regular syllabus in Catholic schools, public schools, and in catechetical instruction for adolescents” (PCP II Decrees, Art. 9,2).
1627. Originally what we call Confirmation was part of the developed Baptismal rite. Yet, there is a certain scriptural basis in distinguishing the bestowal of the Holy Spirit through water-Baptism and by the “laying on of hands.”
When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. As Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, they began to speak in tongues and to utter prophecies (Acts 19:5f; cf. 8:14-17).
Through the centuries, because the increasing number and size of dioceses, parishes, and infant baptisms made it a practical impossibility for the Bishop to confirm all, the anointing and laying on of hands were separated from water-Baptism to form a separate sacrament. In the East it is called “Chrismation,” meaning “anointing with chrism.”
1628.Thus Paul VI described the origin of Confirmation in the revised rite as follows:
The Apostles, in order to accomplish the will of Christ, passed on to the neophytes, by the laying on of hands, the gift of the Spirit which brings to completion the grace of Baptism . . . . This laying on of hands is rightly considered by Catholic Tradition as the origin of the sacrament of Confirmation which perpetuates in a way the grace of Pentecost in the Church (DCN; cf. CCC 1288).
1629. The sacrament of Confirmation is conferred by “anointing with holy Chrism on the forehead, done while imposing the hands and by these words: ‘N., be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit’ ” (CCC 1300). In the Old Testament, anointing signified healing, purification and strengthening, but most of all empowerment. Aaron was anointed high priest (cf. Lv 8:12); Samuel anointed Saul and David as king (cf. 1 Sam 10:1;16:13f), and Isaiah was anointed prophet (cf. Is 61:1). Eventually, however, the Spirit was to be communicated to the whole messianic people (cf. Ez 36:25-27; Jl 3:1-2; CCC 1286-87).
In the New Testament, Christ is the “Anointed One,” perfectly fulfilling through the power of the Holy Spirit the triple role of Prophet, Priest and Servant-King. Hence, through Confirmation, Christians share more fully in Christ’s prophetic, kingly and priestly roles. Through the laying on of hands, they are claimed by Christ as his own, and empowered by the Spirit to spread the Gospel by word and deed, and thus build up Christ’s Body, the Church.
1630 The ordinary minister of Confirmation is the Bishop who is successor of the apostles, with the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders. The Bishop’s administering demonstrates the effect of Confirmation: to unite the confirmed more closely to the Church, to her apostolic origins, and to her mission of bearing witness to Christ. (cf. CCC 1313). However, for grave reasons, the Bishop may delegate to priests the faculty to administer the sacrament.
A. Effects of Confirmation
1631. The main effect of Confirmation is to strengthen and confirm the grace of Baptism (cf. CCC 1302-3). This means a more intense sharing in the mission of Christ and of the Church, empowering the confirmed to be public witnesses of the Faith:
• witness to the Kingdom of God and God’s power present in the new age begun in Christ;
• witness to Jesus the Christ, as the unique Savior of all;
• witness to the freedom from the slavery of sin brought by God’s presence through Christ and the Spirit;
• witness to the love of God, Father, Risen Incarnate Son, and Spirit, by loving service of others in the Spirit; and
• witness to Christ’s real presence in the Christian community, the People of God, the Church.
1632. This witness flows from the permanent “character” imprinted on those confirmed by the Sacrament (cf. CCC 1304-5). In the Gospel of Luke, the Risen Christ explained to the apostles that “the Messiah must suffer and rise from the dead on the third day. In his name, penance for the remission of sins is to be preached to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of this. I send down upon you the promise of my Father [the Spirit] (Lk 24:46-49). The introduction to the Rite of Confirmation explains the origin and function of this “character,” originally included in the baptismal ritual:
Signed with the oil by the Bishop’s hand, the baptized person receives the indelible character, the seal of the Lord, together with the gift of the Spirit, which conforms him more closely to Christ and gives him the grace of spreading the Lord’s presence among men (RC 9).
B. Qualities of Christian Witness
1633. To be effective witnesses to Christ and the Church demands certain basic qualities:
• personal knowledge, awareness, and experience of Christ in their daily lives;
• strong and enthusiastic Christian convictions and active commitment to Christ and the Church;
• a basic grounding in Scripture, Church teaching and fundamental human experience;
• the human leadership qualities of honesty and integrity that inspire confidence and a following;
• the communication skills needed to present Christ’s challenge to the Filipino of today in an attractive and persuasive manner; and
• the courage to suffer and risk for the Kingdom of God.
C. Age for Confirmation
1634. Such a description of qualities needed for confirmed Christian witness naturally raises the pastoral question of when the sacrament of Confirmation should be conferred. In ancient times it was given immediately after Baptism. But when infant Baptism became the standard practice, the sacrament of Confirmation was postponed to a later time — the age of discretion. Today there are some advocating restoring the original unity while others wish to postpone it further to young adulthood. Yet there are good reasons for confirming around the age of discretion or later, as is the more common Church policy in the Philippines. The adolescents begin to move away from childish ways and take their first steps toward a personally chosen Faith, and begin to take an active part in Christian community life.
1635. More important than endless arguments among the “experts” over what age is the best time for the administration of the sacrament is the careful preparation needed. Both the candidates for Confirmation and their parents (as well as godparents and sponsors) have to be prepared well if the Sacrament is to be truly efficacious. Without such careful preparation a fruitful celebration of the sacrament is simply not possible.
1636. Current Proposal. Most agree that Confirmation is: 1) a sacrament of initiation, 2) received only once, which 3) completes Baptism, 4) by a post-baptismal reception of the Holy Spirit. From an anthropological point of view, Confirmation would be classified as a transitional ritual __ like all the other sacraments except the Eucharist which is rather an intensification ritual. As a transition ritual, Confirmation marks a change in the self-understanding of those confirmed, as well as in the community’s estimate and reception of them.
1637. While as a sacrament of initiation, Confirmation should be linked with Baptism as the completion of initiation into the Church, nevertheless Confirmation also marks a new stage in the confirmed’s Christian life. The change is basically from being passively served to active service of others in the Church, from first initiation into the Church to public declaration of full discipleship in the Church’s ministry. The “time” for the celebration of this change is not primarily a matter of chronological age (chronos), but rather of the “appropriate moment” (Kairos) for marking this change. This “appropriate moment” ordinarily does not come spontaneously, but has to be prepared for, over a certain period of time. A process for preparing for Confirmation could be worked out along the lines of the RCIA, which prepares adults for Baptism.
D. Confirmation’s Relation to Christ and the Church
1638. As Jesus was shown to be the Baptized One, so here it is obvious that Christ is also the Confirmed One in the Holy Spirit. From his conception, through his redemptive mission of his public ministry, climaxing in his Resurrection and Ascension to his Father, the man Jesus is constantly guided, strengthened and led by the Spirit. The Spirit in Christ our Lord is:
• the Spirit of HOLINESS who makes present the All-Holy One;
• the Spirit of LOVE who enables his followers to love as he loves;
• the Spirit of LIFE who came that we “might have life and have it more abundantly”;
• the Spirit of POWER to fulfill the Father’s will and enable his followers to do the same;
• the Spirit of TRUTH who sets us free; and
• the Spirit of FORGIVENESS who brings eternal salvation to the repentant.
1639. We meet this Spirit of the Lord in his Body, the Church. Christ’s Church is the “Confirmed Church,” the Church of the SPIRIT, precisely because of Christ’s real presence within his Body. Pentecost affirms the active presence of the Spirit in the Church from its inception. Viewing Confirmation in terms of Christ and the Church helps to see it as a prayer event, a celebration making explicit what God has done and is continuing to do with and among His People. The communal, ecclesial dimension of Confirmation is essential; not the age of Confirmation, but the presence of the Spirit is the true point of focus.
E. Godparents/Sponsors for Baptism and Confirmation
1640. In the Philippines, social relations between families often seem to play the dominant role in the choice of godparents and sponsors for Baptisms and Confirmations. In a Catholic country like ours, it is natural that the social structure and family alliances find expression in religious activities as well. But this practice can become a “secularizing” temptation that obscures the primary Faith-meaning of the sacraments. This temptation must be faced and overcome by insisting on the properly Faith norms for choosing godparents and sponsors. They should be: a) sufficiently mature persons (ordinarily at least 16 years old), b) good-living Catholics who themselves have been initiated in the three sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist; and c) who are capable and truly intend to help the newly baptized/confirmed to faithfully live up to all the duties inherent in Christian life. Today the Church recommends that the godparents at Baptism be present and even be the sponsor at Confirmation, though it is always possible to choose a special sponsor for Confirmation.
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INTEGRATION
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1641. The sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation offer an admirable example of the integration of worship with Catholic doctrine and morals. It is impossible to attain even a minimum appreciation of Baptism and Confirmation as sacraments initiating us into the Christian life without a sound understanding of the Holy Spirit, particularly in the Spirit’s joint mission with the Incarnate Son. Moreover, an appreciation of the Church as necessary for salvation is the necessary context for understanding Baptism’s necessity and relationship with Faith (cf. LG 14). The importance of grasping these relationships may be proven by the tragic consequences so evident among fallen-away Catholics who never were adequately catechized about these fundamental Catholic realities.
1642. Regarding Catholic morality, the social thrust of the Catholic Church in our country puts a premium on the fruitful celebration of Confirmation. With the great majority of Filipinos purporting to be Catholic, at least nominally, it is very difficult to raise the typical Catholic community and parish to the quality of witness to Christ proposed here. Too often we seem to be the mass of dough rather than the dynamic yeast that raises the whole mass. One of the most powerful means for fostering social awareness and action among Filipino Catholics should be the total process of preparing for and celebrating the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation. That such does not always seem to be the case may confirm the urgent call of PCP II for sacra-mental catechesis.
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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
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1643. What are the sacraments of initiation?
The sacraments of initiation are Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist.
These sacraments, by drawing us toward full stature in Christ, empower us to carry out our mission as Christians in both the Church and the world.
1644. What are the effects of the sacraments of initiation?
Through these sacraments:
a) we are freed from the power of darkness by being baptized into Christ’s death and resurrection, and
b) receive the Spirit, who
• makes us adopted sons and daughters of the Father, and
• incorporates us into the Church, the People of God,
• with whom we celebrate the Eucharistic memorial of Christ’s Paschal Mystery (RCIA 1).
1645. Do the sacraments parallel our natural human growth?
Yes, Catholic tradition has compared the stages of our natural human development with those of our Christian spiritual life. Thus it relates:
• physical generation with Baptism, our spiritual regeneration;
• growing into maturity with Confirmation;
• physical nourishment with the Eucharist, the Bread of Life;
• physical and psychological healing with Reconciliation and Anointing, and
• community realities of family life and leadership with Matrimony and Orders.
1646. What is the value of such a comparison?
Comparing the similarities between our natural growth process with the sacraments helps us appreciate how intrinsic our Christian spiritual growth is to our full human “self-becoming.”
But the comparison also brings out the uniqueness of the sacraments as encounters with the Risen Christ, our Lord and Savior, through whom we share God’s own life of love as members of his Body, the Church.
1647. What is the sacrament of Baptism?
Baptism is the sacrament of Faith which:
• brings us new life in Christ and forgiveness of sins through water and the Spirit,
• incorporating us into the Church, and
• into sharing in the Trinitarian divine life as adopted sons and daughters of the Father, in a progressive way that looks ever to the future.
1648. How does Baptism bring us new life in Christ?
Baptism unites us to the Risen Christ:
• through the biblical symbol of water and the Holy Spirit, and
• by making us share in Christ’s “baptism” of his Paschal Mystery.
Both themes are presented in the Readings of the Easter Vigil’s liturgy.
[They start with the Genesis account of creation, prefiguring our new creation in Christ. Abraham’s readiness to sacrifice his only son, prepares us for the sacrifice of Christ, God’s only Son. The Exodus deliverance of the Chosen People from Egypt, the land of slavery, through the Red Sea, symbolizes our own deliverance from the slavery of sin through the waters of Baptism. Finally, Baptism itself is presented as a dying-rising with Christ in his Paschal Mystery.]
1649. How does Baptism take away original sin, and every personal sin in adults?
Baptism’s sensible sign of washing with water symbolizes and effects a cleansing from all sin and a rebirth to new life by the Spirit. To be in a state of sin means that God’s Holy Spirit is not dwelling within us. Therefore, the coming of the Holy Spirit removes sin. It is the Spirit that frees us from sin.
[The focus of Baptism is not on washing away original sin, but on new life in Christ. Christ himself as Primordial Sacrament, is the fullest expression of Baptism (he is the Baptized One), and its primary agent. “When anyone baptizes, it is really Christ himself who baptizes” (SC 7).]
1650. Since some effects of original sin remain, how can Baptism be said to “remove” original sin?
Baptism “removes” original sin by symbolizing and effecting our saving solidarity with Christ, within the Spirit-filled community of his Body, the Church.
We are thus strengthened in the life-long struggle against sin through the loving embrace of the Spirit, joining us to the Risen Christ, our Savior, and to one another, as members of his Body, the Church.
1651. How does Baptism incorporate us into the Church?
Baptism unites us in Christ with the other members of Christ’s Body, the Church. “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. . . all given to drink the one Spirit” (1 Cor 12:13).
It is our union with the Baptized One, the Risen Christ, that makes us “Church.” As members of Christ’s Body, we share in his mission of serving as Prophet, Priest and King.
1652. Why is Baptism called the “sacrament of faith”?
Baptism is rightly called the sacrament of faith because in asking to be baptized we are asking God’s Church for the gift of Faith. Only within the community of believers, Christ’s Body, and enlightened by the grace of the Holy Spirit, can we respond fully to the Gospel of Christ.
1653. How does the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults [RCIA] shed new light on Baptism?
The RCIA shows that the fruitful reception of Baptism demands proper disposition of soul. Far from being merely passively received, Baptism is really a prayer-event that involves a radical conversion of heart, whose lasting effectivity depends on the continuing cooperation of the baptized with grace.
1654. How does Baptism effect a “sharing in the divine life”?
Baptism effects a sharing in the divine life through the coming of the Holy Spirit. Through their Holy Spirit, the Father and Risen Christ are present in the baptized. Hence they share in the Trinitarian life of love, exercised through the virtues of faith, hope, and charity.
1655. Is Baptism necessary for salvation?
Christ, the unique Mediator and Way of salvation, affirmed the necessity of faith and baptism. But since God wills ‘all to be saved’ (1 Tm 2:4), the grace needed for salvation is offered to all.
“For since Christ died for all, . . . we must hold that the Holy Spirit offers to all, in a manner known only to God, the possibility of being made partners in Christ’s Paschal Mystery” (GS 22).
1656. What is meant by the “Baptismal Seal” or “Character”?
Three sacraments (Baptism, Confirmation and Orders) imprint a permanent spiritual seal or “character” on the soul, marking a specific relationship to Christ and to the Church.
1657. Why do we baptize infants?
Infants are baptized in “the faith of the Church,” or concretely in the faith of the parents and god-parents.
Infant baptism highlights the truths that baptism is:
• a free gift of God, not something merited by us;
• the beginning of our faith-life;
• a gift given through the parents’ Christian faith-life.
1658. What is the sacrament of Confirmation?
Confirmation is the sacrament in which, through the power of the Holy Spirit, a baptized person is drawn into closer union with the Church and endowed with strength to actively spread the Gospel.
1659. What is the origin of the sacrament of Confirmation?
Confirmation was originally part of the expanded rite of Baptism. But as the Church grew in size, the gift of the Spirit by the “laying on of hands,” which in a way perpetuates the grace of Pentecost in the Church, was formed into a separate sacrament.
1660. How is the sacrament of Confirmation conferred?
Confirmation is conferred by the laying on of hands over the head of the candidates, the anointing of the forehead with holy Chrism, and the prayer: “Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit.”
1661. What are the effects of the sacrament of Confirmation?
Confirmation strengthens and confirms the grace of Baptism, strengthening and confirming the mission to give public witness to Christ and the Church.
This “witness” flows from the permanent “character” imprinted by the sacrament on those confirmed.
1662. What is the proper age for conferring Confirmation?
Within the ongoing discussion regarding the best time for conferring the sacrament, there are good reasons for confirming around the age of discretion or later, which is the more common Church policy in the Philippines.
More important than the exact age at which to confirm is the careful preparation needed, for both the candidates and their parents and sponsors. PCP II has stressed the urgent need for such a preparatory catechesis.
1663. How is Confirmation related to Christ and the Church?
As the Primordial Sacrament, Christ himself is the Confirmed One in the Holy Spirit, as shown throughout his earthly life, especially in his Paschal Mystery.
But this Spirit of the Lord Jesus is met in his Body, the Church, the Confirmed Church, inaugurated at Pentecost.
1664. How are godparents/sponsors for Baptism and Confirmation to be chosen?
In the Philippines, social relations between families often play a dominant role in the choice of godparents and sponsors. While natural in a predominantly Catholic country, its “secularizing” tendency must be balanced by an equal insistence on proper Faith norms for choosing godparents and sponsors.
Faith norms indicate sponsors should be:
• sufficiently mature persons, at least 16 years old;
• good-living Catholics who have been confirmed; and
• capable and sincerely intending to help the newly confirmed to faithfully live out the duties of Christian life.
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