The Pedagogical and Religious Dimensions of the Rites of the Sacrament of Children’s Baptism

Abstract

The topic of the article “The Pedagogical and Religious Dimensions of the Rites of the Sacrament of Baptism for Children” deals with the sacraments in the Catholic Church, particularly baptism as the first of the seven sacraments. As signs, sacraments are also meant to instruct, and indeed they do, for the meaning and grace of baptism are made clear in the rites of its celebration Union with Christ leads to confession of faith in the One God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The profession of faith, closely related to baptism, is eminently Trinitarian. The Church baptises: “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28,19), the Triune God to whom the Christian entrusts his life.The basis for analyzing the rites of baptism will be the Order of Baptism for Children during mass, which contains very important instructions that can be grouped into three points: (1) instructions about God the Father, (2) instructions about the essence of baptism and its importance for the parish and the baptized, (3) instructions about the duties of the baptized and their parents and godparents. In the sacraments God occupies the central place, and the sacrament of baptism, by instructing about God the Father, the first issue, brings closer three fundamental truths about God: (a) God’s initiative in the salvation for man, (b) God’s omnipotence (universal, loving and mysterious), and (c) God’s goodness. The second issue deals with: (a) the essence of baptism based on the terms given in the Rite of Receiving the Children (baptism, faith, the grace of Christ, admission to the Church, and eternal life); (b) the meaning of infant baptism for the parish community; and (c) the meaning of baptism for the child. Likewise, the third issue is also divided into two parts, with an instruction (a) on the duties of the baptized and (b) the duties of baptized children, parents and godparents.