Why did I become a Catholic? Adopting a view on baptism vs believing in my baptism Part 2

We left off last time with my realizing what great desires and aspirations my parents and my grandfather had for me as they had me baptized as an infant and what it meant to them as Presbyterians.  They wanted me to become part of the Body of Christ, His Church, and they wanted to place me under God's care, protection and guidance.  Indeed that is what most Christian parents desire for their precious children.  So much so that even most Christian groups that have done away with infant baptism have replaced it with dry baby dedication rites where the parents publicly present their children to the Lord in church and promise to bring their children up in the Lord.  It is instinctive.

So let's start with some Scripture.  I will be using the New American Bible Revised Edition which is available online.  http://www.usccb.org/bible/ezekiel/36  But you can look them up using other translations that you like

First there is Ezekiel 36:24-28 in one of the Old Testament restoration of Israel/New Covenant passages where God indicates that He is going to change His people from the inside out.  Notice verse 25 which is one of the steps God will take.

24 I will take you away from among the nations, gather you from all the lands, and bring you back to your own soil. 25 I will sprinkle clean water over you to make you clean; from all your impurities and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26 I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put my spirit within you so that you walk in my statutes, observe my ordinances, and keep them.  28 You will live in the land I gave to your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.

Okay, now let's take a look at the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist.

Luke says the following about John the Baptist's baptism in chapter 3 of his gospel.

1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, 2 during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert. 3 He went throughout [the] whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins,

Matthew records the response in chapter 3 of his gospel.

5 At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going out to him 6 and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.

Then Matthew records the baptism of Jesus in detail in the same chapter. 

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 John tried to prevent him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you are coming to me?” 15Jesus said to him in reply, “Allow it now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed him. 16 After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened [for him], and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove [and] coming upon him. 17And a voice came from the heavens, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

I am letting you look at some things here in preparation for what is to follow.  Be patient.  And as we go through these passages and teachings, remember that God is merciful and that He takes into account what we know and what we don't know and because Jesus became one of us He understands us and what it is like to be one of us.  There is more to come and I will write as quickly as I can as time allows.  So prayerfully consider these Scriptures. There are more Scriptures to look at and then I will present what the Catholic Church believes happens at our baptisms.

Here are some more.

From Matthew 28.

18 Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”

And when Peter finished preaching his message at Pentecost, look at this exchange between Peter and his audience in Acts 2.

37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and they asked Peter and the other apostles, “What are we to do, my brothers?” 38 Peter [said] to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is made to you and to your children and to all those far off, whomever the Lord our God will call.”


So, in brief, here is what our baptism accomplishes in us from the Catechism.

1279   The fruit of Baptism, or baptismal grace, is a rich reality that includes forgiveness of original sin and all personal sins, birth into the new life by which man becomes an adoptive son of the Father, a member of Christ and a temple of the Holy Spirit. By this very fact the person baptized is incorporated into the Church, the Body of Christ, and made a sharer in the priesthood of Christ.

1280    Baptism imprints on the soul an indelible spiritual sign, the character, which consecrates the baptized person for Christian worship. Because of the character Baptism cannot be repeated (cf. DS 1609 and DS 1624).

 Baptism is powerful.  But this post is bound to raise questions so feel free to ask them.

One other item to consider is the phrase from the Nicene Creed from the 4th century.

I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

There are many other sources both from Scripture and the writings of the early church but I wanted to be brief.

So what difference has the Catholic teaching on baptism made in my life?

Well, many of the things that I assumed happened when I had my "born again" experience at age 20 actually happened when I was baptized as an infant according to Catholic teaching even though I was baptized in the Presbyterian Church.  They basically would agree with the Presbyterian understanding but they add a lot more.  And they recognized my baptism since it was documented (it can be either by a written document or witnesses) when I was becoming a Catholic.

And when I look back on my life, I can see the influence or mark baptism had in my life.  I always believed in God even when I thought He was irrelevant for a time.  I believed that Jesus was the Son of God.  I believed that the Bible was God's written word.  What I didn't understand until I was 20 was that I was a sinner in need of a Savior.  And that is when I asked Jesus into my life.

But after that "born again" experience, I didn't really understand what God was aiming for in my life.  I sort of hoped for a close relationship with Him but I lived like what I really thought He wanted was for me to be "good", grow in holiness and righteousness, stop sinning, with His help of course.

But as I looked into the Catholic teachings, I saw that God really wants a close intimate, honest relationship and I was also taught how to pursue that relationship through prayer and the sacraments.

More later.