The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1916-09-16
Please give thorough explanation
Of Baptism; the manner of baptizing,
the ace one should be baptized.

the age one should be baptized.
The full space allotted to the ques-
tion and answer department OF The
Catholic Bulletin was devoted recent
ly to explaining the necessity of Bap-
tism. We beg leave and refer the
inquirer to the issue Of June %, 1916.
In addition we will say word about
the particular points called to our
attention in the above question.
1t has pleased God to institute
Baptism as a means of comforting
upon the soul the spiritual gifts that
secure to it right to heaven. Any
other means could have been adopted
instead of Baptism. The reason He,
chose this particular sign rests in His
own good pleasure. Though after He
has appointed Baptism, We can see
particular fitness between it and the
effect desired. The soul is to be
cleansed from sin, grace is to be con-
ferred. The sign, or mark by which
these favorS are granted, indicates,
by an outward physical act, the spir-
itual work done by the Holy Ghost in
the human soul. The word Ito bap-
tie" means ito wash" Ito cleanse"
The pouring of the water on the body;
or the submerging of the body in the
waters tells us of the washing, or
cleansing of the soul by the Holy
Ghost. That this effect follows from
Baptism is due Of course entirely to
the fact that Jesus Christ has so or
dered. The grace conferred is His
and it is His also to appoint the
means through which it may be grant
ed. 1t is ours to follow the order SO
established
Christ promulgated the law of Bap-
tism at the time of His Ascension;
saying to His Apostles, Going forth
therefore teach we all nations, baptiz-
ing them in the name Of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost"
Had He given more specific instruc-
lions to the Apostles in regard to Bap-
tism? 1t is most probable. He was
speaking to them during forty days of
the kingdom of God. 1t is to the Apos-
ties that we must look then, for the
right observance of His commands.
From the Scriptures we have good
reason to conclude that they used
both one form and the other and even
a third form, that of sprinkling in adj
ministering Baptism. The three thou
sand that st. Peter converted and
baptized in part of one day could not
have been submerged, nor easily
baptized by pouring the water; most
probably they were baptized by
sprinkling the water upon them. st.
Paul, speaking of the life the Chris
tian should live, compares the Bap-
tism of the Christian to the burial of
the dead Christ, and the life of the
Christian thereafter to the risen life
of Christ. We are buried together
with Him by Baptism unto death, that
as Christ is risen from the dead so
we also may walk in newness of life.
So do you also reckon that you are
dead to sin but alive unto God in
Christ Jesus our Lord IRONS. vi.
4-8). The change that takes place
in the Christian at his conversion, the
putting off of the old man, or the life
man, or the life of grace, is eXempli-
fed more strikingly, we admit, by the
submerging of the whole body in
water at Baptism. But st. Paul did
not refuse Baptism because submerg-
ing the penitent was impossible or
impracticable. Witness, for example,
how he received into the church his
SnsI A.
jailer. And the jailer, taking them
paul and Silas) the same hour of
the night, (midnight) washed their
stripes, and himself was baptized and
all his house Immediately" (Acts
XVI-22-34). There is no evidence that
Baptism of submersion was given to
the jailer and his household at the
hour of midnight in jail.
1t is true that our Lord received
Baptism of submersion from st. John
But this was not the sacrament of
Baptism, instituted by Jesus Christ
1t was sign of repentance required
by st. John of all who would wish
to be his followers. st. John did not
pretend that his Baptism took away
sin. 1t has therefore no essential
relation to the sacrament of Baptism
One was sacramento, the other is
sacrament. One excited the heart
to repentance; the other takes away
sin. One was instituted by st. John
the>Baptist; the other by Jesus Christ
the Son of God. The fact that Our
Lord received the baptism of John by
submersion does not by any means
necessarily imply that the sacrament
of Baptism which He was to institute
should be received in the same man.
ner.
Furthermore, the sick and the dying
could not be baptized by submersion.
One of the other two forms must
then have been used. Again, when
the Christians were prosecuted or put
to death for the faith many pagans
were moved by their piety and forti-
tude to embrace Christianity. These
were baptized even in the prisons in
which the martyrs had been confined.
In such cases also submersion was
impossible.
We do not dispute, as we have said,
the validity of Baptism by submer-
sion: but we maintain that Baptism
by pouring is equally valid. The
Church for very good reasons, that
have already been suggested in this
paragraph, and for the further reason