The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1916-06-03

ignore Mt of it? What of unhaptIzed
infs'ats who die?
There is no command of Our Lord
that He made more universally appll-
cable than the necessity of baptism.
Other laws evidently are intended for
those who are capable of appreciate
ing the nature of an obligation. For
example: Unless you eat the flesh
of the Son of man and drink His
blood you shall not have life in you.
1t is not so with the law of baptism.
This law extends to all without eX-
Ception. The words are most clear.
Unless a man (any one) be born
again of water and the Holy Ghost he
cannot enter into the kingdom OF
Cod" Ono. III, SD Nicodemus was
the first to hear the law enunciated.
What was declared to him undiVidual-
ly was later promulgated to the
whole world by the command given
to the Apostles. Going, therefore,
leach We all nations, baptizing them
in the name of the Father, OF the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost" Indeed
baptism is here singled out by Our
Lord as the eXemplar of all the sacra-
ments through which souls are to be
sanctified. To teach is to be one OF
the works of the Apostles, to sane,
tify another, and the third to require
obedience to all that Christ had
commanded. Why Our Lord, in the
general commission that He gave His
Apostles, mentioned specifically the
command to baptize would seem to
emphasize, even more than His eX-
plicit words had already done, the
absolute necessity of baptism. With
cat it, no other sacrament could be
received; without it, there was no
entrance to Gods kingdom. Every
man is justified in demanding reason
able evidence that Christ made bap-
tism necessary to salvation, before he
is morally obliged to admit its neces-
sity. Both the Church and the
Scriptures give us this evidence. The
words of the Scriptures we have just
seen; and the teaching and practice
of the Church are equally inSistentt
One word of the Church must suffice!
eff any one say that baptism is OPP
tional, that is, not necessary to
salvation, let him be anathema.
CCoucil of Trent, VII Session 6 C. Gle
Bap) The Church has observed the
law even back to the first sermon OF
ST. Peter. Though Our Lord Himself
cd
on the way to Damascus, yet 1t was
by baptism that he was admitted into
the kingdom of God. ST
We say that it is reasonable for
man to require clear evidence that
Christ made such a law before he
accepts it; but, after having seen the
evidence, still to question the neces-
Sity of baptism as means OF enter
ing Gods kingdom is, for such a man
in our judgment at least, to make
himself the master in that kingdom
The kingdom is Gods. 1t is God
Who grants the favor of admittance.
1t is for Him also to specify the con-
ditions upon which this favor will be
granted. Why He chose baptism as
the condition, rests with His own
wisdom. We can, however, see in
it much that is most appropriate to
the effect desired. In the first place,
water is a most common element, al
ways ready at hand. 1t is used
everywhere to remove external defile
ments. It's outward use in baptism
mi
internal cleansing wrought by the
Holy Ghost in the soul of the one
baptized. That baptism can SO
cleanse the soul depends of course on
the fact that Christ has attached to
it this same power.
Without baptism there is no saliva
ton. Such is the clear teaching OF
Catholic faith. What of those who
die ignorant of the precept? The law
in general is that God will Judge each
one according to the light that is in
him. If one has never heard the COS
pei proclaimed, yet obeys the natural
law, and at the time of his death, al
least, has the perfect love of Goo
which moves him to sincere repent
ance for his sins and makes him most
quire, or, if he knows of the existence
of baptism, he is most ready to re
Ceive it, if only some one were al
hand, who might administer it tC
him, and if he is possessed at the same
time the perfect charity, this intimate
and ardent desire for all that Got
has required, united to perfect love
of God, will be. accepted by the
eternal Judge in lieu of the actua
sacrament. The sins are RENTED
through perfect contrition; or, as il
is called, the baptism of desire.
Isyit possible to include infants also
in. some similar category? Those who
have not come to the use of reason
evidently cannot have perfect charity
nor is there for such, any need of re
pentance for personal sin, since they
are guilty of none. But there is upon
their soul the guilt of original sin
and the punishment attached to this
guilt. For both reasons they are ex
cluded from Gods kingdom. Some
one may say, is it not unjust to reprivt
the helpless infant, that has com
mitted no personal sin, of the happi
ness of heaven? We answer that i
would seem to us to be unjust if the
child, through no fault of his own
we're deprived of something to which
he had right. Has the unbaptizeC
child this right? Is it entitled tx
heaven sinnlY haca1se IL il . hum i