entrance:
The difference between us as a Christian community today and the Christian community in the early church is that that community was a cohesive organic unit in the Lord. Therefore, when someone wanted to join the body of the Lord, that is, the church, the entire community participated in this great mystery, first by fasting with him, then by praying for him, and finally by participating in his welcoming a new member of the church through the ritual of the sacrament of baptism.
Today, baptism has become a private party attended by a number of close people, and the spirit of conscious and committed faith is often absent, and it is dominated by worldly concerns such as photography, clothing, and the like.
In the past, Christian awareness was that baptism was the sacrament of new birth in Christ Jesus. Through it, the baptized person becomes a member of the body of Christ and the doors of the Kingdom are opened for him. Did not the Lord say: “Unless you are born of water and the Spirit, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” (John 3:5). Therefore, the entire Christian community bore witness that a new brother had been born into the church family.
Man was created in the image and likeness of God, but through his disobedience, he lost his relationship with God and fellowship with Him. As for God, due to His great love, He did not want man to remain far away and separated from Him, so He condescended through His only son, Jesus Christ, and was incarnated, died, and rose from the dead, and restored to man who believes in Him and is committed to His Gospel his lost paradise and the divine image that sin had distorted in him.
The Lord Jesus Christ himself is the one who instituted baptism when he sent his disciples after his resurrection to convey the good news of salvation, saying: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19), because “everyone who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16). . Since then, we see in the Acts of the Apostles that believers in the new gospel were joining the church through baptism. “And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you...’ So they received his words with joy and were baptized, and that day about three thousand souls were added” (Acts 2:38-41). See also Acts 8:12-13, 8:38, 9:18, 10:47-48, 16:15, 18:8, 19:5, 1:14-16).
Meanings of baptism:
- Baptism It is the door through which we enter into life in Christ Jesus. Adam fell and became estranged from true life and existence, that is, God, and spiritual death and all its consequences, such as wear and tear, corruption, the tendency to sin, and death of the body, entered man. Baptism is not the erasure of a serious sin that we inherited from Adam. It is the new birth from above after man became born with a corrupt nature enslaved to death. Yes, in baptism a person is born again, not from flesh and blood nor from the will of a man, but from God (John 1:12-13) and 3:3-7), and he returns to his original beauty and true being.
- Baptism Participation in the death and resurrection of Christ.” And you do not know that each of us who was baptized in Jesus Christ was baptized in his death, so we were buried with him in death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life, for if we have been planted with him in the likeness of His death, so we will be with him in his resurrection also” (Romans 6:3-5). In baptism, a person puts on Christ, puts off the old self, dies to sin and unrighteousness, and is renewed in righteousness and holiness. It is no longer he who lives, but Christ lives in him (Galatians 2:20).
- Baptism The beginning of a spiritual wedding, through which the soul becomes the bride of Christ, adorned with divine beauty and loved by the groom with a complete and limitless love, who gave himself to die for her. Baptism is entry into a new life in which a person enlists in Christ, and pledges “not to be entangled in the work of life in order to please those who have recruited him” (2 Timothy 2:4). He also pledges to complete the quest and end the path to his enlightenment, deification, and transfiguration “in the image of his Creator” (Col 3:10). .
- in Baptism Man joins the Church, the new people of God, and becomes a branch on the vine (John 15:5) and a member of the body, of which the Lord Jesus is the head.
Prayers for receiving the catechumen:
After the name of the person to be baptized is recorded in the baptism books, that is, his name is written in the church’s book “the book of life,” one of his godparents carries him and brings him to the priest in order to begin the service.
The priest blows three times, making the sign of the cross and saying: In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, in order to provide him from the beginning with the weapon of the cross with which he vanquishes the demons. Then he places his hand on his head and recites a prayer in which he asks God to protect him under the cover of his wings, to keep him away from the old error, to write him in the Book of Life, and to place him in the flock of Christ “so that he may confess to you, prostrating to you, glorifying your great and exalted name, and praising you at all times, all the days of his life.”
The goal of baptism is to restore true life. From here, work begins to achieve this goal.
Divisions:
That is, prayers to cast out demons. They are three prayers that the priest recites over the person who is about to be baptized in order to expel from him “every evil, unclean, hidden spirit nesting in his heart, the spirit of error, the spirit of evil, the spirit of idolatry, and all greed and gluttony, the spirit of lying and every impurity carried out according to the teachings of the devil.”
From a spiritual perspective, evil is not only a theoretical matter, but rather something that is confronted and fought. This is what the Lord did with evil. He was incarnated, crucified, and defeated sin on the cross. In divisions, we face the evil one. We know his power, but we trust God’s ability to destroy him.
Divisions are the beginning of the battle that constitutes the first dimension of Christian life, the constant battle with the evil one.
The priest blows on the child's face and asks the Lord to keep the demons away from him, in preparation for Christ to replace the evil one in his heart.
Satan's rejection:
After the prayers of expelling demons comes the ritual of rejecting Satan. The life of a Christian is a constant rejection and challenge, a rejection of the evil one and a challenge to him and his power. It is a constant war with the devil, so the priest asks the godparents to head west to reject the devil. We said previously that evil is not a theoretical matter, but is faced in practice. In the divisions, the priest helps us confront the evil one, and here, by turning toward the west, you face the evil one face to face. Why the West? It is the absence of light and a symbol of the absence of good, the manifestation of the forces of evil, and the inhabitation of evil.
After the priest asks the godfather three times: Do you reject Satan and all his works and all his angels and all his acts of worship and all his falsehoods? He tells him to blow and spit on the devil. This simple ritual is very important. When you spit on something, it means that your soul hates and rejects this thing. Since you hate Satan, you actually reject him through baptism and turn your face away from him. By rejecting and spitting, you break the old bond with hell, declare war on the evil one, and begin the struggle with him.
Accepting Christ: Rejecting Satan is a prelude to accepting and approving Christ. Your heart has become pure, free of all impurity, and ready to accept Christ’s residence in it. Here the priest asks the godparents to turn towards the east. Heading towards the East means turning a person towards the paradise established in that direction, towards Christ, the light of the world and the sun of justice. St. Cyril of Jerusalem says: “When you completely reject Satan and break every established covenant with him, that is, that ancient covenant with hell, the paradise of God that he planted in the direction he rose from which our father Adam was excluded because of his sin will be opened. “The East is important because in His second coming the Lord will come from the east to the west. After the priest asks the godfather three times if he agrees with Christ and believes in him, the godfather declares that he believes in Christ as King and God and recites the Constitution of Faith, “I believe in one God…” He declares his belief in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and in one baptism. Then he asks him again: Did you agree with Christ? He asked him to prostrate to him, and he replied: “I prostrate to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity, equal in essence and indivisible.” When the godfather rejected Satan, he spat on him, and here he prostrates himself before Christ, a symbol of obedience, respect, and love for the Lord, and a symbol of humility and commitment. Saint John Chrysostom says about this stage: “We signed a covenant with Christ not with ink but with the spirit, not with the pen but with our word... We acknowledged the sovereignty of God and rejected the slavery of Satan.”
Blessed is the kingdom of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit:
This declaration of the doctrine of the Most Holy Trinity contains an invitation to the catechumen to enter the Kingdom of the Trinity. The goal of his journey is the Kingdom, and baptism opens the doors of this Kingdom for him. The Kingdom is not an event linked to the future, but rather a person tastes it beforehand in the Church, and baptism brings us into membership in the Body of Christ, that is, the Church.
In blessing, we declare that the Kingdom is our goal and desire, not that we bless and sanctify it, but rather we declare that it is blessed and therefore it is our desire and the goal of our lives. The act of blessing means the act of purposeful, intense love for those you love. To be blessed means to accept with love and move toward what you have accepted and loved. An invitation for us to enter the Kingdom of God, the Triune Persons, and participate in His divine life. This is the ultimate goal of baptism. We choose to be children of God, children of the Kingdom, and in this life we turn away from everything that takes us away from this goal.
Finally, this doctrinal declaration shows us the trinity of persons with the unity of essence, as it is said that there is one “kingdom” and not “kingdoms.” It is said “the kingdom of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit” because the kingdom of the Father is the same as the kingdom of the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Blessing of water:
Water is the substance of the secret, and it represents the world of matter. It is a symbol of life and living, as God intended it at creation. There is no life without water. But these waters, after the fall (sin), also became a symbol of destruction and death, as in the days of Noah.
In the water sanctification prayer, the priest prays for the water to return to what God intended it to be at creation, that is, to be a source of life. The priest asks God to make this water a source of incorruption, a gift for sanctification, a redemption for sin, an elixir for diseases, and an expulsion of demons. And this water appears intimate for rebirth. A blessing for adoption, a source of life.
Water is a symbol of cleanliness and purification, with which a person bathes to cleanse his body. In baptism, water is specifically used to wash a person from sin and purify him.
Taking-off clothes:
After blessing the water, the priest asks the godparents to remove his clothes from the child. For Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, the person preparing for enlightenment taking off his clothes is an image of taking off the old, sinful and mortal man. If baptism is death and resurrection with Christ, then our nakedness is of Christ naked on the cross. It is also an image of Adam and Eve who, before the fall, were naked and without shame, that is, in a state of original innocence.
Anointing with the oil of joy:
While taking off the catechumen’s clothes, the priest recites a prayer to bless the oil to anoint the child, in which he asks God to bless this oil “with the power, action, and descent of the Holy Spirit, so that it may be an anointing for incorruption... and a renewal of the soul...” Oil has always been an essential religious symbol, its value stemming from its practical importance and use. It is used first as a medicine, as we read in the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 29-37), who poured oil and wine on the wounds of the man who fell into the hands of thieves. It is also a natural source of light and therefore joy. The oil also symbolizes reconciliation and peace. Thus, the catechumen becomes ready to receive the divine light, the light of Christ, the light of eternal life, and this is reconciliation and peace with God. Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, and other Church Fathers liken anointing the body of a catechumen with oil to anointing the body of a wrestler before he goes into the fighting arena. The catechumen's struggle is with the evil one he will face in life.
After blessing the oil, the priest anoints the catechumen with oil first on his forehead and on his chest “to heal the soul and body,” then on his ears “to hear the faith,” then on his hands, saying, “Your hands made me and formed me,” and finally on his feet, saying, “Let him walk in your path, O Lord.”
Baptism and triple immersion:
After anointing with oil, the priest takes the catechumen and baptizes him by triple immersion, saying: “Baptize the servant of God... in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.”
The Apostle Paul says: “Or do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Jesus were baptized into his death and were buried with him through baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we might walk in newness of life? For if we are united with him in the likeness of his death, we will also be united with him in the likeness of his resurrection” (Romans 6:3-5). Therefore, when we go under the water, we die with Jesus, burying the old man within us, infected with sin, so that we may rise with him renewed by the Holy Spirit. We are buried with Jesus by going under the water, and we emerge from it. This is why we immerse ourselves three times, symbolizing the three-day burial of Jesus. Saint Cyril of Jerusalem says about immersion: “Baptism is not only purification from sins and a blessing for adoption, but also an image of the sufferings of Christ.” Baptism is the death of our selfishness and pride, and this is death “in the likeness of Christ’s death.”
The early church understood the connection of baptism with the death and resurrection of Christ, so the baptism of catechumens (those preparing to enter the Christian faith) took place only on Easter night. Easter is the passage from slavery to freedom, from darkness to light, from death to life, and from oppression to the kingdom, and baptism is the personal Easter. We obtain the freedom of the children of God and inherit eternal life in the kingdom where there is eternal light.
white dress:
After immersion, the baptized person is dressed in a white garment, symbolizing the resurrection life into which he has passed and the innocence that should characterize him. Before baptism, the baptized person took off the old man, and now he puts on the new man, placing before his eyes one goal: Christ. We were baptized into the newness of life and the white dress is an expression of it. It is the shining, royal garment, the garment of angels, the garment of incorruption. The baptized person was once again restored as a king in the kingdom. It is a symbol of purity, purity and righteousness that every Christian should strive for. Saint Ambrose compares the baptismal garment to Jesus’ clothes on Mount Tabor. While wearing the white suit, this hymn is chanted: “Grant me a luminous robe, O you who wear light like a garment, O Christ our God, most merciful.”
Chrismation:
After baptism, the Christian priest anoints with holy chrism in several places on his body, and says each time: “Seal the gift of the Holy Spirit.” If baptism is our death and resurrection with Christ, then chrism anointing is the personal Pentecost of each one of us. Pentecost is the fulfillment of what happened on the Day of Resurrection.
Holy Chrismation is not a separate sacrament, different from the sacrament of baptism, nor is it a part that grants unnecessary grace. It is a fulfillment of what happened in baptism, where we were brought into the kingdom. Here we conclude that we are children of the Kingdom, that we are the subjects and flock of Jesus Christ. The seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit is imprinted on us. “We take by gift what Christ alone took by nature, that is, the Holy Spirit, which the Father gave to the Son from all eternity, and who descended upon Christ and upon him alone, in the Jordan, declaring that he is the Anointed One, the beloved Son, and the Savior.”
Thus, the promise of Jesus Christ is fulfilled: “He will take what is mine and show it to you. Everything that is the Father’s is mine, so I said to you that he will take what is mine and make it known to you (John 16:14-15).
St. Gregory of Nyssa speaks of the seal as “a guarantee of our preservation and a sign of our ownership,” meaning that it preserves and defends our precious content, and through it we become the Father’s property and become His children. Through it we become temples of the Holy Spirit. This seal is a sign of our joining the camp of Jesus Christ, that we have become his soldiers, and that our eternal battle is with the evil one, and he is our protector in this battle.
Zayah:
After chrismation comes the procession around the baptismal font, carrying candles and chanting, “You who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” Saint Gregory of Nyssa says that ascension is entry into the heavenly temple, into the kingdom.
It is a passage from this world to the world of God. The circular procession is a symbol of spiritual and eternal joy. The circle has no beginning and no end, just as the kingdom has no beginning and no end, and is eternal.
We circle three times in constant reverence for the Holy Trinity.
The candles are an image of the lamps of wise virgins who are ready to enter the kingdom with the groom. Thus, the baptized person is prepared to enter the kingdom of Christ. Our souls are enlightened like virgins, carrying the light of faith. At the end of the procession, the message and the Gospel are read, where we hear the word of God addressed to us regarding holy baptism.
Handling:
After reading the Gospel, the godfather, carrying the baptized, advances toward the Royal Door to receive the Holy Body and Blood of the Lord. This is considered the child’s first Communion. The parents' mission here is to take the child with them at least every Sunday to participate in the Mass and partake of the body and blood of the Lord Jesus, in order to grow in grace and stature before God, after the absence of the role of the godfather in this matter.
In the past, baptism took place on Easter night. The newly baptized would enter the church in a procession and take their places to participate in the Divine Liturgy with the rest of the group of believers, that is, the church. They would participate in Communion in order to become one with Christ and with the community at the same time, and to become “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). Baptism brings us into the kingdom, and in Communion we participate in the heavenly table of the kingdom, the table of the Lord, and we become members of the body of Christ. We become children of the kingdom and are no longer children of “this world.”
Baptism washing:
The newly baptized must bear witness to Christ in this world. It is true that the church is not of this world, but it bears witness to Christ in this world, and the Lord established it and wanted it to remain in this world until the end of time, declaring salvation and the kingdom.
The holy chrism is washed off the child so that the holy chrism oil does not remain on the baptized person and is disrespectful. If the baptized person is washed at home, the family is asked to put the washing water in a place that cannot be stepped on by foot, because it is sanctified with chrism. The priest says: “You have been justified, you have been enlightened, you have been sanctified, you have been washed in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” The baptized person is washed after receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit in preparation for his return to the world in order to bear witness to Christ and the kingdom that is within him.
Metropolitan Boulos Yazigi
