LIBBY: So we're talking about Baptism today.
Are you a god parent to anyone?
GODFATHER KAI: Are you asking me if I'm a godfather?
Is that what you're asking me?
LIBBY: No. Not anymore.
KAI: It's interesting, when you think about it --
there are a ton of Baptisms in movies and TV shows.
LIBBY: Yeah, you're right. Pretty much any character
that falls into a lake or river, or the sea,
they come back out with new purpose.
The writer's using a symbolic Baptism
to show the character coming back better than ever.
KAI: That's how I emerge from every shower I take.
LIBBY: Wow, you take showers?
KAI: Today we're going deep on Baptism,
a ritual that you probably know at least
a little about, and most importantly,
we're going to talk about
what it means to be born again in the Spirit.
(jazzy music)
LIBBY: Hi, I'm Libby.
KAI: And I'm Kai. Welcome to Catholic Central
and our episode on Baptism.
The first of the Seven Sacraments
of the Catholic Church,
and the gateway to the spiritual life.
LIBBY: As we've learned on our other episodes,
a sacrament is an outward sign
of an inward grace, instituted by Christ.
KAI: We'll find out why this Sacrament is so important
for Catholics, as well as all Christians.
LIBBY: We'll talk about immersion versus sprinkling,
investigate the origin of Baptism,
and walk through the ritual itself.
KAI: We tend to think of John the Baptist
as the first baptizer.
But there was in fact a Jewish community
called the Essenes, who lived by very strict rules,
and immersed themselves in water
to wash away transgressions.
LIBBY: And the Jewish religion uses water
for purification rituals.
KAI: So the idea of using water to wash away sins
was not entirely new to the culture.
LIBBY: But John knew his ministry of baptizing
to symbolize repentance was a precursor
to a new Baptism, which was an actual new covenant
with God. This was a big change.
KAI: As John said, "I baptize with water
but one is coming who will baptize you with fire."
LIBBY: Historically, this brings us to Jesus
coming to John and asking to be baptized.
So Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River,
and from that moment on,
he began His formal public ministry.
KAI: So, even for Jesus, who would never have any sins
to be washed away, this ritual was not just symbolic,
it was the beginning of a new path.
LIBBY: Christ said, "No one can enter the Kingdom of God
without being born of water and Spirit."
Just like real birth is necessary for physical life,
Baptism is necessary for spiritual life.
KAI: After the Resurrection and before His Ascension,
Jesus told His disciples to go out
and baptize new disciples in the name of
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
LIBBY: The Catholic Church calls this a Trinitarian Baptism.
KAI: Let's talk about Catholic Baptism,
and what's involved in the Sacrament today.
LIBBY: Water, washing, and words.
KAI: Water is a powerful symbol.
Water is the first sign of life.
All life on earth had its beginnings in water,
and in Baptism, the spiritual life has its beginnings.
LIBBY: The water of Baptism cleanses the soul
and quenches the thirst for God's love.
But water also symbolizes death.
KAI: Death, you say?
LIBBY: Catholics believe the person undergoing Baptism --
KAI: The baptizee.
LIBBY: No, the person being baptized is baptized
into Christ's death, dies to old self,
and rises again just like Jesus did
to newness of life.
KAI: The old self drowns and the new self emerges
from the water, born again in the Spirit.
LIBBY: Immersion is where the person being baptized
is completely dunked underwater.
Sprinkling is where water is simply poured
over the head of the person being baptized.
KAI: Either way, it's the Sacrament of Baptism
by water, cleansing you and sealing you in Christ.
LIBBY: The Baptism is carried out either by
triple immersion, or by the sprinkling of water
three times over the forehead.
Ooh, fun fact. The Catholic Church recognizes
any Trinitarian Baptism as valid.
KAI: That is super fun.
LIBBY: So fun.
KAI: But besides water, washing, and words,
there are three additional elements.
LIBBY: Chrism, clothing, and a candle.
The first element, chrism, is olive oil scented with balsam.
The oil is blessed by a bishop
at a special Mass during Holy Week.
Olive oil symbolizes new life, because
for thousands of years, it's been used to add richness
to food, and to heal and strengthen.
In Greek, the word "krizma" means "oil."
So "Christ" means "the Anointed One."
"Christian" means "someone who's anointed like Christ."
KAI: In Baptism, the presider takes the sacred chrism
and anoints the person being baptized
as priest, prophet, and king.
LIBBY: You might wonder how an ordinary person
like you and me can be a priest, prophet, and king.
ORDINARY PERSON KAI: How can an ordinary person like you or me
be priest, prophet, and king?
LIBBY: Good question. Just like a priest,
the baptized person is a bridge between God and the world.
KAI: And prophet because they're called to study
and to speak out the truth of the faith.
And king because they are at times called to lead
and gather others to God.
LIBBY: The second element is the white garment
worn by those being baptized.
White symbolizes the new life Christ has given them.
KAI: The third element is the baptismal candle,
which indicates they have been enlightened by Christ,
whose light burns within them and,
in turn, enlightens the world.
LIBBY: All these physical elements and symbols
point to God's actual activity in and through the Sacrament.
KAI: Right. God uses Baptism to wash away
what the Church calls "Original Sin,"
humanity's inborn tendency towards
disobedience and rebellion against God
that leads to selfishness,
and chronic misuse of our free will
that causes harm.
LIBBY: If you are baptized as an adult,
you are cleansed not only of Original Sin,
but of every harmful act you have committed
up until that moment.
KAI: I need to get baptized again.
LIBBY: What have you done?
KAI: I threatened the pizza guy last night.
LIBBY: Not the Liam Neeson bit.
LIAM NEESON KAI: I don't know who you are, but if my pizza's not here
in the next 30 minutes,
I will find you, and you will regret
the day you were born.
LIBBY: Wrong on so many levels, and not what Baptism is for.
When you stumble in your life as a Catholic after Baptism,
you have many resources including
the Sacrament of Reconciliation to get you back
on a new and clean path.
KAI: You're right.
Baptism's gift is to graft you into the family,
to mark you for life as belonging to Christ.
Conforming your free will to full unity
with Christ is a process.
LIBBY: Maybe now you're asking, "What's up with baby Baptism?"
KAI: Why do Catholics baptize babies
when they are way too cute and too babyish
to have committed sins that need to be washed away?
LIBBY: Baptism is not just a testimony of faith,
but faith, publicly professed, is
necessary condition for Baptism.
So you might wonder, in infant Baptism,
who's faith is required.
KAI: Scripture tells us that the faith of the parents
fully suffices for the
Baptism of their children.
Just like in the Old Testament, where
Jewish parents like Mary and Joseph
presented Jesus in the Temple,
parents present the infant to God in Baptism
to be sealed as His throughout their life.
LIBBY: Later, they will receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit and complete their initiation in
the Sacrament of Confirmation.
It's a time when people
make a personal testimony and
commitment to Christ on their own behalf.
KAI: So, we've covered adult and infant Baptism,
but there are other forms.
LIBBY: Baptism of blood. That's when a person dies for Christ.
KAI: And Baptism of desire, someone who wants
to be baptized, but dies before receiving the Sacrament.
The most important thing to remember is that God wants
to gather all people into one family, and the Sacrament of
Baptism begins that lifelong journey.
LIBBY: To recap, Baptism is the first of the
Seven Sacraments.
It washes the soul of sin, and
marks us forever as belonging to God.
KAI: Like all the Sacraments, it was instituted by Christ.
LIBBY: Through God's grace, the baptized person grows in
holiness, which is a work of a lifetime.
KAI: Baptism is the beginning.
LIBBY: This, however, is the end of our episode.
I'm Libby.
KAI: And I'm Kai.
LIBBY: Spread the knowledge.
KAI: And get more of it next time on Catholic Central.
LIAM NEESON KAI: Libby, you were right. I was wrong. Liam will never
do that again. It's a whole new life.
I love pepperoni.
(Jazzy music)