BAPTISM

(The Revival of the Christian Faith)



BAPTISM

The Revival of the Christian Faith through Baptism

Introduction

Christianity, the religion professed by the Jesus of Nazareth are a set of teachings that are available to all mankind to save them from the original sin of the human race with which they are born and to unite them with God's grace.

To understand and believe in Christianity the primary seven sacraments are crucial to the believer of the faith. Baptism, confirmation and Eucharist are the three main sacraments of the initiation phase where a person converts to the faith of the believers of the Jesus Christ (McHugh, 2006).

This paper discusses Baptism, a fundamental act of the initiation phase through understanding of the Lenten period and its importance towards contributing to the central ritual of Baptism on Easter Celebrations.

Baptism

In the Christian faith important events of a person's life are celebrated through ritual ceremonies that answer the mysteries of life itself, Baptism is the initiation ceremony of a believer to become a member of Christian faith. To undergo Baptism means to become a dedicated follower of; God, The lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, with all love a person posses, so to be able to match the love of God for the human beings. It is through Baptism that humans reconnect with the grace of God, with whom they had separated due to the original sin committed by the human race. By performing the ritual of Baptism, the believer is considered to be symbolically dying and resurrecting just like the Lord Jesus Christ, where the person before the Baptism has died just the way Jesus did on the crucifix and then resurrected after the Baptism to be pure, holy and committed to God's mission on earth.

Structure of the Baptism Sacrament

Baptism as a ritual has five symbolic structural elements representing the significance of carrying out the Baptist rituals which are

The cross to represent the presence of evil within the hearts of the people and show the determination to shun them aside for the sake of the Lord Christ.

The white colour of the Garment representing purity as well the manifested spirit in the new man after the Baptism. It also represents that the original sin of the human beings has washed away and now soul of the believer is wiped clean of it and blessed with the love of God with the doors of heaven open for that child. It also represents the same gown Jesus wore when he was resurrected.

The Chrism oil symbolizing the Holy spirit descending on the baptized believer and making them the new person who is resurrected with the spirit of God as the new core of their lives.

The water to wash in represents that is God who gives us life, the presence of water signified the pureness of the individual and cleansing of all the sins that the person committed in life. Becoming a new individual overall after the Baptism.

The giving of a lighted ...