Page 7 - Water of Life Infant Baptism

Life in Christ Jesus
In giving life to your child, you have been involved in the extraordinary creative action of God.
Now, in having your child baptised, you will be participating in another creative action... immersing your child in the life of Christ.
You have already been celebrating your child’s natural life, and gathering your child into your family. In baptism, you will be celebrating your child’s life in Christ, and gathering your child into the family of the Church.
Of course, these two movements of the natural family and the spiritual family are profoundly interwoven. You are your child’s first experience of what it means to relate to others, including relating to God. It is through you that the spiritual life is awakened in your child.
Therefore in bringing your child to be baptised at the church you are not coming to an ‘external’ source of faith. The Spirit of Christ within the Church is the same Spirit who draws you to the waters of baptism. You are already participating in the life of faith that you seek for your child.
In baptism you are sharing a precious gift with your child: life with God, as lived in the religious tradition of the Catholic Church.
The waters of baptism draw your child to God, through a relationship with Jesus Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Reflection
If you have a thought or reflection to share as we begin to unpack the meaning of baptism, by all means share it with the group.
Prayer
At this point in our gathering, let us bring all our reflections together in this prayer:
Prayer
Heavenly Father,
giver of life
and of all the gifts we share, we offer you praise and thanks.
Look upon us
with love and tenderness.
Bless our families.
Help us to bring the light of Christ into our homes.
Send your Holy Spirit
to empower our journey
as we are drawn ever more deeply into the mystery of your
life and love.
Amen.
May Christ dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being grounded in love. Ephesians 3:17
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