The mystery of initiation
The rite of baptism is perhaps the most joyful aspect of my priestly ministry. The joy of parents with a hint of sleepless nights; the greatest comfort of grandparents; the looks of the godparents, full of pride; family and friends gathered to share the joy; small children in their best clothes, whose natural restlessness is tried to be restrained by adults; and, of course, the child herself, with big innocent eyes, who looks at the world and at us, feeling this special day. A day that is not ordinary or everyday, a day when you don't know how to react - whether to giggle or cry or maybe sleep when you see this amazing and beautiful new life. But let's also not forget the joy of baptism in adulthood, when a mature person, without coercion, but out of love for God, decides to accept His holy mysteries and become one of his holy flock.
Before continuing, I would like to dwell on a few points and explain them. I hope they will reveal to us the deep meaning and incomprehensible symbolism behind them.
Not just Baptism
Eastern Rite Catholics support the practice of administering three sacraments at once, called the Rite of Initiation. It consists of Baptism, Anointing and Eucharist.
The disagreement over this rite between Eastern and Western Catholics arose in the early Christian period, which dates back to the fourth century. At that time, the rite of initiation, that is, the initiation of new members of the church, could only be conducted by a bishop. When Emperor Constantine was baptized in the 4th century, a large number of people wanted to become part of the church and receive baptism. However, the bishops could not cope with such an influx of people. In the East of the Roman Empire, the administration of the three sacraments was delegated to priests, while in the West only bishops retained the right to administer them, as a vestige of the early Christian era. Over the next 16 centuries, in the West, the granting of the three mysteries became more and more separated in time, while in the East they remained together.
It is important to note that only after accepting these three Holy Mysteries can they consider themselves full members of the Body of Christ (i.e. the church). Some believe that an infant cannot receive Communion because he is not aware of this Mystery, but our tradition teaches us that the lack of intellectual understanding of the Eucharist does not diminish the positive influence of the grace with which it is filled.
Oh, this service takes a long time
Unfortunately, over the years, our worship services became shorter and minimized, many wonderful prayers were less and less heard, and this overshadowed the whole context and meaning of the service. That is why we have included most of the prayers in this text, but those in the box can be omitted if necessary.
Participation
The Church strongly encourages the faithful to fully conscious participation in any divine service. As with any activity, the more actively you participate, the more interesting it becomes. Therefore, sing thanks, read prayers, think about what was said, and what is most important - follow the service and this will allow you to restore the grace given to you at baptism.
Reflections and comments - a simple quick explanation of the meaning of some symbols of baptism. Mainly, they are reflections that reveal the essence of worship for me. Their main purpose is not a historical excursion into the Liturgy, but rather to help the faithful to participate in the Liturgy even more consciously.
