-The priest blesses the baptismal water with a prayer and breathes on the water in the shape of a cross.
-Then a pre-baptism anointing with the ‘Oil of Gladness’ takes place.
-In the baptism itself, the baby gets held in the font, facing east (a symbol of the resurrection) and dipped into the water 3 times, while the priest says a prayer. This is what the priest says whilst the baby is dipped into the font full of blessed water:
‘ The servant of God (giving the child its name) is baptised in the name of the father, Amen. And of the son, Amen. And of the Holy Spirit, Amen.’
Then the baby gets dressed in a new robe (the Robe of Righteousness) showing that he or she has become a new person, and anointed with oil (Chrism) to show that the Holy Spirit has been received.
The Roman Catholic and the Anglican services are the same; the essential parts are the following:
-The child is presented for baptism by their parents and Godparents. The Godparents have to promise to watch over the child and to see that they are bought up in Christian faith.
-The parents and Godparents are asked by the priest to indicate their belief in Christian faith.
-A passage from the bible is read which outlines the importance of baptism.
-The child is baptised with water poured over them while the priest recites the following words:
‘I baptise you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.’
In an Anglican service after the baby has been baptised a lit candle is often handed to the parents to symbolise the child moving from Dark to Light. The whole congregation then recites to the child:
‘We welcome you into the Lords family. We are members together of the body of Christ. We are children of the same heavenly father. We are inheritors together of the kingdom of God.’
Adult Baptism
When it comes to being baptised many Christians wish to follow the example of Jesus as much as possible. Some travel all the way to the river Jordan, other settle with any sea, river or lake. Most people are baptised in their local church in a pool, which is sunk in at the front. Women wear a simple white dress and men wear a white shirt and grey flannel trousers. They wear white because it is a colour that symbolises purity.
The service for when an adult is baptised involves the whole church. They make a public declaration of their faith to Christ. These are the three symbolic acts that happen:
-The person goes into the pool, leaving their old sinful life behind them forever.
-The persons body is immersed totally under the water, in this way, the person dies to that old life and is buried with Christ.
-The person comes up, out of the water to share with Christ in the new life that he had after his resurrection.
Nothing actually happens as a result of adult baptism. The service includes a lot of symbolism which points to spiritual changes that have already or will take place in the believer. The next stage is for the believer to become a full and active member to the church. This happens at the first Lords Supper after baptism when the person is given ‘the right hand of fellowship’ by the minister and welcomed as a full church member by the congregation. He or she is now expected to play a full part in the churches ministry by proclaiming the Christian Gospel to those outside the church.