263. What are the effects of Baptism? (part 3 continuation)

263. What are the effects of Baptism? (part 3 continuation)

(Comp 263 repetition) Baptism takes away original sin, all personal sins and all punishment due to sin. It makes the baptized person a participant in the divine life of the Trinity through sanctifying grace, the grace of justification which incorporates one into Christ and into his Church. It gives one a share in the priesthood of Christ and provides the basis for communion with all Christians. It bestows the theological virtues and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. A baptized person belongs forever to Christ. He is marked with the indelible seal of Christ (character).

“In brief”  

(CCC 1279) The fruit of Baptism, or baptismal grace, is a rich reality that includes forgiveness of original sin and all personal sins, birth into the new life by which man becomes an adoptive son of the Father, a member of Christ and a temple of the Holy Spirit. By this very fact the person baptized is incorporated into the Church, the Body of Christ, and made a sharer in the priesthood of Christ. 

To deepen and explain  

(CCC 1270) "Reborn as sons of God, [the baptized] must profess before men the faith they have received from God through the Church" and participate in the apostolic and missionary activity of the People of God (LG 11; 17; AG 7; 23). (CCC 1271) Baptism constitutes the foundation of communion among all Christians, including those who are not yet in full communion with the Catholic Church: "For men who believe in Christ and have been properly baptized are put in some, though imperfect, communion with the Catholic Church. Justified by faith in Baptism, [they] are incorporated into Christ; they therefore have a right to be called Christians, and with good reason are accepted as brothers by the children of the Catholic Church" (UR 3). "Baptism therefore constitutes the sacramental bond of unity existing among all who through it are reborn" (UR 22 § 2). (CCC 1272) Incorporated into Christ by Baptism, the person baptized is configured to Christ. Baptism seals the Christian with the indelible spiritual mark (character) of his belonging to Christ. No sin can erase this mark, even if sin prevents Baptism from bearing the fruits of salvation (Cf. Rom 8:29; Council of Trent (1547): DS 1609-1619). Given once for all, Baptism cannot be repeated. 

On reflection  

(CCC 1273) Incorporated into the Church by Baptism, the faithful have received the sacramental character that consecrates them for Christian religious worship  (Cf. LG 11). The baptismal seal enables and commits Christians to serve God by a vital participation in the holy liturgy of the Church and to exercise their baptismal priesthood by the witness of holy lives and practical charity (Cf. LG 10). (CCC 1274) The Holy Spirit has marked us with the seal of the Lord ("Dominicus character") "for the day of redemption" (St. Augustine, Ep. 98, 5: PL 33, 362; Eph 4:30; cf. 1:13-14; 2 Cor 1:21-22). "Baptism indeed is the seal of eternal life" (St. Irenaeus, Dem ap. 3: SCh 62, 32). The faithful Christian who has "kept the seal" until the end, remaining faithful to the demands of his Baptism, will be able to depart this life "marked with the sign of faith" (Roman Missal, EP I (Roman Canon) 97), with his baptismal faith, in expectation of the blessed vision of God - the consummation of faith - and in the hope of resurrection. [END]

(Next question: What is the meaning of the Christian name received at Baptism?)