There are many debates in the Church over the meaning of baptism. As a result there is a wide spectrum of beliefs regarding what baptism actually does and who should receive it. This article will attempt to give the Anglican perspective on baptism.
Baptism is considered to be a sacrament by Anglicans, so it is important to know what a sacrament is in order to understand the Anglican perspective on baptism. Richard Hooker (who was a 16th century Anglican theologian) said that a sacrament is 'an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace.' The idea behind a sacrament is that God uses physical objects that we can easily comprehend (water in the case of baptism and bread and wine in the case of the Eucharist) along with the spoken word (the liturgical formulas specific to the sacrament) to convey redemptive grace on the recipient of the sacrament. The sacraments are in effect channels of grace that God provides us as a means of salvation.
The sacraments were a symbol of the truth during the early years when the Church struggled against sects like the Gnostics. The Gnostics essentially believed that all matter was bad and that only the spiritual realities mattered. The sacraments provide a direct counterpoint to that idea since they function as a connection between the physical world and the spiritual world. This has foundations in the theology of the Incarnation since God Himself took on physical form as Jesus Christ and in doing so God sanctified matter for use by the Church.
Baptism is the sacrament of initiation into the Church. When one is baptized the stain of original sin inherited from Adam is washed away, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within the person, and the person is formally incorporated into the Body of Christ. This occurs regardless of whether a person is baptized as an infant or an adult because the grace bestowed upon a person during baptism is an unmerited gift from God in His boundless mercy. We can do nothing in and of ourselves to earn this grace. Baptism is regenerative, which means that it bestows sanctifying grace and new life in Christ upon the recipient.
However, it is important to remember that our journey towards salvation is not completed in baptism. This is particularly true in the case of infant baptism. During the ceremony parents make baptismal vows for their child, but it is the parents' responsibility to ensure that the child understands the meaning of these vows and comes to grow in faith in Christ. The ability of the child to exhibit this faith is itself a product of the sanctifying grace bestowed upon the child during baptism. When the child is older (usually 8-12) he/she will have the opportunity via the sacrament of Confirmation to formally reaffirm and take as their own the baptismal vows made for them by his/her parents.
Salvation in Anglicanism is not so much an instantaneous event as a process with past, present, and future components. Baptism is the first step on a long journey. The dynamic nature of the salvation process does mean that we need to be vigilant against the sin of unbelief (and the resulting fall from grace). We should always take the time to remember our baptismal vows and how we are bound to Christ through His sacrament.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
I agree with most of this article except for the part about salvation in Anglicanism not being an instantaneous event. I believe that the moment we believe in the name of God's only Son we are saved. It is then this salvation that enables us to have a closer relationship with Christ which in turn enriches our christian life. I believe that it is salvation that leads us to baptism. Salvation enables us to be buried with Christ in His baptism. John 3:17 - 18 Tells us that "God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned; whoever does not believe is condemned already because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God." Therefore if you believe you are saved, if you don't believe then your are not saved.
One comment I heard from an Anglican priest is interesting and I would enjoy any responses. He stated that really we are all "saved" before we are even born, after all, Christ died on the cross for all of us, born and not yet born. So, in effect we are already "saved" but have the choice as we grow to believe that Christ died for us, etc. He then went on to say that Salvation was a Gift of God (and we don't ask for gifts, they are given) and that we have to accept that gift by simply believing. Any thoughts?
Actually Rev, baptism has always been acknowledge by the Christian Church as the sacrament by which a Christian is grafted onto the vine of Christ, and the normative means of salvation. Nobody before Ulrich Zwingli questioned this (Luther and Calvin both held it). That is not to say God is limited to saving people by baptism, he can of course make exceptions - the traditional ones being "baptism by desire" and "baptism by blood" (ie, martyrdom). But our place is not to RELY on him making exceptions, the sacraments have been given to us as the normative means to recieve grace and salvation.
The scriptures, and as an an anglican I believe that everything necessary for salvation is in the scriptures, tell us that it is by God's grace that we are saved. David J is right salvation is a gift from God in the form of Jesus Christ if we believe upon His name as John 3:17 - 18 tells us. Yes, we can rely upon God because He is faithfull. I do not believe that baptism grafts us onto the vine and nowhere in the scriptures does it tell us this. We are saved by GRACE. The scriptures tell us to first of all believe in Jesus and then be baptised, not to be Baptised and then believe.
RX Pharmacy Online. Get Cheap Medication online. Buy Pills Central.
[url=http://buypillscentral.com/buy-generic-brand-levitra-online.html]Get Top Quality Viagra, Cialis, Levitra, Tamiflu[/url]. canadian generic pills. Cheap drugs pharmacy
greetings to all.
I would first like to thank the writers of this blog by sharing information, a few years ago I read a book called Real Estate Investment costa rica in this book deal with questions like this one.
Hello .. firstly I would like to send greetings to all readers. After this, I recognize the content so interesting about this article. For me personally I liked all the information. I would like to know of cases like this more often. In my personal experience I might mention a book called Generic Viagra in this book that I mentioned have very interesting topics, and also you have much to do with the main theme of this article.
Post a Comment