Baptism

WHAT IS BAPTISM?

The Church views Baptism as a death and resurrection experience. We die to sin and rise to life; we put aside our old self and put on a new person; we bury our past shadows and bad tendencies and emerge into a life of light and goodness.

The Church views Baptism as a part of Christian initiation, a welcoming of a person into the Christian family, a rite which joins the baptized to a community of believers linked together by ties of faith, grace and love.

Participation in the faith life of the Christian community must exist if the sacrament’s real power takes visible hold on a person. Given this understanding, infants should be baptized into the parish faith community where their parents currently worship and are ministering.

BAPTISM AT ST. JEROME CATHOLIC CHURCH

Our church celebrates infant Baptism on a quarterly basis during the 11:00 a.m. mass on Sunday.

The Baptism of your child gives you an opportunity to examine your Christian life and spirituality. By requesting Baptism, you are saying that you want to share your living Christian faith with your child.

Today, frequently, parents who request Baptism for their children are not living full Christian lives inside the Church community as Jesus envisioned. Therefore, the desire for Baptism of a child must be accompanied by a very serious commitment to bring up the child within a faith community of real believers and to educate the child in the truths and practices of Christian faith.

HOW TO PREPARE?

• Step 1. Call the parish office and schedule an appointment with a priest or deacon.
• Step 2.  Attend an interview where the specific of your child’’s Baptism is discussed
• Step 3.  Attend Pre-baptismal class
• Step 4.  Celebration of Baptism.

For more information, please contact the parish office at 510.525.0876.