The sacrament of the baptism of a child is one of the main events in the life of every Orthodox person. Baptism Day is the second birthday, but it concerns not physical life, but spiritual. On the day of baptism, the child will acquire his own Guardian Angel, which throughout his life will protect him from troubles and adversities.
When is the best practice of the sacrament of baptism?
This question does not have a clear answer, since a person can be baptized at any age. Note that a child under 7 years old, as a rule, does not take part in the decision on baptism, from the age of 7 years his consent is also necessary, and from 14 years old a decision on such an important event can be made by a person independently.
Once upon a time it was customary for a child to be baptized either on the eighth or on the fortieth day of life, when a woman was considered purified after childbirth. Currently, there are no such strict prohibitions, and you can baptize a child anytime: in fasting, in the first month of life, and a little later, when the baby gets stronger. Note that the sacrament of baptism can be carried out in the hospital, in cases where the child is weak or sick.
Who should be chosen by godparents?
Today godparents are chosen in most cases by personal sympathy - friends, relatives, good friends. Usually, parents thus emphasize the importance of a person and bring him closer to their family.
This is not bad, but you need to remember that being a godparent is a very responsible duty. After all, it is the godparents who are responsible for the spiritual development of the baby, introduce him to the church, lead him to communion and confession. It is to the godparents that a person can turn for help and advice, and they, in turn, must support him in any situation. By the way, the child must necessarily have a receiver of the same gender as himself, so a boy can only have a godfather, a girl can only have a godmother.
Spouses, mentally ill and incapable people, parents of a child cannot baptize one child. In addition, godparents must practice the same faith as the child and his parents.
The sacrament of baptism: the rules and features of the rite
During baptism, the priest reads the prayer three times, thereby driving away evil spirits, sanctifies the water and dips the child three times, whereby he washes him from original sin. After bathing, the child is transferred to one of the godparents and put on a cross. Then anointing is carried out.
After baptism, it is desirable that the cross remains on the body of the baptized. It is important to consider only the size, while the material, shape and inscriptions do not matter. The cross must be bought by godparents.
As for the baby’s clothes, it should be light and comfortable. In most cases, the child is baptized in a special baptismal shirt, which after the ceremony remains in memory. If you believe the national signs, if the child is sick, it can be wiped with a baptismal towel, which the baby was received from the font on the day of baptism. Thus, the sacrament of baptism — the introduction of the child to the church — is a very important and important event in his life. It is very important to take it with all seriousness and responsibility: to choose the godparents, the church, the date, the clothes and so on.