Congratulations! If you are searching here, chances are you have recently been blessed with new life, or you are inquiring to find out how to become Catholic.

The sacrament of Baptism which washes away original sin initiates the person into the family of believers in Jesus Christ.  Through baptism the person becomes an adopted child of God.  This received promise of eternal life fills the human heart with true hope and an awareness of their supernatural destiny.    

In his dialogue with Nicodemus, Jesus taught that Baptism was necessary for salvation. "No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit" (Jn 3:5). After his Resurrection, Jesus met with the eleven Apostles and gave them the commission to preach the Gospel and baptize, telling them, "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved" (Mk 16:16). 

The word baptism in its origins is Greek and means "immersion" and "bath." Immersion in water is a sign of death and emersion out of the water means new life. To bathe in water is also to undergo cleansing. Saint Paul sums up this truth when he says, "You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead" (Col 2:12).

The origin and foundation of Christian Baptism is Jesus. Before starting his public ministry, Jesus submitted himself to the baptism given by John the Baptist. The waters did not purify him; he cleansed the waters. "He comes to sanctify the Jordan for our sake . . . to begin a new creation through the Spirit and water" (St. Gregory Nazianzen, Liturgy of the Hours, I, 634).

Jesus' immersion in the water is a sign for all human beings of the need to die to themselves to do God's will. Jesus did not need to be baptized because he was totally faithful to the will of his Father and free from sin. However, he wanted to show his solidarity with human beings in order to reconcile them to the Father. 

By commanding his disciples to baptize all nations, he established the means by which people would die to sin—Original and actual—and begin to live a new life with God.

From USCCB.org

The Catholic Church baptizes both children and adults and the justification of this practice comes both from tradition and sacred scripture.  The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles of St. Paul, although containing only a fragmentary account of the ministry of the Apostles, plainly demonstrates that the Apostles baptized children as well as grown persons.  We are told, for instance, that Lydia "was baptized, and her whole household," by St. Paul; and that the jailer "was baptized, and all his family.  "  The same Apostle baptized also "the household of Stephanas".  

If you are interested in having your child baptized you will need to register to take a Baptismal Class. Visit the Baptism Preparation page for more information. 

Those interested in entering the Catholic Church are invited into a process called the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults or the same Rite adapted for children.  To learn more about inquiry into the Catholic Church at St. Catherine follow the links entitled: Becoming Catholic in the Faith Formation Section or click here.