Why the day of Baptism matters
“As I know my birthday, I should know my Baptism day, because it is a feast day,” Pope Francis told a general audience on 8 January 2014. He had asked the crowd who knew the date of their Baptism, and then gave them a task: ask at home, find the date, and keep in mind that most beautiful day. Not knowing it, he warned, risks losing the memory of what the Lord has done in us.
What happened that day is no small thing. Saint Paul asks, “Know you not that all we, who are baptized in Christ Jesus, are baptized in his death?” and promises that “we also may walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:3–4, Douay-Rheims). The Catechism gathers up what Saint Paul teaches: in Baptism we become new creatures and adopted children of God, members of Christ’s Body and temples where the Holy Spirit dwells (no. 1265). Baptism seals the soul as Christ’s own for ever. No sin can wipe out that seal, though sin can keep Baptism from bearing its fruit of salvation; and Baptism is never repeated (no. 1272).
A birthday remembers the day a child came into the world. A baptism day remembers the day that child was born into the Church, named before God, and set on the road to heaven. It is worth a candle and a cake.
The signs of the day
The signs given at Baptism are the best decorations for its anniversary. The Catechism explains two of them: the white garment shows that the baptized has “put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27), and the candle, lit from the Easter candle, shows that Christ has enlightened the newly baptized (no. 1243).
The old Roman Ritual put both into words that a mother can still read aloud to her child. Over the white garment: Accipe vestem candidam, quam immaculatam perferas ante tribunal Domini nostri Jesu Christi, ut habeas vitam aeternam — “Receive this white garment, and carry it unstained before the judgment seat of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you may have eternal life.” With the lighted candle: Accipe lampadem ardentem, et irreprehensibilis custodi Baptismum tuum — “Receive this burning lamp, and keep your Baptism blameless; keep the commandments of God, so that when the Lord comes to the wedding feast you may go out to meet him with all the saints in the court of heaven, and have eternal life, and live for ever and ever.”
That last line is the parable of the wise virgins, who “taking their lamps went out to meet the bridegroom and the bride” (Matthew 25:1, Douay-Rheims). Every baptized soul is given a lamp and told to keep it burning for the Bridegroom. The anniversary candle is that lamp, lit again.
How to keep a baptism anniversary at home
- Find the date. If you do not know it, ask the parish where you or your child were baptized. Canon law requires the pastor to record every baptism in the parish register, with the date and the godparents’ names (canon 877 §1).
- Write it on the household calendar beside the birthdays. The Liturgical Home tool can keep each child’s baptism day on your calendar.
- Light the baptismal candle at supper. If it has been lost, any candle will do; what it signifies is Christ, the light received at the font.
- Bring out the white garment and the photographs. Tell the story: the church, the priest, who held the baby, what the weather was, what you prayed.
- Renew the promises together (below), then trace the sign of the cross on each forehead with holy water, which recalls Baptism (Catechism 1668).
- Call or write to the godparents. The Church gives them a real office of their own: to walk beside the baptized all through the Christian life (Catechism 1255). An anniversary is their natural day to do it.
- Pray to the patron saint whose name was given at the font, and read a page of that saint’s life.
- Keep your own day too. A wife can keep her husband’s; a woman living alone, a widow, a sister in religion can keep her own. It is never too late to begin.
Renewing the promises at home
The Church renews baptismal promises publicly every year at the Easter Vigil, because faith must keep growing after Baptism (Catechism 1254). At home, on the anniversary, a family can make the same answers as a simple devotion. These are the questions the old Ritual asked of each infant at baptism, with the godparent answering in the child’s name. Older children can answer for themselves; parents can answer for a baby, as at the font.
Prayer
The renunciation and the profession of faith
Do you renounce Satan? — I do renounce him.
And all his works? — I do renounce them.
And all his pomps? — I do renounce them.
Do you believe in God the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth? — I do believe.
Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born and suffered? — I do believe.
Do you believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting? — I do believe.
Latin
Abrenuntias satanae? — Abrenuntio.
Et omnibus operibus ejus? — Abrenuntio.
Et omnibus pompis ejus? — Abrenuntio.
Credis in Deum Patrem omnipotentem, Creatorem caeli et terrae? — Credo.
Credis in Jesum Christum, Filium ejus unicum, Dominum nostrum, natum, et passum? — Credo.
Credis et in Spiritum sanctum, sanctam Ecclesiam Catholicam, Sanctorum communionem, remissionem peccatorum, carnis resurrectionem, et vitam aeternam? — Credo.
A prayer composed for 1765 Regina
A mother’s prayer on her child’s baptism day
Father of lights, on this day you washed N. in water and the Holy Spirit,
called N. by name, and made this child your own.
I thank you for the hands that held this child at the font,
for the priest who poured the water,
and for every prayer that has been said since.
Keep the lamp of this Baptism burning.
In every stumble, lift; in every wandering, bring home;
and when the Bridegroom comes, let N. go out to meet him
with all the saints, and with all of us who love N.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, keep this child near your Son. Amen.
A name for eternity
At Baptism a Christian receives a name in the Church, often the name of a saint who becomes a patron (Catechism 2156). God speaks to his people that way: “I have redeemed thee, and called thee by thy name: thou art mine” (Isaias [Isaiah] 43:1, Douay-Rheims). The Catechism adds that the name we receive in Baptism is meant to last beyond this life, and recalls the promise to the one who overcomes: “a white counter, and in the counter, a new name written” (Apocalypse [Revelation] 2:17, Douay-Rheims; Catechism 2159). Keep the day well, and your children will grow up knowing whose they are.
Questions
How do I find out the date of my Baptism?
Ask the parish where you were baptized. The pastor of the place of baptism must record every baptism in the parish baptismal register, with the date, the minister, the parents and the godparents (canon 877 §1). Your baptismal certificate also gives the date.
What do you do on a baptism anniversary?
Light the baptismal candle, look at the white garment or photographs, tell the story of the day, renew the baptismal promises together, bless the child with holy water, and call the godparents. Pray to the patron saint whose name was given at the font.
Can a family renew baptismal promises at home?
Yes, as a private devotion. The Church renews the promises publicly each year at the Easter Vigil (Catechism 1254); at home on the anniversary it is a family prayer, not a liturgical rite, and needs no priest.
What if we no longer have the baptismal candle?
Any candle can stand in for it. The candle signifies that Christ has enlightened the baptized (Catechism 1243); it is the light that matters, not the wax.