Youcat commented through CCC – Question n. 194 - Part III.

YOUCAT Question n. 194 - Part III. What is Baptism?  

(Youcat answer - repeated) Baptism is the way out of the kingdom of death into life, the gateway to the church, and the beginning of a lasting communion with God.       

A deepening through CCC    

(CCC 1277) Baptism is birth into the new life in Christ. In accordance with the Lord's will, it is necessary for salvation, as is the Church herself, which we enter by Baptism. (CCC 1278) The essential rite of Baptism consists in immersing the candidate in water or pouring water on his head, while pronouncing the invocation of the Most Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.      

Reflecting and meditating    

(Youcat comment) Baptism is the foundational sacrament and the prerequisite for all other sacraments. It unites us with Jesus Christ, incorporates us into his redemptive death on the Cross, thereby freeing us from the power of Original Sin and all personal sins, and causes us to rise with him to a life without end. Since Baptism is a covenant with God, the individual must say Yes to it. In the baptism of children, the parents confess the Faith on behalf of the children.     

(CCC Comment)     

(CCC 1215) This sacrament is also called "the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit," for it signifies and actually brings about the birth of water and the Spirit without which no one "can enter the kingdom of God" (Titus 3:5; Jn 3:5).        

(The next question is: How is Baptism administered?)