Baptized by Water...and Fire

I have been baptized by water twice. My first baptism took place over twenty years ago in the Baptist church. Baptist children, some as young as five or six years old “join the church” with parental prodding and receive full immersion baptism. When I was baptized as an older adolescent, it had not been my desire.

Matthew 3 tells us of John the Baptist’s ministry in Judea. Jesus went to his cousin John and asked to be baptized. John said, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you are coming to me?” (Mt 3:14) Jesus desired baptism, understanding that his baptism would “fulfill all righteousness.” (Mt 3:15)

I received my second baptism in October of 2010 in the Catholic Church. In the years following my first baptism, I actively practiced the Baptist faith, but my personal faith rode the roller coaster of uncertainty. I didn’t feel I’d been fully accepted into Christ’s body. When I began attending Mass, I began to understand the truth of what Peter told Cornelius in Acts 42: 34-35, “I see that God shows no partiality…whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.” I was delighted when I learned I could be re-baptized. I desired this baptism wholeheartedly. I believe my new baptism fulfills God’s call to me to re-invigorate my faith and live righteously in Christ.

My faith journey is different from lifelong Catholics who may not receive re-baptism by water. However, as Catholics, we can be re-baptized in the Holy Spirit. Isaiah tells of the coming of a savior upon whom God put his spirit. When we are baptized in the Holy Spirit, we can receive peace, victory, and justice in a deep and meaningful relationship with Christ. God says, “I grasped you by the hand; I formed you…” (Isaiah 42: 6). We belong to Christ. Nothing can separate us from his love.

Fortunately, there is no limit on the number of times we can be re-baptized in the Holy Spirit. We can receive baptism by asking the Holy Spirit to come and fill us with fire from above. When Jesus was baptized, the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended as a dove. God said, “This is my beloved son with whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17) When we are re-baptized in the Holy Spirit, the heavens open for us and we can delight in knowing we are God’s children with whom he is well pleased.

Tori Arthurs is a professor of journalism here at WVU and new member of our faith community at St. John’s!

Canon 865 states that those who have reached the age of reason must have the manifest intent to receive Baptism, which Tori did not desire as an adolescent in the Baptist community. Canon 845 states that Baptism cannot be repeated. However, if there is “prudent doubt” regarding the validity of the conferral of baptism (in this case, because Tori did not desire Baptism as an adolescent), baptism may be conferred conditionally in the private form, which Tori received in October.
“Baptism in the Holy Spirit” is also known as a “stirring up” of the Holy Spirit within an individual in a personal, powerful way, as the apostles experienced in Acts chapter 2. –Doubting Thomas

Recommended Reading:
Acts Chapter 2
1 Corinthians Chapter 12

Question of the Week:
What difference does your Baptism make? How have you experienced the Holy Spirit’s movement in your life?