The smell of a newly Catholic, baptized baby. To me, it smells like Christmas. The anointing of The Sacred Chrism oils smell of the most wonderful balsam. It also lasts for days. The most important thing I anticipated after giving birth, and holding my healthy baby, was eating that first meal, obviously! But in all seriousness, it was the baptism of my sweet baby girl. My little baby was just two weeks old at her baptism. I would like to share the importance and beauty of a Catholic baptism. It truly is the most beautiful gift a parent can give their child.

"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the close of the age." -Matthew 28:19-20

The main reason for baptism is to wash away original sin from Adam and Eve. In the Bible, Jesus undid many of the sins before Him. He did it. Baptism is His gift to us. To wash away that original sin, and prepare the soul for heaven by giving us the holy spirit. It is a sacrament. The most beautiful gift you can give your newly born baby. It also welcomes them into the most precious family, the Catholic church. The church founded by Christ Himself. Keeping faith in a child after baptism is holy work and sacred work. It starts in the home and continues at mass. It is so important to bring your little ones to mass. They learn more about the faith this way, and by being in mass, they are close to the holy spirit.

A special way to celebrate and remember one’s baptism is to get out their baptismal candle and light it. Bless the child with holy water and say a prayer for them. It becomes a special “birthday” for them.

During my oldest daughter’s baptism, I allowed the Godmother to hold my precious baby. She held her while the water was poured over her head. This time, I decided to hold my second baby girl myself. It was beautiful to experience. A precious time in a mother’s life. It makes me wonder why anyone wouldn’t want this for their child. And that is why I’m writing this. To hopefully inspire anyone out there who truly loves the Catholic faith but is afraid to “come and see.”

Want to enter the church but just don’t know how or don’t feel worthy enough?

In 2023 I was baptized Catholic while pregnant with my second baby. The reason I entered the Catholic church was because of my first daughter and what God had done for me. My husband at the time was Catholic, but wasn’t a practicing Catholic. We had tried for two years to conceive. I prayed and prayed until I officially hit bottom and cried my heart to God. That night I had a dream seeing the most precious little baby girl feet. When I discovered I was pregnant two days later, I made a promise to God. I told Him I would do everything to be the best for my child. Growing up, my family was all Catholic, both my parents, and grandparents. Why my mother chose not to baptize me even when she herself went to Catholic school? It was because of her, at the time, pressure from her mother-in-law to baptize. Here’s the thing. Everyone has an opinion. This is simply my story. I wish my mother baptized me as a baby. All these years later I found out she was afraid. She didn’t know how to get me baptized. I respect her and we all have learned from this. I went my whole life feeling left out or not worthy enough to be a member of the church. It only made me feel more anxious to start.

Attend a baptism class and declare your intention to join the church with a faith formation leader at your local parish.

It really is as simple as it sounds. It is fairly easy to baptize your child in the Catholic Church, regardless of the stories you may have heard. It is really important to think about how that child will continue their faith beyond baptism. Who will be their Godparents? Will they help keep Christ at the center of their lives? Will you as parents grow their faith? It would be hard, if not impossible for Non-Catholic parents to raise Catholic children. This is one of the main reasons a Priest will have you sign a document when baptizing your child Catholic. Will you promise to raise your child in the Catholic faith? If that answer is no, you’ll likely not find a Priest that will baptize. For the parents that DO want to become Catholic themselves or come back home, this is for you.

If you have serious intentions to join the Catholic church it is simple. For my family, we baptized our daughter and had our marriage blessed the same day in the church. (We had no earlier marriages to worry about annulments.) Fun fact, we were also each other’s firsts and only! My husband was already confirmed. I then went through RCIA to be baptized, confirmed, and finally take first communion. The most beautiful and wonderful journey of my life. It was also the best thing I have done for my family. In my situation, I chose to enter the Catholic church. So many out there simply do not know the beauty that is calling to all of God’s children. Me writing this in hopes to inspire even one family to become Catholic will fill my heart. It is a responsibility when confirmed to go out and spread our faith. I have found the most beautiful love in the Catholic church and I will continue to share my faith.

Planning a Baptism Celebration

Once you pick a date, you can choose a beautiful baptism outfit for your little one. You can also select outfits for your family. Baby wears all white. Here are links to outfits and baptism decorations I personally really like for baptisms https://www.amazon.com/gp/profile/amzn1.account.AHBIJG4SZNOTVJP5TF233EZTDWIA/list/27MVPN9F1NF60?ref=customerprofile.

Planning a baptism celebration afterwards is a very nice way to continue the beautiful day for your little one. For my daughters’ we had a celebration at our home for our first baby. Then for our second we reserved the church dining hall. Having done both, I prefer renting the room at the church doing the baptism. It made everything so easy. Cleanup was easy. Everyone had one place to go for the event. We brought in food to the room before the mass. It is really a beautiful time for the baby, mother, and family.

This photo above was at our first child’s baptism. Yes, I wore the same dress for both my daughters’ baptisms. It is easier when they are first born rather then waiting until six months old, like we did here. I love this photo, though, because it is the start of our journey. We then both entered the Catholic church fully all for the love of Jesus, our daughter, and our family. How great is God? I thank Him every day for this journey. For giving me purpose and showing me true love and beauty. Baptism is far more than just pouring of water and anointing of oils. It’s the Holy spirit entering our soul. It is the saving of a soul. It is love for your child. It truly is the greatest gift parents can give their child.

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." -Jeremiah 1:5