What the Catholic Church is Really Teaching about the Sacrament of Baptism?

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Popular Understanding (Baptism Makes One Think Of)	Church Teaching (Baptism Truly Means)
Water	New life in Christ, sharing in his dying and rising with him which includes the forgiveness of original sin and all personal sins.
Washing away original sin	Through the cleansing power of water and the Spirit.
Entry into church building;	Incorporation into the Christian community Christ's body.
Babies	Of adults and babies
Passive reception	Sacrament of the Church's faith
Clerical ritual	A personal prayer of those celebrating the sacrament.
Works automatically	Receiving the transforming grace of Baptism effecting conversion and drawing to an ever deeper Christian commitment.
Once-for-all ritual	A ritual calling for a life of Christian discipleship
No active influencing power in ordinary life	Influencing our daily life by being the permanent source of sharing in God's own life in Christ.
Single past event	A single event grounding the baptized whole future life-process, as manifested in the yearly liturgical renewal of Baptismal vows.

Source: Catechism of the Filipino Catholics.

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