Sacraments of

Initiation
 Sacraments of Initiation

are those events in which one comes

to be one of Christ's Faithful,
according to the Catechism of the
Catholic Church.
 Sacraments of Initiation
The sacraments of initiation—Baptism, Confirmation,
and Holy Communion—are the three primary
sacraments, on which the rest of our life as a Christian
depends. Originally tied very closely together, the three
sacraments are now, in the Western Church,
celebrated at different milestones in our spiritual lives.
 The Sacrament of Baptism
The Sacrament of
Baptism, the first of the
sacraments of initiation,
is our entrance into the
Church.
The Sacrament of Baptism
The Sacrament of Baptism is often
called "The door of the Church,"
because it is the first of the seven
sacraments not only in time but in
priority, since the reception of the
other sacraments depends on it.
The Sacrament of Baptism
Through Baptism, we are cleansed
of Original Sin and receive
sanctifying grace, the life of God
within our souls.
The Sacrament of Baptism
That grace prepares us for the reception of the
other sacraments and helps us to live our
lives as Christians—in other words, to rise
about the cardinal virtues, which can be
practiced by anyone, to the theological
virtues of faith, hope, and charity, which can
only be practiced through the grace of God.
The Sacrament of Baptism
Once baptized, a person becomes a
member of the Church. Traditionally,
the rite or ceremony of baptism was
held outside the doors of the main
part of the church, to signify this fact.
The Sacrament of Baptism
While the Church has an extended rite of
Baptism which is normally celebrated, which
includes roles for both parents and godparents,
the essentials of that rite are two: the pouring of
water over the head of the person to be baptized
and the words "I baptize you in the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."
 The Sacrament of Confirmation
 Traditionally, the Sacrament
of Confirmation is the second
of the sacraments of
initiation, and the Eastern
Church continues to confirm
infants immediately after
Baptism. 
 The Sacrament of Confirmation
 Even in the West, where Confirmation
is routinely delayed until a person's
teen years, several years after his First
Communion, the Church has stressed
the original order of the sacraments .
 The Sacrament of Confirmation
 Confirmation is regarded as the perfection of
Baptism, because, as the introduction to the Rite
of Confirmation states:by the sacrament of
Confirmation, the baptized are more perfectly
bound to the Church and are enriched with a
special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they
are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly
obliged to spread and defend the faith by word
and deed.
 The Sacrament of Confirmation
 The Sacrament of Confirmation confers
special graces of the Holy Spirit upon the
person being confirmed, just as such graces
were granted to the Apostles on Pentecost.
 The Sacrament of Confirmation
 Like Baptism, therefore, it can only be
performed once, and Confirmation
increases and deepens all of the graces
granted at Baptism.
 The Sacrament of Confirmation
 Because Confirmation perfects our baptism,
we are obliged to receive it "in due time."
Any Catholic who did not receive
Confirmation at baptism or as part of his
religious education during grade school or
high school should contact a priest and
arrange to receive the Sacrament of
Confirmation.
The Sacrament of Holy Communion
The final sacrament of
initiation is the Sacrament of
Holy Communion, and it is
the only one of the three
that we can and should
receive repeatedly—even
daily, if possible. 
The Sacrament of Holy Communion

Even though we are required to

receive Communion at least once per
year, and the Church urges us to
receive Communion frequently, it is
called a sacrament of initiation
because, like Baptism
and Confirmation, it brings us into the
fullness of our life in Christ.
The Sacrament of Holy Communion

In Holy Communion, we consume

the Body and Blood of Christ,
which unites us more closely to
Him and helps us to grow in grace
by living a more Christian life.
The Sacrament of Holy Communion

Receiving Holy Communion

worthily brings us graces that
affect us both spiritually and
physically.
The Sacrament of Holy Communion

Spiritually, our souls become

more united to Christ, both
through the graces we receive
and through the change in our
actions that those graces effect.
The Sacrament of Holy Communion

Physically, frequent
Communion relieves us of
our passions.