وجبـــــــة روحيـــــ(†)ــــــــــة يوميـــــــــة

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III





Does baptism still carry its efficacious if the clergyman who administers it is a malefactor?




Does baptism still carry its efficacious if the clergyman who administers it is a malefactor?
The graces we receive in baptism are from God and not from the clergyman who is but a minister of the Lord the Giver. The graces are based on the true promises of God and not on the deportment of the clergyman.
The clergyman is like the postman who carries a joyful letter to you; whether he is handsome or ugly does not affect the joy your letter brings.
We can also compare the clergyman to the gardener sowing seeds in the earth to bring forth fruits. Whether he is sinful or virtuous does not matter; what matters are the seeds themselves and the life therein, not the hands of the gardener who sows them.
You may drink water from a gold or copper cup, yet the water itself remains the same irrespective of the kind of cup you drink from.
In our discourse about baptism and its efficacious, we shall discuss the dogma objectively. We shall not touch any subjective issue as this leads to judging others and to disregarding what the Lord endowed upon human beings in baptism

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III





The graces we receive in baptism are from God and not from the clergyman who is but a minister of the Lord the Giver. The graces are based on the true promises of God and not on the deportment of the clergyman

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III





The clergyman is like the postman who carries a joyful letter to you; whether he is handsome or ugly does not affect the joy your letter brings.

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III





We can also compare the clergyman to the gardener sowing seeds in the earth to bring forth fruits. Whether he is sinful or virtuous does not matter; what matters are the seeds themselves and the life therein, not the hands of the gardener who sows them.

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III

You may drink water from a gold or copper cup, yet the water itself remains the same irrespective of the kind of cup you drink from.

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III





In our discourse about baptism and its efficacious, we shall discuss the dogma objectively. We shall not touch any subjective issue as this leads to judging others and to disregarding what the Lord endowed upon human beings in baptism

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III





How was the Penitent Thief saved without baptism?

When we reply to this question we say that this thief received the best baptism after whose example we all wish to be baptised. What is baptism but dying with Christ, as our teacher St. Paul says (Rom.6)? The Penitent Thief actually died with Christ and his death became a baptism. Similarly is the baptism by blood attributed to the martyrs who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ and were killed at the time of persecution before they had received the grace of baptism by water. Their death became a baptism because they died with Christ like the Penitent Thief. (We have explained this point in our book entitled Salvation)

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III

Baptism and the verse: Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved



If baptism is essential, why did the Apostles Paul and Silas say to the jailer at Philippi: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved" (Acts16: 31) and not: "Believe and be baptised", which is proof that belief is adequate for salvation?
The reply to this is that the two Apostles were talking to an unbeliever. No matter what he did, he could not be saved without faith. Therefore, they first had to direct him to faith so that he could be saved. If he accepted the faith then they would explain to him the necessary matters. That is why the following two things happened after they said those words to him:
(a) "Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house" (Acts 16: 32).
(b) "And immediately he and all his family were baptised" (Acts 16: 33).
Thus we should not put before us just one verse and forget all the other verses connected with the same subject. Alongside the belief of the jailer of Philippi, we have to put the baptism of the jailer of Philippi. Alongside the words of the two Apostles: "Believe... and you will be saved", we also have to put before us the words of the Lord Himself: "He who believes and is baptised will be saved" (Mark.16: 16) and in addition, all the verses that are related to salvation through baptism such as (1Pet.3: 21) and (Titus 3: 5).

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III

If baptism is so important. were the prophets of the Old Testament baptized?

If the commandment of baptism had existed in their days, they would have been baptized. But this commandment is laid down in Christianity. Why? Because baptism is dying with Christ and Christ had not died in the Old Testament.
The prophets of the Old Testament practiced what they could in their days: the symbols of baptism such as circumcision and crossing the Red Sea. They also celebrated the Passover lamb, which symbolized the Blood of Christ. We should not expect people to have obeyed a commandment, unknown to them, as it succeeded their time/s.

[Mary Naeem]

Pope Shenouda III



If the commandment of baptism had existed in their days, they would have been baptized. But this commandment is laid down in Christianity. Why? Because baptism is dying with Christ and Christ had not died in the Old Testament.