Sacraments of Initiation: God's I Love You

This issue of Catholic Update discusses the sacraments of initiation, in particular the sacrament of baptism, which follows the model of Jesus' baptism by John the Baptist. There are basically three steps, which include (1) going into the water, (2) hearing the voice and (3) coming up changed. Also discussed are how the sacraments of initiation have changed over the centuries.

Baptism is important in the life of the Church because, ""After our baptism we continue to hear the voice again and again throughout our Christian lives. We hear this voice of love primarily through the Christian community which assures us that we are beloved with a love that cancels out all feeling of shame and insufficiency and empowers us for mission.""