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2930 - 31st Avenue, Rock Island, IL 61201 • Phone:(309)786-8163 • Email: stgeorgeoffice@aol.com
Baptism:
The Sacrament of Baptism incorporates us into the Church, the Body of Christ, and
is our introduction to the life of the Holy Trinity. Water is a natural symbol of
cleansing and newness of life. Through the three-fold immersion in the waters of
Baptism in the Name of the Holy Trinity, one dies to the old ways of sin and is born
to a new life in Christ. Baptism is one's public identification with Christ Death
and victorious Resurrection. Following the custom of the early Church, Orthodoxy
encourages the baptism of infants. The Church believes that the Sacrament is bearing
witness to the action of God who chooses a child to be an important member of His
people. From the day of their baptism, children are expected to mature in the life
of the Spirit, through their family and the Church. The Baptism of adults is practiced
when there was no previous baptism in the name of the Holy Trinity.
