Ancient Russia was baptized in 988 by the Grand Duke of Kiev Vladimir. On this day, July 28, Orthodox believers celebrate the anniversary of this event. Soon after the Christianization of Rus in 1054, a split occurred between East and West, dividing the church into Eastern (Orthodox) and Western (Catholic). Over time, the two churches adopted different ways of performing ordinances, including baptism. Here are the main differences between Catholic and Orthodox baptism.
Baptism is the most important Christian sacrament. This gives a person access to all other ordinances, in particular the Eucharist (also known as holy communion).
In Orthodoxy, baptism can be performed for infants (usually over 8 days old). Parents and godparents are responsible, in this case, for the upbringing of the child in the spirit of the Christian faith. Since the child cannot yet take part in the Eucharist or fast, such things are performed by the child's parents “for him”.
If a baptized child is less than 7 years old, then in Orthodoxy only the consent of his parents is required. For children from 7 to 14 years old, the consent of both parents and the child himself is required, and after 14 years, everyone can decide for himself.
In Catholicism, paramount importance is attached to the act of free will - a person must consciously choose Christianity. This is why baptism is recommended between the ages of 7 and 12 so that those who have been baptized can make their own decisions.
Baptism is almost always carried out with water (with rare exceptions. According to the canons of the Apostles (4th century AD), a dying person who wants to enter Christianity can even be baptized with sand).
In the Orthodox tradition, baptism includes three full immersions (or immersions) in a font filled with holy water - each immersion for the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The triple immersion also symbolizes the death and rebirth of Christ. Baptism by pouring or sprinkling with water is allowed only in exceptional cases.
On the contrary, in the Catholic Church, water is poured over the head of the baptized three times or sprinkled three times.
In Russian Orthodox churches, chrismation is a sacrament (Holy Mystery) that must be performed after baptism.
In Catholic, as well as in Orthodox churches, chrismation completes the process of including the baptized in the sacrament. In the Eucharist, one cannot partake of the sacrament without chrismation.
In the Catholic Church, chrismation is also carried out after baptism, but is not considered completely completed. The "real" chrismation, called confirmation, is performed on children aged 13-14 who are believed to have deliberately chosen their faith at the time. Confirmation is carried out only by a priest in the rank of bishop.
Other parts of baptism are roughly the same in Catholic and Orthodox traditions: both include reading the Nicene doctrine, denouncing Satan (before baptism), and after baptism, putting on a white robe and lighting a candle.
