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Pope Francis has repeatedly urged the faithful to celebrate the anniversary of their baptism, and at the Wednesday general audience before the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, he made the invitation again.
“Rediscover the grace that comes from the Sacrament and translate it into the daily commitments of life,” the pope encouraged.
Then, he offered the “homework” of finding out your baptism date:
And I would like each one of us to find out the date of baptism: we know the date of our birthday, the date of our birth; but how many of you know your date of baptism? Few… since it is not celebrated, it is forgotten. I will give you some homework to do at home: Ask your parents, grandparents, uncles, friends: “When was I baptized? When was I baptized?”
The pope said that a baptism anniversary should spur us to gratitude: “Always carry that date of baptism in your heart to thank the Lord for the grace of baptism.”
The Catechism of the Catholic Church points out the graces that come from baptism:
Baptism not only purifies from all sins, but also makes the neophyte “a new creature,” an adopted son of God, who has become a “partaker of the divine nature,” member of Christ and coheir with him, and a temple of the Holy Spirit.
Baptism makes us members of the Body of Christ.
And today we celebrate...