MariaRegina
Well-Known Member
Credo said:Prior to celebrating His final Passover, which He changed into the Sacrament of the Eucharist, Christ went to the dirtiest part of His apostles and cleansed it; on their bodies, it was their feet. In our souls, it is our sins that are the dirtiest part of us. Jesus said to St. Peter "He who has washed (baptism) does not need to wash except his feet (confession)". In Baptism we were made clean, yet we still need to "wash our feet" in Reconciliation when we fall as all humans do.
So the teaching is double. Not only was Christ giving an example of humility and servitude, He was also showing that we must cleanse our dirtiest part prior to partaking in the Pascal feast - thus, Confession prior to Eucharist.
My dearest Credo: Christ is Risen!
I write these comments for educational purposes, so please read with understanding and love.
How did you come to believe that the Apostles were baptized? Can you quote from some ancient authorities? I have never heard any scriptures nor any historians of the Church cover that ground.
There is the Catholic expression: Christ is not bound by the sacraments but men are. Paraphrasing a pithy Catholic expression: God made the sacraments for men, not the other way around.
Do you remember the scriptures that detail the death of Christ? Christ said to the Good Thief on the Cross, "This day you shall be with me in Paradise." So the Good Thief was cleansed by the very Word of God in person. That was not baptism by desire, nor was it baptism by water, nor was it baptism by blood. The thief wasn't a martyr; he was a criminal, undergoing the death penalty, and he knew he deserved it. He was truly repentant. He was baptized and cleansed through the utterances of Christ, the Word of God: "This day you shall be with me in Paradise."
The Apostles could have been cleansed by Christ in the same way. In fact, my priest told me that when Christ washed their feet, that was their baptism, then they were cleansed. Reread that scripture, as after Peter had his feet washed, he demanded that Christ wash him all over, but Christ said that it wasn't necessary, as he was already cleansed.
Furthermore, the Roman Catholic Church says that some part of the body has to have water flowing over it. Could be the head, the feet. Otherwise, how can you baptize a man in the desert or during a drought? This is why baptism by pouring water over the head has been used for centuries within Catholicism.
Incidentally, I have been to several Catholic and Orthodox baptisms where the priest had an angry young fellow (at terrible two) who would not let anyone undress him. What do you do? Autistic children can have the same problem. The Church believes in the divine economia. So what did the priest do? He took the child and poured water all over his head. He couldn't immerse the child unless he first knocked him out, and that wouldn't be ethical. Would it?
Peter's first confession of sins came after the Resurrection when Christ asked, "Peter do you love me," three times. It was a sincere baptism of repentance and tears. Historians say that Peter had permanent scars or grooves down his face from all his tears. This is what HOLY CONFESSION is all about, repentance and tears. Sorry, your comment about the washing of feet doesn't sound very tearful to me.
Any comments or corrections?
Your sister in Christ,
Elizabeth
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