Immediate family attended a private ceremony. Stephen Finos is Matt's godfather or Nono in Greek.
Congratulations Matt!!
The Sacrament of Holy Baptism
Baptism is the first essential mystery of a person’s life, joining them to the Body of Christ - the Church. It is an explicit profession of faith by the parents, sponsors (godparents) and the whole community gathered to celebrate the mystery, reaffirming their faith and pledging to provide an environment of continued Christian witness for the candidate. The use of sponsors (or godparents) in Baptism dates back to the days when Christians were persecuted by the Roman Emperor Nero. Parents were often massacred during these persecutions, so sponsors were provided to raise and educate the children in the Christian faith in the event the parents were martyred.
The First Part – Catechesis
The first part of the Baptismal service begins in the narthex (entrance) of the church. This is to show that the one being received is not yet a member of the church. The purpose of Baptism is to bring them into the Church. The child is given its own name to express the new life in Christ received through Holy Baptism. The priest then calls upon the sponsor to renounce the devil and all his works on behalf of the child: "Do you renounce Satan, and all his angels, and all his works, and all his services, and all his pride?”.“Do you unite yourself to Christ?” The renunciation of Satan and the union with Christ express our faith that the newly baptised child has been transferred from one master to another, from Satan to Christ, from death to life the priest then makes the sign of the cross on the child’s body. This is repeated often during the service as a sign of victory over the devil. The godparent is then asked to confess the true faith in Christ on behalf of the infant by reading the Nicene Creed.
The Second Part – The Service of Baptism
The second part focuses on the baptismal font and includes a series of petitions, including a prayer of invocation for the consecration of the baptismal waters where the priest makes the sign of the Cross three times over water saying: “Let all adverse powers be crushed beneath the signing of Your most precious Cross” The priest blesses olive oil and then applies it to the child’s forehead, breast, back, hands, feet, ears, mouth, in order to dedicate them to the service of Christ. The godparent then covers the entire body of the infant with olive oil in order to express our prayer that with Christ’s help the infant may be able to elude the grip of sin and the evil one. In obedience to Christ’s words, the priest then immerses and raises the child three times, chanting the words: "The servant of God (Matthew) is Baptised in the name of the Father, Amen. And of the Son, Amen. And of the Holy Spirit, Amen.” After the Baptism he places the child in a new, white linen sheet held by the godparent as a symbol of regeneration, newness, kingship and future immortality. It reminds the neophyte to remain whole and be faithful to the baptismal pledge.
The Nicene Creed
I believe in One God, Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible. And in One Lord, Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages. Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten, not created, of one essence with the Father through whom all things were made. For us and for our salvation He came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became Man. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and He suffered and was buried. On the third day He rose according to the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the fight hand of the Father. He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father, who together with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who spoke through the prophets. In one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I expect the resurrection of the dead; and the life of the age to come. Amen.
The third part – Chrismation and Celebration
In the Orthodox Church the Sacrament of Chrismation (known sometimes as Confirmation) is administered immediately following Baptism as in the early Church. It is the fulfilment of the Baptism. The priest anoints the neophyte with the consecrated oils, saying: "the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit, Amen.” Following the Sacrament of Chrismation the priest then invests the newly Baptised child in a new robe or garment saying: "Clothed is the servant of God (Matthew) with the garment of righteousness, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.” The new clothes signify the entirely new life that we receive after we are “buried with Jesus in His death” (Romans 6:4). Traditionally, the new white garment expresses the purity of the soul that has been washed from sin. After a set of petitions called the “fervent litany”, the neophyte participates in three additional rites. The priest washes the neophyte’s forehead as an indication that the visible signs of the mysteries must not become inner realities and the very essence of life. He then lays his hands upon the neophyte as a reminder that the Christian is armed with the Holy Spirit to war against all adverse powers. Finally, the priest cuts four locks of hair (tonsure) from the child’s head in the form of a Cross. This is an expression of gratitude from the child, who, having received an abundance of blessings through the Sacraments of Baptism and Chrismation and having nothing to give God in return, offers parts of its hair, as a first offering to God. In the Old Testament, hair was seen as a symbol of strength. With this act the child promises to serve God with all its strength. Then the priest, together with the godparent and the child, circumambulate the font three times; and for each of the three rounds sing: "As many of you as have been Baptised into Christ, have put on Christ. Alleluia” (Gal. 3:27) This reflects the belief that at this moment the angels in heaven God assigns a guardian angel to stay with the neophyte until the end of the earthly life. Following the reading from St Paul’s Epistle to the Romans (6:3-11) and the reading from the Holy Gospel (Matt. 28:16-20) the priest says to the child: "You are Baptised; you are illuminated; you are anointed with the Holy Myrrh; you are hallowed; you are washed clean in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
