Christian theology Christian theology is the theology – the systematic study of the divine and religion – of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. It concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Ch ...

, baptism of desire (, as the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

is called the ''breath'' (''flamen'') of

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

), also called baptism by desire, is a doctrine according to which a person is able to attain the grace of justification through

faith Faith is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept. In the context of religion, faith is " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". According to the Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, faith has multiple definitions, inc ...

, perfect contrition and the desire for

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

, without the water baptism having been received.

Denominational positions

Roman Catholicism

In the Catholic Church, baptism of desire "replace Sacramental Baptism in so far as the communication of grace is concerned, but do snot effect incorporation into the Church, as tdo snot bestow the

sacramental character Some Christian denomination, Christian denominations believe that a sacramental character, an indelible Spirituality, spiritual ''mark'' (the meaning of the word ''character'' in Latin language, Latin), is imprinted by any of three of the seven sa ...

by which a person becomes attached formally to the Church". The

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

teaches in the ''

Catechism of the Catholic Church The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' (; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a reference work that summarizes the Catholic Church's doctrine. It was Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992 ...

'' that "baptism is necessary for

salvation Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

". It also states the desire for baptism "brings about the fruits of

Baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

without being a

sacrament A sacrament is a Christian rite which is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence, number and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol ...

". It further states that " r catechumens who die before their Baptism, their explicit desire to receive it, together with repentance for their sins, and

charity Charity may refer to: Common meanings * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sha ...

, assures them the salvation that they were not able to receive through the sacrament". Lastly, it adds: "Every man who is ignorant of the Gospel of Christ and of his Church, but seeks the truth and does the will of

in accordance with his understanding of it, can be saved. It may be supposed that such persons would have desired Baptism explicitly if they had known its necessity".

Feeneyism

The doctrine of Feeneyism is associated with the position of Leonard Feeney on the doctrine ("outside the Church there is no salvation"). Feeneyism's interpretation of the doctrine is that only Catholics can go to

heaven Heaven, or the Heavens, is a common Religious cosmology, religious cosmological or supernatural place where beings such as deity, deities, angels, souls, saints, or Veneration of the dead, venerated ancestors are said to originate, be throne, ...

and that only those

baptised Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

with water can go to heaven. Feeneyism opposes the doctrines of baptism of desire and baptism of blood as well as the view that non-Catholics can go to heaven.

Lutheranism

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

affirms that baptism is ordinarily necessary for salvation. However, citing the teaching of the

early Church Early Christianity, otherwise called the Early Church or Paleo-Christianity, describes the historical era of the Christian religion up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325. Christianity spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and bey ...

, Lutherans acknowledge a baptism of desire where a person desire baptism but could not receive it. Dismas, the repentant thief on the cross, is cited as an example of an individual who trusted in Jesus but did not have the opportunity to get baptized. As such, "though God ordinarily ties himself to the means of the sacrament, if one desires baptism but is unable to receive it prior to death, God counts one's desire as sufficient for the grace given".

Denominational positions

Roman Catholicism

Feeneyism

Lutheranism

See also

References

Further reading