11. The Clothing and Granting of the Cross. Then the baptizand is clothed in a white robe as a sign of the purity of his soul. He is given a cross to wear, so that he will ever remember his Christian responsibilities. As he is being clothed, they chant the troparion, “Vouchsafe unto me the robe of light, O Thou Who clothest Thyself in light as with a garment, Christ our God, plenteous in mercy.”

12 The Mystery of Chrismation. In the prayer that follows, the priest asks the Lord to grant the baptised the gift of the Holy Spirit and Divine sanctification through Life-creating Chrismation, to keep him in holiness, to confirm him in the Orthodox Faith, to deliver him from the evil one and all his works, so that this person may be well-pleasing unto God in every word and deed, and might be made a son and heir of the Heavenly Kingdom. After this prayer, the second Mystery (Sacrament) is performed, the Mystery of Chrismation. In the form of a Cross, the priest anoints with Holy Chrism (Myron) the forehead, eyes, nostrils, mouth, ears, chest, hands and feet, each time saying, “The seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit, Amen.” [In some usages, the knees and the back are also anointed - ed.] The word “seal” indicates he who has been baptised has become the “property” or “possession” of the Holy Spirit, Who seals and overshadows the newly baptised and is ready to help him in thoughts, feelings, desires, words and deeds, if only the person himself should be worthy of such Divine aid.

13. The Threefold Procession. After the anointing with the Holy Chrism, the priest, the newly baptised and his sponsor make a procession around the font three times in the name of the Holy Trinity. As this is done, the choir sings, “All ye that in Christ have been baptised, Christ have ye put on. Alleluia.” This threefold circular procession signifies the unbroken bond between the newly baptised and all the Persons of the Holy Trinity.

14. The reading of the Apostle and Gospel. After the procession around the font, the Apostle reading is heard (Romans 6:3-11), in which it speaks of our closest unity with Christ. It says that in that we have been buried with Him by Baptism, and died unto sin, so we must be made like Him in resurrecting, living only for the fulfilment of His holy will. In the Gospel (Matthew 28:16-20), it tells of Jesus Christ’s injunction to the Apostles before His Ascension into the heavens, telling them to instruct all peoples, teaching them to observe the commandments of the Lord, and to baptise them in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

15. The Washing and Wiping Off of the Holy Chrism. After the reading of the Gospels, we have the washing and the wiping off of the Chrism.

16. The Church Greeting of the the Newly baptised. As the above occurs the priest instructs the newly-illumined that he is justified, illumined, and sanctified in Baptism and Chrismation.

17. The Tonsuring of the Hair. Before the cutting of the hair, the priest reads a prayer, in which he recalls man’s readiness to sacrifice all for God. The tonsuring of the hair serves as a sign of man’s submission to God. In the prayer on the tonsuring, the priest asks the Lord to send down His Divine blessing upon the newly-baptised, and that the latter might be granted until deep old age, throughout all the days of his life, to behold the good things [of Jerusalem]. Thereafter we have

18. A Litany. Actually a short threefold litany, in which we pray for “mercy, life, peace, health, salvation and remission of sins” for the sponsor, and in which we also pray for the newly-baptised, and then there comes

19. The Dismissal.

… To be continued in the next issue with the “Order of Baptism.”