Holy Baptism

Burial with Christ and rising with Him, in water: the Mystery by which a person is born into the Church. The Orthodox rite begins with exorcisms; the candidate, or the godparent for a child, faces west to renounce Satan and blows and spits against him, then faces east to unite with Christ and says the Creed. The water is blessed, the candidate anointed with oil, and immersed three times in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. There follow at once the white garment, the cross, chrismation, and first communion, and a few locks of hair are cut as a first offering. Infants are baptised and communed as members of the Church in full. The Creed confesses one baptism for the remission of sins, and converts from other churches are received by baptism or, by economy, by chrismation or by confession of faith, as local practice decides.