ASF_2_-_MODULE_6_I_AUGUSTINE_ON_THE_SACRAMENTS_OF_INITIATION.pdf

University of San Agustin
General Luna St., 5000 Iloilo City, Philippines
www.usa.edu.ph
CENTER FOR RELIGIOUS STUDIES
2021-2022 Module Packet for Augustinian Studies and Formation 2 (Augustine on Christology and Worship), Office for
Theological Studies and Augustinian Formation, University of San Agustin, Iloilo City, Philippines.
Email: crs@usa.edu.ph | Tel. No.: 0999-997-1485 | Fax No.: (033) 337-4403
MODULE 6: AUGUSTINE ON THE SACRAMENTS OF
INITIATION
MODULE 6: OVERVIEW
to
Module 6!
A Grace-filled day! Welcome to Module 6!
In this module, we will discuss the three sacraments of
Initiation, namely: baptism, confirmation and holy Eucharist.
We will begin with Augustine’s story of conversion which led
him to receive the sacrament of Baptism making him an official
member of the religion of his mother Monica. We too officially
become a member of the Catholic Church when we receive the
Sacrament of Baptism which gives us the privilege to receive
other Sacraments of Initiation such as Confirmation and Holy
Eucharist. The sacraments of Christian initiation closely
combine to bring us closer to Christ and to enable us to carry
out the mission of the entire people of God in the Church and
in the world
Consultation Hours
Phone/Messenger:
Virtual Time:

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MODULE 6: LEARNING OUTCOMES:
By the end of the module, students will be able to:
1. manifest understanding of Augustine’s conversion story which led to
his baptism.
2. demonstrate that the sacraments of Initiation are the foundations of
Christian life
3. share the importance of the sacraments of Initiation and the
mission they necessitate in every Christian believer.
MODULE 6: COURSE CONTENT
Below is the Schedule for Module 6:
Activity
Description
Brief Introduction
Time to Complete
1
General Introduction of the conversion
and Baptismof Augustine
30 minutes
2 Discussion on the sacrament of Baptism. 60 minutes
3
Discussion on the sacrament of
Confirmation
90 minutes
4
Discussion on the Sacrament of Holy
Eucharist
90 minutes
Assessment Task 60 minutes
Conclusion 30minutes

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MODULE 6: OPENING PRAYER
MODULE 6: ACTIVITY 1
(Quotation from St. Augustine)
https://youtu.be/DuSWNIy7YG4
The short story of conversion of Saint Augustine
Opening Prayer: As we start with this module, I invite you to
pray the Prayer before class.
Leader: When we live in unity,
All: How good and how pleasant it is.
Leader: Pray for us, Holy Father Augustine,
All: That we may dwell together in peace.
Leader: Let us pray,
All: God our Father, Your Son promised to be present in the midst of
all who come together in His name. Help us to recognize His
presence among us and experience in our hearts the abundance
of Your grace, Your mercy, and Your peace, in truth and in love.
We ask this, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
My God, In whom is my delight, my glory and my trust, I thank your gifts and beg you to preserve and
keep them for me. Keep me, too, and so your gifts will grow and reach perfection and I shall be with
you myself, for I should not even exist if it were not by your gift.

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In late August of 386, at the age of
31, having heard of Ponticianus's and
his friends' first reading of the life of
Anthony of the Desert, Augustine
was converted to Christianity. As
Augustine later told it, his conversion
was prompted by hearing a child's
voice say "take up and read" (Latin:
tolle, lege). Resorting to the
Sortes Sanctorum, he opened a book
of St.
Paul's writings (codex apostoli,
8.12.29) at random and read Romans 13: 13–14: Not in rioting and drunkenness,
not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying, but put on the Lord
Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof.
Ambrose baptized Augustine and his son Adeodatus, in Milan on Easter Vigil, 24–
25 April 387. A year later, in 388, Augustine completed his apology On the
Holiness of the Catholic Church. That year, also, Adeodatus and Augustine
returned home to Africa. Augustine's mother Monica died at Ostia, Italy, as they
prepared to embark for Africa. Upon their arrival, they began a life of aristocratic
leisure at Augustine's family's property. Soon after, Adeodatus, too, died. Augustine
then sold his patrimony and gave the money to the poor. He only kept
the family house, which he converted into a monastic foundation for himself
and a group of friends. Furthermore, while he was known for his major
contributions regarding Christian rhetoric, another major contribution was his
preaching style.

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When Augustine accepted baptism at the hands of Ambrose in 387, thereby joining
the religion of his mother to the cultural practices of his father, he managed to make
it a Christianity of his own. (https://idswater.com/2021/03/03/how-was-saint-
augustine-converted/)
The preparation and ceremony of Baptism during the time of Augustine
In those days Christian baptism was an
extensive ceremony. Its preparations
started weeks before the actual baptism
took place. A person who would like to
receive baptism should first 'turn in his
name' (the so-called nomen dare) to be
inscribed by the Church official, who as
a rule, was the bishop. After thathe
received an extensive catechetical
instruction.Baptism took place at dawn on
Easter Sunday. We do not know the exact
rites of the Church of Milan at the time of
Augustine, but from two works by
Ambrose, his
so-called On the Sacraments (De sacramentis) and On the Mysteries (De mysteriis)
we seem to be able toreconstruct how baptism was administered in 387. It was
accompanied by rites such as a washing of feet(symbolising the forgiveness of sins,
a symbol dear to Ambrose), anointments, the laying on of hands, and so on. Also,
the newly baptised person received the sign of the cross on the forehead: from then
onwards he belonged to Christ. This sign was originally an X, derived from the old-
Hebrew sign of Tau already mentioned by the prophet Ezekiel (ch. 9), and also in
St John's Apocalypse (cf. e.g. Daniélou 1964:154f., 330f.). This sign was

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considered a mark of property and protection. (http://idlespeculations-
terryprest.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-baptism-of-st-augustine.html)
The Sacred Place for Baptism during the time of Augustine
Augustine's baptism took place in the baptistery of Milan's main church. A couple
of years ago, when excavations were conducted for the construction of an
underground, the ancient baptistery from Ambrose's times was discovered. When
visiting present-day Milano, you can still see it: after entering the cathedral at the
back, left side, you should immediately turn to the right and then go downstairs. I
mention this, because only few persons visiting the immense cathedral of Sta.
Thecla are aware of this possibility. When seeing the ancient baptistery, you may
learn how the adult Augustine, by then 32 years
old, was immersed in 'living' (that is: flowing) water. This immersion took place
three times, after he hadheard three questions: 'Do you believe in God the Almighty
Father?'; 'Do you believe in our Lord Jesus Christ and his cross?'; 'Do you also
believe in the Holy Spirit?' and after that he subsequently answered three times:
'Credo, I believe!' (Ambrosius De sacramentis 2, 20; cf. Ambrosius De mysteriis
21; 28). It is from the baptismal rite with its three questions and answers that we
still have our tripartite confessions (see e.g. Kelly 1960:30-61, esp. pp. 36-37 on
Ambrose).
https://youtu.be/xlU8fPsnKsg
The sacraments of Christian initiation is the foundations of every Christian

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The sharing in the divine nature given to men through the grace of Christ bears a
certain likeness to the origin, development, and nourishing of natural life. The
faithfulare born anew by Baptism, strengthened by the Sacrament of Confirmation,
and receive in the Eucharist the food of eternal life. By means of these sacraments of
Christian initiation, they thus receive in increasing measure the treasures of the
divine life and advance toward the perfection of charity (CCC
1212).

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2022-2023 Module Packet for ASF 2 (Saint Augustine on Christology and Worship), Center for Religious
Studies, University of San Agustin, Iloilo City, Philippines
Email: crs@usa.edu.ph | Contact No.: 337-4841 to 44 | Fax No.: (033) 337-4403
Sacraments of Baptism
Baptism incorporates us into Christ and forms us into God’s people. This first
sacrament pardons all our sins, rescues us from the power of darkness, and brings us
to the dignity of adopted children, a new creation through water and the Holy Spirit.
Hence we are called and are indeed the children of God.
This is what takes place at Baptism: Water is poured upon the head of the
person to be baptized, and at the same time the words appointed by Our Lord
are repeated; the person is thereby cleansed from original sin and all other sins,
he is gifted with habitual and sanctifying grace, and becomes a child of God, an
heir of heaven, and a member of the Church.
At our baptism much the same takes place as at Our Lord’s baptism: like Him, we
have water poured upon our head, and certain words are spoken (“I baptize thee in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost”); the Holy Ghost
descends upon us (although not in the form of a dove), we are made temples of the
Holy Ghost and endowed with sanctifying grace; God the Father says: “This is My
beloved son, in whom I am well pleased” (we are made children of God), and the
heavens are opened (we are made heirs of immortality). Again, much the same takes
place at our baptism as at the cleansing of Naaman (4 Kings v. 14); we are washed
with water, and delivered from the leprosy of sin, both original and actual. So again
much the same takes place at our baptism as at the passage of the Israelites through
the Jordan (1 Cor. x. 2); we pass through the water of Baptism into the promised
land, the Church of which we become members. Those on whom sanctifying grace
has been bestowed, are in virtue of that bestowal children of God and heirs of heaven.
Only the baptized have the right to call God their Father, hence in early times the
Lord’s Prayer was not taught to the unbaptized. St. Louis of France used to say: “I
think more of the private chapel where I was baptized, than of the Cathedral of
Rheims where I was crowned; for the dignity of a child of God, which was bestowed
on me at Baptism, is greater than that of the ruler of a kingdom. The latter I shall

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lose at death; the other will be my passport to everlasting glory.” It is because man
is cleansed from sin by baptism that St. Paul exclaims: “There is therefore now no
condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. viii. 1). The words of St. Peter
on the Day of Pentecost show what is the effect produced by Baptism: “Do penance,
and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of
your sins; and you shall receive the gift f the Holy Ghost” (Acts ii. 38). St .Paul
speaks of Baptism as “the laver of regeneration and renovation of the Holy Ghost,”
whereby “being; justified by His grace we may be heirs according to hope of life
everlasting” (Titus iii. 5, 7). Again he says: “In one spirit were we all baptized into
one body” (1 Cor. xii.)
Sacrament of Confirmation
https://youtu.be/IK-v1Uf3cVE?list=RDLVIK-v1Uf3cVE
Confirmation is so-called from its effect,
which is to confirm and strengthen in the
faith those who receive it; it is also
spoken of as the laying on of hands (Acts
viii. 17), from the nature of the
ceremonies. Our Lord had given the
Holy Spirit to His apostles before His
ascension, yet they were timid and
fearful, and did not lose this timidity
until the Day of Pentecost, when the
plenitude of the Spirit was poured out
upon them. So we receive the Holy
Ghost at our baptism, but not in all His
fulness; this we receive at our
Confirmation. On the Day of Pentecost,

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the Holy Ghost came down upon the
apostles under sensible signs, tongues as of fire and a mighty wind; so in
Confirmation the visible sign is the imposition of hands, the audible sign the prayers
repeated by the bishop. At Pentecost the apostles received the seven gifts of the
Holy Spirit, pre eminently the gift of fortitude, and the extraordinary gift
of tongues; it is the same with us at Confirmation, only the gift of tongues is not
now given. What the Day of Pentecost was to the apostles, Confirmation is to the
Christian.
The ceremonial of Confirmation is as follows: The bishop lays his hands upon
the candidates and anoints each one severally with chrism upon the forehead,
with prayer; and those who are so anointed receive the gift of the Holy Ghost,
especially courage to profess their faith.
The bishop extends his hands over the persons to be confirmed, while he invokes
the Holy Spirit with His sevenfold gifts, to indicate that a supernatural power is
communicated to them; he then goes to each one separately, and laying upon his
head four fingers of his right hand, with the thumb of the same hand he makes the
sign of the cross with chrism on the forehead of the person to be confirmed, giving
him thereby to understand that he must never be ashamed to profess himself the
disciple of a crucified Saviour, saying meanwhile: “I sign thee with the sign of the
cross and I confirm thee with the chrism of salvation. In the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, Amen.” Then he gives him a
slight blow upon the cheek, to teach him that he must be ready to suffer persecution
for the faith, saying: “Peace be with thee.” In conclusion the bishop gives to all his
blessing. The chrism is composed of olive oil and balm of Gilead; it is solemnly
blessed by the bishop in the cathedral church on Maundy Thursday.
Confirmation fills us with the Holy Spirit and makes us more completely the image
of the Lord, so that we bear witness to him before the world and work to bring the
Body of Christ to its fullness (CIC 840).

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Sacrament of Holy Eucharist
https://youtu.be/c7vfyfkIiSc
THE INSTITUTION, NATURE,
AND PRINCIPAL PARTSOF THE
MASS
At the Last Supper the Son of God
changed bread into His body, and wine
into His blood; He then gaveboth to the
apostles, bidding them eat and drink
the same.
We are told that after the washing of
the feet Our Lord sat down at the table,
took bread in His hands,looked up to
heaven, gave thanks, blessed it, broke
it, and gave it to His apostles, saying: “Take ye and eat; this is My body.” And after
the apostles had received the body of Christ, He took the chalice in which was
wine, gave thanks, blessed it, and gave it to His disciples, saying: “Drink ye all
of this, for this is My blood; the blood of the new, the eternal covenant, the
mystery of faith (a mystery for the trial of our faith), which shall be shed for you
and for many for the remission of sins. Do this for a commemoration of Me.” (These
are known as the words of consecration.)
After the consecration, the species or appearance of the bread and wine still
remained the same.
The body of Christ had not the appearance of flesh, but the appearance of bread; it
had the smell, the taste, the color, the weight, etc., of bread; the species was in fact
retained. Nor did the blood of Christ bear the appearance of blood, but of wine; it
had the smell, the taste, the color, etc., the ordinary appearance of wine. (This
subject will be enlarged upon in the instructions concerning the Adorable
Sacrament of the Altar.)

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1. The Son of God offered a sacrifice at the Last Supper, because He gave His
body and blood to be offered up, in order to reconcile His heavenly Father
with man.
At the Last Supper our blessed Lord instituted a visible sacrifice, in order thereby
to represent the bloody sacrifice which was to be offered once upon the cross, and
to preserve the memory thereof unto the end of the world. Our Lord indicated to us
that He intended at the Last Supper to institute a sacrifice, by choosing for this act
the very time when the paschal lamb was slain and eaten. Moreover the words He
made use of were almost identical with those which Moses spoke on the institution
of the Old Covenant. We read that Moses, after the giving of the law on Mount
Sinai, slaughtered an animal, and sprinkled the blood upon the people, saying: “This
is the blood of the covenant which the Lord hath made with you” (Exod. xxiv. j 8).
As Our Lord’s words were similar to these, it follows that in His case also there
was a sacrifice. Again it is a significant fact that Our Lord caused His Passion and
death to follow immediately after the Last Supper; by this He would have us know
that they were one and the same act.
The sacrifice begins with the consecration, when Christ assumes the form of bread
and wine; for lie then divests Himself of the splendor of His divine glory, and
conceals His infinite majesty. Nay, more, not only does He conceal His divine
grandeur, He also conceals His human presence.
“Christ, the King of heaven and of earth, reduces Himself by the words of
consecration to a condition of abasement which is almost equivalent to annihilation.
Not even a trace an be perceived of that regal dignity with which His humanity was
invested, and which inspired men with reverence and awe.
At His birth at Bethlehem He was at least in the likeness of man, but here He seems
to be nothing but a morsel of bread.” By this profound self-abasement Our Lord
reconciles us to His Father, Who is justly angry with us; for there is no better means
of appeasing one whom we have offended than by humbling ourselves before him.

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The Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life. The other sacraments,
and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up
with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is
contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch
(CCC 1324
At the table of the Eucharist, we eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man
so that we may have eternal life and show forth the unity of God’s people. By
offering ourselves with Christ, we share in the universal sacrifice, that is, the entire
community of the redeemed offered to God by their High Priest, and we pray for a
greater outpouring of the Holy Spirit, so that the whole human race may be brought
into the unity of God’s family (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA), General
Introduction 2).
Through the sacraments of Christian initiation, we receive in increasing measure,
the treasures of divine life and advance towards the perfection of charity (Apostolic
Constitution on the Sacrament of Confirmation).
Thus, the three sacraments of Christian initiation closely combine to bring us, the
faithful of Christ, to his full stature and to enable us to carry out the mission of the
entire people of God in the Church and in the world (RCIA General Introduction 2).
MODULE 6:
1. Create your own personal history of sacraments of Initiation. Indicate the
following: Places, Dates, god-parents and other significant events and
persons that became part of the celebration. Kindly include some pictures
and documents for each Sacraments.

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2. Create a comic strip of your journey which you encountered Jesus in your
personal life.
MODULE 6: CLOSING PRAYER
Closing Prayer: Prayer after Class.
Leader: Our help is in the name of the Lord,
All: Who made heaven and earth.
Leader: Let us pray.
All: God, the desire of every human heart, you moved Saint
Augustine to seek restlessly for truth and peace. Touch our
hearts with his burning desire for wisdom, for the Word made
flesh. We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Leader: Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
All: As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
MODULE 6: REFERENCES
 The Catechism Explained: The exhaustive explanation of the Catholic
Religion, Rev. Francis Spirago. The Jerusalem Bible.(1966). Philippine
Bible Society.
 Catechism of the Catholic Church. (1994). Manila ECCCE. Word and
Life Publications.
 Catechism for Filipino Catholics. (1997). Manila ECCCE. Word and
Life Publications.
 Don, Dominic. (2021). “Saint Augustine’s Christology and His idea on Christian

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Worship.” ReSt Volume 1. Iloilo City: USA Center for Religious Studies.
 Chupungco, A.Handbook for Liturgical Studies, 1976
 Rev. Fr. Paolo O. Pirlo, The Seven Sacraments, 1st Edition, Manila, 15 August
2018.
 Saint Augustine, Confession, (1961). Penguin group publication, London, R.S
Pine, Coffin.

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