Kosmiczne znaczenie chrzcielnego obmycia. Refleksje wokół Encykliki „Laudato si’”

Abstract

Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato si’ contains important and interesting intuitions concerning the relationship between Jesus Christ’s paschal mystery and the properly interpreted care for the earth and the entire creation. The sacrament of holy baptism is referred to as “a new creation” and an immersion into Christ’s paschal mystery. In reference to the pope’s document, the article presents links between baptismal ablution and the world of creatures both in anthropological and cosmological perspectives. Based on biblical and patristic teachings as well as contemporary Catholic and Orthodox theologies, it can be stated that baptism, along with the other sacraments, is an exceptional place where human beings and the entire universe participate in Jesus Christ’s paschal mystery. Through its simplicity, water becomes a direct vehicle of the novelty of paschal life. Its potential as a sign of a higher and spiritual reality (in ritual ablutions, for instance), which water has due to God’s creative act, gains its fullness through baptismal ablution. Thanks to the mystery of the incarnation and glorification of the Saviour, baptismal water assumes a supernatural sacramental dimension, a spiritual fullness and a new potential to convey the fullness of life.