“Use of reason.”  Because the person must intend to do what Our Lord ordered to be done in giving Baptism; and a little child could not understand, and could not therefore baptize.

156 Q. How is Baptism given?  A. Whoever baptizes should pour water on the head of the person to be baptized, and say, while pouring the water:  I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

When the priest baptizes in the church, he uses consecrated water—­that is, water blessed for that purpose on Holy Saturday, and mixed with holy oil.  When he or any other, in case of necessity, baptizes in a private house, he may use plain, clean water, and he baptizes without the other ceremonies used in the church.  Remember, in Baptism you can use ordinary clean water, warm or cold.  When the priest or anyone baptizes by simply pouring the water and pronouncing the words of Baptism, we call it private Baptism.  The Baptism given in church with all the ceremonies is called solemn Baptism.  Any person baptized privately should be brought to the church afterwards to have the rest of the ceremonies performed.

It will increase your respect for the Sacrament to know what ceremonies are used in solemn Baptism, and what they signify.  The following things must be prepared:  the holy oils, a little salt, a little pitcher or something similar to pour the water from, a vessel to receive the water when poured, some cotton, two stoles, one white and one purple, towels, a white cloth, candle, and candlestick.

All being ready, the person holding the infant takes it on the right arm, face up, and the priest, having learned the name it is to be given, begins by asking the one to be baptized, “What do you ask of the Church of God?” And the godparents answer for the child, “Faith.”  If the person receiving Baptism is capable of answering for himself, he must do so.  Then the priest exhorts the child to keep the Commandments and love God; then he breathes three times upon it and bids the evil spirit depart.  He next prays for the child and puts a little salt into its mouth, as a sign of the wisdom that Faith gives, and again prays for the child.  Then he places the end of his stole over it as a sign that it is led into the Church; for Baptism is given in a place called the baptistery, railed off from the church and near the door, because formerly the ceremony up to this point was performed outside the church, and at this part of the ceremony the person was led in to be baptized.  Then before Baptism the person says the Creed and the Our Father; for when a grown person is to be baptized he must first be instructed in all the truths of religion, and he must say the Creed to show that he believes them.  Again the priest prays and places a little spittle on the ears and nose of the child, using at the same time the words used by Our Lord when He spit upon the ground, and rubbing the spittle and clay upon the eyes of the