ACI Prensa Staff, 29 July, 2025 / 12:59 pm (ACI Africa).
Speaking to a group of catechumens from France, Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday explained that baptism “gives us life” to renounce a “culture of death,” which is so prevalent in today’s society.
During the July 29 meeting at the Vatican with the catechumens, chaplains, and catechists of France, which also included the bishop of Nice, Jean-Philippe Nault, the Holy Father emphasized that baptism “makes us full members of the great family of God.”
He added that this sacrament “introduces us into communion with Christ and gives us life,” committing those who receive it “to renounce a culture of death,” which he said includes “indifference, contempt for others, drug use, the pursuit of an easy life, sexuality turned into entertainment and the objectification of the human person, injustice, etc.”
“Baptism makes us witnesses of Christ,” the pontiff emphasized, pointing to a “very powerful” sign of the sacrament: The priest or deacon presents to the godparents the candle lit from the paschal candle. “It is the light of Christ, dead and risen, that we commit to keeping alive, nourishing this light by listening to the word of God and by regular participation in the Eucharist.”
Pope Leo XIV noted that to live happily and in peace, “we are called to place our hope in Jesus Christ.” After stating that the baptized are “the salt of the earth and the world,” he emphasized that the Church also needs their “beautiful witness of faith to grow further and be close to every person in need.”
