For many decades, perhaps even for many centuries, an infant’s baptismal garment was a prideful decision on the part of parents. Perhaps a baptismal robe had been handed down from one generation to the next and several family members could claim that mantle of linen and lace as their first Sunday attire. Then again a family seamstress might have capably sewed a new vestment or proud parents might have consulted a catalogue of baptismal attire hoping appropriately to outfit their infant who will soon be the Church’s newest member.
The baptismal robe, the more brilliantly white the better, powerfully expresses the newborn’s fresh sacramental life in Christ that relieves the infant of the burden of original sin and initiates the child’s pilgrim way to the brilliance of eternal life. Certainly the sacramental water at Baptism most effectively welcomes all new Christians into the life of the Church. And the majestic Paschal candle also signals the brilliant status of the new Christian within the believing community. Yes, baptism is a joyous first step into the earthly life of the believing community and ultimately into the eternal life of the saints in heaven.
A wise and instructive decision by the fathers at the Second Vatican Council was the restoration of the link between Christian baptism and the rite of Christian burial. Initial birth into the Christian community and ultimate birth into the heavenly community are progressive steps for the Christian believer, celebrated and commemorated by much the same sacramental signs and symbols. The Paschal Candle that illuminated the baptismal font is at the funeral service placed prominently in the parish sanctuary signaling the loved one’s passage to the fullness of the Christian life. The deceased is carried into church on the day of burial ideally by bearers chosen from the Church community just as the infant was once carried into church by selected God-parents. The body is greeted at the church door by the Church’s ministers and sprinkled with Holy Water that recalls that first Baptism when the deceased initially shared in the life of Christ. The celebrant prays, “May he/she now share with him eternal glory.” The remains may then be draped ideally with a brilliant white pall that wholly covers the casket vividly symbolizing the new life received at Baptism and recalling that first white baptismal robe.
In the Jewish Scriptures, a white garment often served as a sign of inner purity and a commitment to maintain a virtuous life. This theme is picturesquely expressed in Isaiah 1:18, where God invites the sinner to repentance: “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” In the Christian Scriptures, a white robe is an even more powerfully significant emblem of new life. In Mark’s version of the Transfiguration (Mark 9:3), radiant whiteness is a powerful symbol of heavenly life: “His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them.” This image of Jesus enrobed in splendid white indicates his heavenly glory and his divine nature. The Christian’s coffin draped in white reminds the bereaved community of the deceased share, however humble, in the mission and glory of Christ.
White robes are mentioned in chapters 3, 6, and 19 of Revelation, each symbolizing purity, victory and uprightness. A grand scene in the Book of Revelation (7:9-14) shows a great multitude that no one could count, “from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.” When the seer asks about the identity of these people, it is explained that “they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” The New American Bible explains that “this scene serves as a prophetic announcement of the final realization of God’s plan, a triumphant image of redeemed humanity, purged of sin, and achieving eternal salvation through Christ, the Lamb of God.”
At the Catholic funeral liturgy, the Church gathers with the family and friends of the deceased first of all to give praise and thanks to God for Christ’s victory over sin and death, to commend the deceased once again to God’s tender mercy and compassion as the departed one had previously been entrusted to God at Baptism, and to seek strength in the proclamation and celebration of the Paschal Mystery. Grief and sorrow and loss are understandable emotions at the time of a loved one’s death. But faith must remind the bereaved that the Catholic funeral liturgy is not primarily an expression of grief but rather an act of worship toward God who has now welcomed the beloved into the fullness of the eternal life.
