Baptism of desire

Under the concept of baptism of desire is understood in the Catholic faith belief that the sacramental action of baptism is also given to those who can not receive from certain external reasons, but this reception desire ( desire).

Since according to the Catholic faith of the reception of baptism is necessary for salvation, already presented in the first centuries of the extent to which people are excluded from the divine healing, through no fault of baptism could not receive. The church father Ambrose compared the baptism of desire with the baptism of blood of the martyrs and concluded that the curative effect of baptism already which granted would explicitly express a desire for baptism, but they could no longer obtain for reasons such as persecution or death. Augustine joined his teacher on this issue at first, but he changed his attitude and taught that the enforcement of baptism is essential to sharing in the divine healing.

Had to be re addressed the problem, as with the beginning of the modern era of Europe from new parts of the world and the peoples living here were discovered. Since according to biblical tradition, in Christ God is revealed will for salvation for all people, the question to what extent this salvific will of God is compatible with the absolute necessity of Taufempfangs when millions of people were innocent unbaptized, as they had never heard of Jesus Christ presented. The recent, influenced by Thomas Aquinas Church's teaching documents esp. the Council of Trent gave no answer, as they still went out of the way of every person to obtain knowledge of the gospel. Thomas Aquinas, however, already knows the concept of baptism of desire and explains it ( Summa theol. TP q. 66 a 11 f).

Groundbreaking on this issue had the church teacher Robert Bellarmine, on the one hand, the previous idea of ​​the necessity for salvation of baptism and thus belonging to the Church confirmed, on the other hand, however, extended by presenting the possibility of a church membership of desire after. This issue was further set out finally at the Second Vatican Council. The Constitution Lumen Gentium teaches a stepped belonging to the Church, because God's Spirit is not based only on the written Catholic Church, but already there Am working where people put themselves above all the question of the meaning of their lives and by a higher being.