And how does washing away "repentance" work then. ? Do babies "repent" before they are christened or baptised?
I was mentioned so I thought I'd reply and give some insights. Catholic theology distinguishes between two interrelated but separate realities when it comes to sin and baptism: personal sin and original sin. Repentance properly applies to personal sin—those deliberate acts that each individual commits of their own free will. Infants, of course, have not yet reached the age of reason and thus are not personally culpable of sin in the same way an adult or older child would be. Consequently, they do not undergo “repentance” in the sense of consciously turning away from personal wrongdoing. Yet, the Catholic Church still baptizes infants because of the doctrinal teaching on original sin and the Church’s desire that all be incorporated into Christ’s Mystical Body from the earliest possible moment.
From a Catholic point of view, baptism is both a sacrament of faith and of initiation. When an adult receives baptism, that individual repents of personal sin, professes faith in Christ, and undergoes sacramental washing that signifies and effectuates the forgiveness of sins and incorporation into the Church. The sacrament’s efficacy rests on Christ’s redemptive work, not on the baptized person’s achievements. In the case of infants, since they cannot make a personal profession of faith or consciously repent, the Church relies on the faith of the parents and godparents (and the whole Christian community), who promise to raise the child in the Catholic faith. In effect, the Church “lends” faith to the infant, trusting that as the child matures, he or she will freely embrace the faith for themselves. The notion of baptism “washing away sin” for infants is generally understood to remove the effects of original sin and to infuse sanctifying grace. Original sin is not a personal fault on the child’s part but the inherited deprivation of sanctifying grace resulting from humanity’s first parents and the fall. Through baptism, even though the child has no personal sins to repent of, the stain of original sin is cleansed, and the soul is filled with the divine life of grace. This sacrament is understood as the most profound rebirth in Christ (cf. John 3:5) and a necessary gateway to the other sacraments. Baptism for infants, then, is a gift freely given by God, offering the grace of rebirth into His life, with the expectation and hope that the child, when he or she reaches the age of reason, will affirm this grace by living a life of personal faith and repentance as needed.
