The sacraments, and baptism first of all, are the means by which Christ unites us to the Church which is his body. Yet we may well wonder how the pouring of a little water, the brief statement of the priest, ‘I baptize you in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost’, can effect so great a change of course it is possible simply to reply ‘because God wills it to be so’, and perhaps ultimately there is nothing more to be said, but it is still open to us to explore the meaning of such mysteries as far as we can. The truths revealed by God and handed on to us by the Church are indeed mysteries, acceptable only to those who have received the grace of faith, but faith is given to our minds and needs to be thought about.