You can also say that you believe, but be in mortal sin at the time of your death.
Baptism forgives the sins at the time of Baptism, and the Sacrament of Confession/Reconciliation forgives sins confessed to a Catholic priest.
Baptism is not just a symbol, as so many Evangelicals claim. According to the Bible, it is a marvelous grace—a great gift from God, which we do not deserve in the least and which washes away our sins, bestows upon us the Holy Spirit, grants us new life in Christ, and absorbs us into the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church. As even Martin Luther himself put it, baptism “works the forgiveness of sins, delivers from death and the devil, and grants eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare”.
But sin is not counted against the believer so it doesn't matter if every specific sin is confessed at or by the time of death.
Romans 4:3-8 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”
Scripture references for such claims are?
I know it's been beat into your head there are mortal sins....however, the NT is clear....all sin is mortal. The little lies you tell...the things you do everyday you don't even realize you've done...just one of those, apart from faith in Christ, is enough to separate you from God.
Recommend you read Colossians 2....pay special attention to vv13-14.
Read Ephesians 1 with special attention to vv13-14.
Once the believer is sealed by the Holy Spirit, they are not unsealed....ever. There is nothing in the NT to indicate otherwise.
Based on conversations with other Roman Catholics, and ya'll are all over the board on this issue it seems, one does not have to be baptized.
Example....if a person is about to die and professes faith in Christ, some of your fellow RCs say that person is saved through what RCs call a "baptism of desire"....even though that is not a NT teaching.
So water baptism is not what saves you based on that.
What this comes down to is faith.
Do you believe John 5:24?
Jesus told Nicodemus that whosoever believed in Him would not perish but have everlasting life. He didn't put any qualifiers on that to Nicodemus.
Either Jesus told him the truth...or told him a lie.
I going with the former...He told him the truth.
We come to Christ through belief in Him.