Baptism 2009

Baptism is not only a momentous event in the life of the person being baptized; it is also an important and joyous occasion in the life of the community.   For in bringing new members into the church, baptism brings new life and new hope into the Christian community.

Today the candidates for baptism are Emly and Merissa.  When Emly contacted me about being baptized, she asked me what would be required of her.  I asked her to come to the church to tell me why she wanted to be baptized.  In our society religion has become counter-cultural, and before making the commitment which baptism entails, it is important to examine one’s motives and what one expects from regular attendance at Sunday worship.

There is a “catch 22” involved here.  The benefits of regular church attendance only become evident through regular church attendance.  Our traditional church services are repetitious, and “repetitious” suggests “boring.”  But it is precisely through the repetition and intensity of our worship that the healing of souls is achieved.

The baptism of infants is questioned by some Christian denominations, who say, quite correctly, that baptism requires faith, and that an infant cannot have faith.  Our response is that the infant is baptized in the faith of the church.

When I was in graduate studies there was a debate between two distinguished New Testament scholars about whether or not infants were baptized in the early church.  Oscar Cullman took the affirmative position, citing Jesus’ invitation, “Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not” (Mark 10:4).  Kurt Aland took the negative position, citing Paul’s words about mixed marriages, in which the children are “holy,” so there would be no need for baptism (1 Corinthians 7:14).

Cullman and Aland were both Lutherans, so they did not disagree about the present practice of baptizing infants.  For us today the issue is not so much theological or historical as pastoral.  Is a person better off being allowed to make a faith decision in adulthood? 

The practice of infant baptism assumes that the child will be raised in the Christian faith by a believing adult.  Moreover, the Christian congregation which has welcomed a new member through baptism has a responsibility to nurture this person in the life of faith. 

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October 18, 2009