I know I'm not the only one...

[monkeybard]

...who thinks that baptizing infants and babies is wrong. I grew up in a church that didn't do that, and to this day does not do that. They believe, and I agree, that no one should commit you to something that important without your full understanding of and agreement with what's going on. I mention this because my man-cub's family wasn't raised that way, and my sister-in-law and her hubby just had their kid baptized, as did my cousin-in-law. I believe that it's just plain wrong. I am glad I'm not baptized. It's not a commitment that I chose to make, and I'm very grateful that the decision was left up to me. Thank you, my liberal Christian parental units, for having that much respect for your offspring and allowing us to make our own decisions.

Comments

[kayjayuu.livejournal.com]

I don't know that I'd term is as 'wrong' but I would pick up the phrase 'invalid' as already commented. Most baptisms I've seen within the protestant faiths (and I'm generalizing here) seem to focus on the commitment of the family to raising the child within the church/faith, versus it being considered a precursor to 'being saved'. And what that all boils down to depends on the degree of involvement of someone's particular family in church life and/or religious views.

That said, I personally don't see it as a requirement of faith in either case. We didn't baptize our son because the church were were attending didn't do infant baptism. I was baptized as a baby, but I later made the conscious choice to become baptized as an adult. (And that was another whole 'sprinkle vs. dunk' debate that goes on ad nauseum.) I guess what I'm saying is it didn't make or break me one way or another, and my son hasn't made up his mind yet... I trust him to find his own path.

[monkeybard]

That said, I personally don't see it as a requirement of faith in either case.
That's a wonderfully healthy, and I fear all too rare, attitude. The whole inflexible 'you're damned if you don't' thing makes no sense to me. Of course since I don't believe in a "hell" that isn't of an individual's own making, damnation in general doesn't make sense to me. ;)

I trust him to find his own path.
I think that's awsome. I'm glad that's the way my folks felt, too.