Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!mips!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: fasano@unix.cis.pitt.edu (Cathy Fasano) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Original sin of infants Message-ID: Date: 10 Apr 91 09:13:47 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: University of Pittsburgh Lines: 43 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article benning@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com writes: > If I may clairify my position. I do believe in baptism. My gripe is that > when I became a believer, I rejoined the Church my parents went to. It is > a Methodist Church. I wanted to be baptised as a sign to everyone that I > was born again, and that I was commiting my life to G-d through our Lord > Jesus and the new life he gave me. But they said "Your parents baptised > you when you were a child, so we can't perform the baptism again." Three > times I begged them to allow me this opportunity, but each time I was > lovingly denied. That is my gripe. Hmmmm... Sounds to me what you're looking for is some ritual sign of your reconciliation with the Church. Catholics have exactly that -- the Sacrament of Reconciliation, aka: Penance, Confession. I've even seen this as a public ceremony -- a returning Catholic who was given absolution as part of the Easter Vigil (the confession was private and had been made earlier.) Since the most ancient disciplines of Lent are associated with the already baptised repenting and returning to the Church, this actually works pretty well liturgically. > If the infant baptism was worth all > it is made out to be, I wouldn't have waited 26 years to know and obey > Jesus. I do believe that if I died during my years of rebellion (14-21) > I would not be saved any more by the baptism my parents gave me, than my > "good works" or my lucky rabbits foot. Perhaps it is just a personal > problem on my part. Or, those of us folks who believe in the real effects of Grace would argue that the effect of Baptism (cleansing from Original Sin) was what brought you back to Faith. As for your theoretical damnation -- lots of teenagers are a real pain in the neck to their parents during adolescence, and yet the parents do not forsake their children -- did your parents disown you between 14 and 21? "If you, with all your sins, know how to give your children good things, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him." (Lk 11:13) cathy :-) -- Cathy Fasano, aka: Cathy Johnston, cathy@gargoyle.uchicago.edu, fasano@unix.cis.pitt.edu "If there's no solution, then it isn't a problem." -- Evening Shade