Infants should be baptised, discuss.

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Ciara Mc Caughey 5C                RELIGION COURSEWORK

RELIGION COURSEWORK

C) DO YOU THINK INFANTS SHOULD BE BAPTISED?

Baptism is the first sacrament of initiation where new life is celebrated. It comes after a period of preparation, after some time is spent considering what the sacrament will mean to the catechumen being baptised. The sacrament also grants the new Christian all the rights and responsibilities as a member of God’s kingdom.

    I personally disagree that infants should be baptised! The baptising of infants is common practice in the church today but its seems to have become “the thing to do”. People are concentrating more on the celebration end of things rather than the receiving of the sacrament itself! In the early church, adult baptism was a common practice. Before the ceremony was carried out there was a forty-day period of prayer and instruction on the faith. Baptism then was seen as a big commitment and was taken a lot more seriously than today. There was also community involvement as well, as members of the community had to make sure the new Christian was living out his faith.

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    This individual had a personal choice to become a Christian. He/she chose to take on the responsibilities of being a follower of Christ. But in infant Baptism the choice is being made by the child’s parents who wish for their child to be a follower of Christ. Therefore the child is not being given the choice and is maybe being forced into practising out a faith that they are not really committed to. The child will obviously not understand how to be a Christian and therefore it will be up to its parents and community to teach it ...

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