Tuesday, September 29, 2009

A "Debaptism" movement...


I was struck by a story I saw regarding a "Debaptism" movement which apparently is being pushed in England as sponsored by the National Secular Society (which is apparently willing to sell individuals certificates of Debaptism).
The certificate declares:
I ________ having been subjected to the Rite of Christian Baptism in infancy (before reaching an age of consent), hereby publicly revoke any implications of that Rite and renounce the Church that carried it out. In the name of human reason, I reject all its Creeds and all other such superstition in particular, the perfidious belief that any baby needs to be cleansed by Baptism of alleged ORIGINAL SIN, and the evil power of supposed demons. I wish to be excluded henceforth from enhanced claims of church membership numbers based on past baptismal statistics used, for example, for the purpose of securing legislative privilege.”

I respect the right of people to make their own choices however ill-informed and naive those choices may be. It is apparent that those who choose to go the route of "debaptism" have never benefited from being educated about the faith into which they were baptized, or from witnessing their parents living out that faith. In baptism these people may have been born into life of the Spirit, but alas it appears it was a spiritual still-birth as that new life was never nourished.
What further struck me was that I came across this story just minutes after sharing a discussion about the tragic death of a Chicago high school student who was beaten to death in a street fight. That beating death was described as an evil act demonstrating once again the need for the rediscovery of morality in our secular society. I can't help but wonder if prayer in our schools might help our young people find moral footing amidst the evils of the world around them.

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