Am I still Catholic?

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Richvan29

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I discovered I was baptized at the hospital when I was born. I made my first communion/confirmation through a parish that would come to my college and perform mass. I have searched everywhere and there is no record of my baptism which is 40 plus years ago. There is also no record of the confirmation which is 20 plus years ago. I am now in another state and am wondering if I came back to the Catholic Church, should I take the blank slate approach and get baptized and go through adult confirmation? I have no way to prove I was ever a catholic.

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Rich
 
Richvan29 said:
I discovered I was baptized at the hospital when I was born. I made my first communion/confirmation through a parish that would come to my college and perform mass. I have searched everywhere and there is no record of my baptism which is 40 plus years ago. There is also no record of the confirmation which is 20 plus years ago. I am now in another state and am wondering if I came back to the Catholic Church, should I take the blank slate approach and get baptized and go through adult confirmation? I have no way to prove I was ever a catholic.

Thanks
Rich
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Earnest attempts should be made to track down these documents; if such attempts should prove futile, a conditional baptism and confirmation could most likely be obtained. It is at the discretion of your pastor whether or not you will need to be re-catechized before this is performed.

By no means should you receive an unconditional baptism or confirmation as this could be seen as an attempt to be truly baptized and confirmed a second time, which would be very offensive to the unique nature of the sacraments of baptism and confirmation as being obtainable only once.
 
Richvan29 said:
I discovered I was baptized at the hospital when I was born. I made my first communion/confirmation through a parish that would come to my college and perform mass. I have searched everywhere and there is no record of my baptism which is 40 plus years ago. There is also no record of the confirmation which is 20 plus years ago. I am now in another state and am wondering if I came back to the Catholic Church, should I take the blank slate approach and get baptized and go through adult confirmation? I have no way to prove I was ever a catholic.

Thanks
Rich
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If there are witnesses or weak evidence, I would try to see it the parish you attend will do conditional baptism and conditional confirmation. Just go with what the priest recommends.
 
Richvan29 said:
I discovered I was baptized at the hospital when I was born. I made my first communion/confirmation through a parish that would come to my college and perform mass. I have searched everywhere and there is no record of my baptism which is 40 plus years ago. There is also no record of the confirmation which is 20 plus years ago. I am now in another state and am wondering if I came back to the Catholic Church, should I take the blank slate approach and get baptized and go through adult confirmation? I have no way to prove I was ever a catholic.

Thanks
Rich
Click to expand...
If your parents or an aunt or uncle or an older sibling is still alive they may be able to give you information. If a priest baptized you there will be a record. Contact that hospital and see if they can give you any information. If these sources turn up nothing, then you should explain the whole story to your local pastor. You should not be receiving the sacraments in this condition of doubt. Your pastor will tell you when you have done enough to resolve these issues and then what to do next.

In the meantime continue going to Church and continue with your prayer life.

Linus2nd
 
xzereus said:
Earnest attempts should be made to track down these documents; if such attempts should prove futile, a conditional baptism and confirmation could most likely be obtained. It is at the discretion of your pastor whether or not you will need to be re-catechized before this is performed.

By no means should you receive an unconditional baptism or confirmation as this could be seen as an attempt to be truly baptized and confirmed a second time, which would be very offensive to the unique nature of the sacraments of baptism and confirmation as being obtainable only once.
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Talk to your priest and he can try to get your records. They have ways of tracking these things down. If it isn’t possible, you will probable be baptized “on condition” That only means that it would be valid only if there were a problem with the first one. That is done when there is doubt. It’s not an offense at all. That’s up to the pastor. If I were you, I would want to take some instructions like RCIA to learn about your new found faith. There are sooo many beautiful things about the Catholic Faith we can learn and appreciate. God Bless, Memaw
 
Loss of baptismal records is not all that unusual. Normally, one would first search for witnesses who were present - parents, nurses, relatives, et cetera - and get a sworn testimony from them. If the hospital truly has no record and there are no living witnesses, a conditional baptism would be made after sufficient instruction, with the priest or deacon using the words “If you have not already been baptized, I baptize you in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
 
Yes, you are still Catholic. But if you have not joined a Parish, and wish to join one, you must give some evidence that you’re Catholic, even if they believe you 100% you still have too give evidence.
 
xzereus said:
Earnest attempts should be made to track down these documents; if such attempts should prove futile, a conditional baptism and confirmation could most likely be obtained. It is at the discretion of your pastor whether or not you will need to be re-catechized before this is performed.

By no means should you receive an unconditional baptism or confirmation as this could be seen as an attempt to be truly baptized and confirmed a second time, which would be very offensive to the unique nature of the sacraments of baptism and confirmation as being obtainable only once.
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Except there is no such thing as a conditional confirmation…only a conditional baptism.
 
whosidiss said:
Yes, you are still Catholic. But if you have not joined a Parish, and wish to join one, you must give some evidence that you’re Catholic, even if they believe you 100% you still have too give evidence.
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When joining a parish, I have never had ot prove I was Catholic. And I have joined parishes in 3 different states.
 
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