Baptising a Child a Second Time

[stonestom]

I’ve asked the apologists but in case they don’t answer I wanted to get your guys point of view. Thanks.

I am a Godparent for a 3 month old who has been baptized by his parents before the church did. There was no imminent danger for the child. They are now holding the second baptism in the church a few weeks from now. I am morally culpable by attending? How can I explain what an egregious decision the parents are making. I feel the church baptism by the priest is merely being done to for people coming into town, for a party. Thanks.

 

[Cristiano]

My suggestion is that you talk to your pastor for guidance, and at the same time you explain to the parents of the baby that their plan shows complete lack of respect for the sacrament and they should talk to their own pastor. How can they make the baptismal promises when they choose to reject the basics tenets of the faith at the same time?

 

[ChadS]

Is this family Catholic?

The first baptism, if performed using the trinitarian formula, is valid and should be the only baptism that the child receives.

I believe what the pastor can do is baptize the child conditionally, which if I understand it correctly, says that if the first baptism was not valid then this one would correct any deficiencies from the first time around.

At any rate the pastor needs to be aware what the parents did the first time. As long as the parents intended to baptize the child then the child was baptized. Any person, as long as they intend to do what the Church intends during a baptism, can validly baptize a person. I’m not sure it really sounds like the parents intended any disrespect of the sacraments in what they did.

ChadS

 

[stonestom]

Thanks Chad and Cristiano. Yes, they are a Catholic family who was married in the church. I haven’t asked if they performed the baptism correctly if they didn’t then that will all be fixed in a few weeks when the priest baptizes the baby.

As far as their intentions. You are exactly right they certaintly didn’t mean any harm they just wanted to get it done quickly. They definitely did not have bad intentions. But still, I want them and myself to be fully informed in a situation like this. This is such a powerful and important sacrament. I want to let them know.

 

[Elizium23]

Conditional baptism has been mentioned. There is also such a thing in the Church as “Rites supplied”, which means the baptismal rite is completed after an emergency or illicit baptism was done. The anointing, the proper prayers, the whole liturgical nine yards, except for the pouring of water. It’s not sacramentally significant but it puts a stamp of approval on the fact of the rite already performed.

 

[1ke]

I am a Godparent for a 3 month old who has been baptized by his parents before the church did.

They are required to report this baptism to their pastor, ASAP.

There was no imminent danger for the child.

Nevertheless, they did it and it is a valid baptism if they did it correctly.

They are now holding the second baptism in the church a few weeks from now. I am morally culpable by attending?

You would be standing up and stating a lie if you say you are presenting for baptism a child you know is already baptized.

What you need to do is inform the pastor of what they told you, if they have not already notified the pastor and had the baptism recorded.

How can I explain what an egregious decision the parents are making.

Explain the child is already baptized and you will not stand up and lie and say otherwise.

I feel the church baptism by the priest is merely being done to for people coming into town, for a party. Thanks.

The priest can complete the other rites of baptism-- the anointing with oil, candle, white garment. The priest may also want to do a conditional baptism in case there is doubt about whether the parents did it correctly.

Bottom line: you MUST tell the priest.

 

[stonestom]

Thanks 1ike. You are telling me what I was afraid I was going to hear. The seriousness of this. The baptism isn’t at my parish. So to call up the Pastor of a parish I don’t attend and tell him about this and put my brother (the father of my Godchild) in a spot will create problems but may just be the right thing to do.

 

[Allegra]

Thanks 1ike. You are telling me what I was afraid I was going to hear. The seriousness of this. The baptism isn’t at my parish. So to call up the Pastor of a parish I don’t attend and tell him about this and put my brother (the father of my Godchild) in a spot will create problems but may just be the right thing to do.

Perhaps your brother doesn’t realize what he is doing or maybe he has already discussed the situation with the priest and he determined that a conditional baptism was called for. Did you ask your brother about this? It could be a non-issue. If you don’t think your brother explained the situation properly to the priest, then you could tell him that you can’t stand as God father unless the priest knows the baby is already Baptised.

 

[stonestom]

He has definitely not told the priest. How exactly can I explain to him where he is wrong? It will already be difficult to explain but some sort of starter in this conversation will be helpful.

 

[Allegra]

He has definitely not told the priest. How exactly can I explain to him where he is wrong? It will already be difficult to explain but some sort of starter in this conversation will be helpful.

Well, how do you know the baby has already been Baptized in the first place? I assume either your brother or his wife told you about it. How do you know they didn’t tell the priest? They must have said something about hiding it as well. It seems like you’ve had at least a couple of good openings to seque into a conversation about the teachings of the Church regarding Baptism. At this point, you might have to bring the subject up yourself.

 

[stonestom]

Yes he told me at dinner last night. You are right I can bring up the conversation again and explain the church’s teachings on this. My problem is I dont know where to bbegin on the teaching of only one baptism. I will open up the catechism to start.

 

[Elizium23]

The teachings are a good place to start, but if he remains unconvinced, two more angles are possible, the administrative and the policy of truth. Administratively, Canon Law requires that the pastor be informed and that the illicit baptism be recorded in the parish register officially. If the “second” ceremony goes forward as planned, the details will be permanently recorded incorrectly and follow the child for the rest of his life. Secondly, the simulation of a sacrament is a grave sin. The priest does not know and is innocent, but your brother is leading him to error. What penalty will the well-intentioned couple suffer from telling the truth? They may have to go to confession, but there will be no canonical repercussions, they did not know better. Why not be up-front with the Church about this matter? How can this child expect to be raised if his spiritual rebirth is enveloped in a serious lie?

 

[DarkLight]

Conditional baptism has been mentioned. There is also such a thing in the Church as “Rites supplied”, which means the baptismal rite is completed after an emergency or illicit baptism was done. The anointing, the proper prayers, the whole liturgical nine yards, except for the pouring of water. It’s not sacramentally significant but it puts a stamp of approval on the fact of the rite already performed.

Now I’m curious - is there such a thing for other sacraments, such as confirmation or marriage?

 

[drafdog]

My eldest was baptized shortly after birth in hospital prior to minor surgery. The baptism was registered at the parish of the hospital chaplain. Later we had “rites supplied” by a priest in another diocese so that family and friends could attend. It was made clear at the time that this was not a baptism as the sacrament had already been received.

Reb Levi

 

[FAB]

I’ve asked the apologists but in case they don’t answer I wanted to get your guys point of view. Thanks.

I am a Godparent for a 3 month old who has been baptized by his parents before the church did. There was no imminent danger for the child. They are now holding the second baptism in the church a few weeks from now. I am morally culpable by attending? How can I explain what an egregious decision the parents are making. I feel the church baptism by the priest is merely being done to for people coming into town, for a party. Thanks.

The baptism is valid if done in the trinitarian form, so there is not a second baptism, however, there is a specific rite to bring them into the Church, you need to talk to your priest or deacon about this part of the baptismal rite.

Deacon Frank

 

[stonestom]

If the father refuses to tell the priest will I be committing a grave sin for attending the baptism and standing up as the Godfather?

 

[FAB]

If the father refuses to tell the priest will I be committing a grave sin for attending the baptism and standing up as the Godfather?

As a godfather you are charged to be a model for the church of how a Catholic should live their faith.
The priest needs to be informed, if not by the father, then by you.

 

[1ke]

Yes he told me at dinner last night. You are right I can bring up the conversation again and explain the church’s teachings on this. My problem is I dont know where to bbegin on the teaching of only one baptism. I will open up the catechism to start.

Well, it is right there in the Creed that we recite weekly. Start there.

 

[1ke]

If the father refuses to tell the priest will I be committing a grave sin for attending the baptism and standing up as the Godfather?

Uh, yeah.

Just tell the priest for goodness sake. He can still supply the other rites.

 

[1ke]

Now I’m curious - is there such a thing for other sacraments, such as confirmation or marriage?

Yes, one could be confirmed conditionally if doubt existed regarding validity.

Regarding marriage, it is more complex. An invalid marriage can be convalidated. A marriage that has doubtful consent can be corrected in the internal forum, and if there is an impediment the marriage can be made valid in a variety of ways including sanation.