Baptism, 2nd grade religious education

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ajcoley1

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I am enrolling my 2nd grader in religious education. I’m a cradle Catholic, my x is whatever-feels-good-currently Baptist. He was baptisd Baptist some years ago, as a 20 something. He didn’t agree on my views of infant baptism, I tried to remember 8th grade catecism & baptised my 2nd grader and my 8th grader in the hospital. (We did his church w/older boys, when 13 yr old came he just decided nothing “felt good.”)

Now I’m enrolling them inCCD. What do I say when asked if they have been baptised.
 
Talk to your pastor now. He will need to know how you baptized your children (were the correct words and form used?) to determie whether it was a valid baptism. He may need to know whether there were any witnesses.

If there is some doubt in his mind as to the validity of the baptism, he may want to do a conditional baptism (“If you are not already baptized, I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”).

Your children will probably need a couple years of catechesis (religious instruction) before they can receive the other sacraments (Reconciliation, Communion, Confirmation). Requirements vary by diocese. Some parishes have “catch up” classes for older children who have missed several years of religious instruction.

Your pastor can help you get back on the right track. Call the church office and make an appointment to talk to him.
 
Thank you for your reply.

I know my girls won’t be recieving sacraments yet, that’s OK.
 
you should have told your pastor about the emergency baptisms at the time, but must do it now so he can determine if it was done properly, complete the rite, and enter it in the sacramental records. do not delay.
 
Oh and there was no pastor-we didn’t belong to a church, never have, now I’ve registered all my kids at our Catholic church, just to have them on record, somewhere. So baptising her against her father’s wishes was maybe a no-no, we’ll see.
 
ajcoley1 said:
Oh and there was no pastor-we didn’t belong to a church, never have, now I’ve registered all my kids at our Catholic church, just to have them on record, somewhere. So baptising her against her father’s wishes was maybe a no-no, we’ll see.
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It’s not so much a matter of “against her father’s wishes” (although it is always best if both parents are in agreement). But baptisms should be done by the priest or deacon and should be immediately recorded in the parish’s sacramental records, unless the child is in danger of death and no priest is available. The laity should only baptize in a true emergency, and if they do, they should immediately report it to the parish (the closest one, even if you are not registered). I’m not saying this to criticize (you probably thought you were doing the right thing), but rather for the benefit of others who read these posts and might get the idea that they could do the same thing.

And when you baptize a child (or have her baptized), you are taking on the serious responsibility to raise the child in the Catholic faith. It is good that you are finally taking steps to do this. God bless your efforts!

Be sure to talk to your pastor about the attempted baptisms as soon as possible.
 
you had a pastor at the time of the baptism, but probably did not know it, he was the pastor of the nearest Catholic Church to where you baptized the children. You have a pastor now, in the parish where you have enrolled your children for RE, so speak to him right away about this, don’t wait until just before time for their other sacraments. Only one parent needs to consent.
 
I remember being taught that such baptisms were for “true emergencies.” Near-drownings, stuff like that.

At the time, her father was headed to a mental hospital& I was scared. One question i’ll be bringing up will be if I was wrong in thinking it was an emergency-I kinda felt like I was in danger. I also did some readin on provisional baptism-don’t quite understand what that is-
Interesting, though. I found a preschool for her-through a friend, a home daycare-where they celebrated all the feat days in such a way that children understand. And she is meeting other children at her school who wil go to ccd with her. It’s as if, I made that choice out of fear & the pieces are falling into place to help me become a Catholic parent. Interesting how God works.
 
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