Blended Family Catholic&Protestant

[ljudd46]

My Husband is Catholic and I am protestant, we baptized our daughter as a protestant and we attend my church on the 1st and 3rd sunday’s and his on the 2nd & 4th sunday’s. He wants to have Sarah Baptized in his church as well but I am not sure either church would be happy if this happened or would even allow it.
We both love our churches and want to raise our children in both religions so when they are older they can make an informed decision as to which Christian faith they will follow and feel most comfortable with.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Blessings …Leslie

 

[jrabs]

Welcome. This is a Catholic forum so you will get the Catholic point of view. Just preparing you for some answers you may not want to hear.

Did you call the Catholic Priest to discus this?

 

[dulcissima]

If your daughter was baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, then that would be recognized by the Catholic Church as being a valid baptism. In such a case, she would not be baptized again.

Your husband, as a Catholic, needs to be attending Mass at a Catholic church every week to fulfill his Sunday obligation. What might work if you are trying to balance things out is to go to the Saturday evening Mass at his parish, then if you wish to the Sunday service at your church.

Your husband also does have an obligation to raise his daughter in the faith. When she gets old enough she should start attending religious education classes at the Catholic church.

If your husband is only going to Mass every other weekend, it does sound like he may need to brush up on some basics about what it is that the Catholic Church teaches and what is required of a Catholic. Were the two of you married in the Church? Scheduling a meeting with his priest for the two of you might be a good idea.

 

[Thomas63116]

My Husband is Catholic and I am protestant, we baptized our daughter as a protestant and we attend my church on the 1st and 3rd sunday’s and his on the 2nd & 4th sunday’s. He wants to have Sarah Baptized in his church as well but I am not sure either church would be happy if this happened or would even allow it.
We both love our churches and want to raise our children in both religions so when they are older they can make an informed decision as to which Christian faith they will follow and feel most comfortable with.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Blessings …Leslie

Hi Leslie, welcome to the forums.

The Catholic Church believes in one baptism. Your daughter cannot be “re-baptized” or have a “second baptim” in the Catholic Church. If your daughter was baptized using the Trinitarian formula, then the Catholic Church would recognize her baptism as valid. If not, then she would need to be baptized in the Catholic Church if you and your husband are going to raise her as a Catholic.

However, it is unlikely that a priest would agree to baptize your daughter in the Catholic faith if it is your intention to raise your children in “both faiths.” The Catholic Church does not see this as possible. . .one is either a Catholic or is not. As a practical matter, people choose whether to remain in the faith where they will raised. But you will find a lot of resistance to the idea of “letting them decide when they grow up” what faith they will follow. If they do not have a solid foundation, how will they build upon it as they grow?

I am wondering if you and your husband went through marriage preparation and were married in the Catholic Church? Before marrying a non-Catholic in the Catholic Church, the Catholic spouse must promise to do all that they can to ensure that their children will be baptized and raised in the Catholic faith. I’m wondering if you discussed any of this ahead of time. Whether you did or didn’t, I’m sure this must be difficult. Prayers for you and your family.