Eastern Orthodox and it's policy on baptism

[Hail_Linus]

My best friend and I baptized our boys together at a Lutheran Church. At the time I was a lapsed Catholic and he was a lapsed Greek Orthodox. One day I told him I decided to return to the Catholic Church and I made the comment “At least I don’t need to re-baptize him.” He looked at me in disbelief and told me that if he ever decided to return to the Greek Orthodox Church he would be required to re-baptize his son.

Is he correct? If yes, does anyone know the reasoning behind this policy.

 

[FabiusMaximus]

My best friend and I baptized our boys together at a Lutheran Church. At the time I was a lapsed Catholic and he was a lapsed Greek Orthodox. One day I told him I decided to return to the Catholic Church and I made the comment “At least I don’t need to re-baptize him.” He looked at me in disbelief and told me that if he ever decided to return to the Greek Orthodox Church he would be required to re-baptize his son.

Is he correct? If yes, does anyone know the reasoning behind this policy.

I think it depends on the priest.

I know of some Orthodox converts who had to be rebaptized, and generally those cases because the priest didn’t accept the Evangelical view of baptism as merely a symbol, or a profession of faith. I think generally, if baptism is considered a sacrament like in Lutheranism or like in Catholicism, the baptism is generally considered valid. But from what I recall, it is up to the priest, ultimately.

I’ve heard of rebaptism occurring within the Roman Catholic Church as well.

 

[supertubos]

My best friend and I baptized our boys together at a Lutheran Church. At the time I was a lapsed Catholic and he was a lapsed Greek Orthodox. One day I told him I decided to return to the Catholic Church and I made the comment “At least I don’t need to re-baptize him.” He looked at me in disbelief and told me that if he ever decided to return to the Greek Orthodox Church he would be required to re-baptize his son.

Is he correct? If yes, does anyone know the reasoning behind this policy.

It depends. The Catholic Church wants to be sure that you, in the end, are baptized. Suppose that the Father is utterly drunk and baptizes the son. Was he baptized?

The Church has this way: “If you are not baptized, I baptize you in the name of theFather, of he Son and of the Holy Spirit”

There is no other intention…

 

[Bluegoat]

This seems to be handled slightly differently in different parts of the Orthodox Church, but I am pretty sure that in general someone baptized in a Lutheran Church would not be rebaptized. I am not sure what the policy of the Greek Church in particular is. Most of the converts to the OC I know were not rebaptized, even if they were from evangelical groups, but I have heard of it happening.