Reverting

[KimM]

I was baptised and confirmed in the Catholic Church. Later on I was re-baptised and then married in a Baptist church. My husband is a Protestant and always has been. I asked a local priest what I need to do to come back to the Church. He said I needed to go to confession, which I did, and that I would have to fill out some paper work to be sent to the Bishop in order to be reinstated in the church. Since I was re-baptised I, in effect, excommunicated myself.

He also said that since I was rebaptised in a protestant church and then married, my marriage is considered valid. I want to make sure that I do everyting right! Does this all sound ok?
KimM

 

[urbana]

KimM:

He also said that since I was rebaptised in a protestant church and then married, my marriage is considered valid. I want to make sure that I do everyting right! Does this all sound ok?
KimM

While the attempted rebaptism (Baptism is not a repeatable sacrament, so any attempt to repeat it is just that, an attempt.) is unfortunate from a moral perspective, it does simplify examination of your marriage. An individual is only bound to marry according to the rules of the Catholic Church if they are a Catholic. Thus, after a formal defection from the Catholic Church, an individual is not bound by the rules regarding marriage that are specifically Catholic. If you had merely attended a Baptist church, there could be some question about whether you had left the Church. However, attempted rebaptism is indisputably a formal act of leaving the Catholic Church. (I assume this occurred before you married.)

Therefore, your marriage is considered valid, so long as there is no obvious impediment. I believe that non-Catholics may be bound by the precepts of their faith; however, as a Baptist, if you were either married by the Baptist Church or in a fashion that is recognized by the Baptist Church, you’re fine there. The only remaining precepts are those that are inherent to marriage itself; marriage must be between a man and a woman, old enough to marry (forget exact rules, but any legal US marriage would be fine), with no living spouses (needs to be your first marriage, widowed before remarriage, or previous marriage annulled before your marriage). Assuming your marriage meets all these conditions (which should be easy to tell), then your marriage is recognized by the Catholic Church.

 

[BlestOne]

Hi Kim M and welcome home!!! I don’t have much advice except to say that your pastor would know what all you need to do, but I wanted to welcome you anyway!!!

 

[gusano]

KimM:

I was baptised and confirmed in the Catholic Church. Later on I was re-baptised and then married in a Baptist church. My husband is a Protestant and always has been. I asked a local priest what I need to do to come back to the Church. He said I needed to go to confession, which I did, and that I would have to fill out some paper work to be sent to the Bishop in order to be reinstated in the church. Since I was re-baptised I, in effect, excommunicated myself.

He also said that since I was rebaptised in a protestant church and then married, my marriage is considered valid. I want to make sure that I do everyting right! Does this all sound ok?
KimM

Hi KimM,

Baptism can not be repeated.
A Baptist baptism is considered valid in the Catholic Church.

Your Catholic Baptism will take you all the way to God’s Loving embrace, if you remain in it and appreciate it,
since it is for all eternity.

what you have done in getting “re-baptized”…is equivalent (on a larger scale) to mailing a letter to a foreigh country.
Say it costs $4.95 postage to go from here to there.
and some expert (not a postal clerk) persuades you to add a 49 c stamp next to what you already have.

If you “scraped off” the first stamp and are counting on the second…your letter will run out of fare before it leaves the state.

If your Catholic Baptism is still yours, (God knows it and you know it)

all you will need is to be Catechized and resume in the Sacraments

1. Baptism
2. Conformation
3. Reconciliation
4. Eucharist

The required “fare” is mediated through The Sacraments.
The Most Important is …that yout Baptism is in Good Condition. (through the Catechumenate)

Enjoy the Journey