Would you get your child baptised?

Up-n-atom!

Funny this thread has come up, I was just having this conversation with a friend the other day as there's been quite a few new babies amongst our family and friends (and they're all being baptised etc). Anyhew, since I have absolutely no plans to baptise any hypothetical children, I asked my friend would she baptise hers. She said she would as 'it would be a good party and all'. I was a bit gobsmacked but she's not alone, doing it for the convenience and a bit of a knees-up! The only situation I'd consider it, personally, is if it was absolutely required for a school, and even then I'd be very reluctant...

JohnMarston

MadameCholet wrote: »

christening is a christian custom not just a roman catholic one.

I think an interest option on your poll would have been 'get your child christened to get them into a school'.

Without getting too much into religious beliefs here, Christening is in fact a catholic custom. Baptism (as in full body immersion in water) is a Christian custom.

Mike 1972

Sharrow wrote: »

'Being left out' is the lamest reason for signing your kid up to a religion you don't practice and don't believe in, and don't agree to the main tenants.

+1

The idea that the best way to deal with peer pressure is to give in to it sounds like just about the worst parenting strategy imaginable.

Brandog

I've got 3 kids that were never baptised and therefore not hit with the stigma of original sin.It was our wish to try and not have them burdoned with the belief that no matter what you do you are tainted and not good enough.They are in a non denominational gaelscoil so there's solidarity from the other kids when it comes to communion and confirmation season.If they choose to emigrate or even travel they'll quickly discover that religion doesn't really hold that much importance other than the personal choice.The damage that has been done to this country and it's people from religious fervour and it's devious methods leaves me saddened at times.The least i can do is give my kids a free start.

MissFlitworth

gmb wrote: »

It seems though that the local church expects us to start visiting them occasionally in the run up to 1st communion (which we will not do as we are atheist) so it seems that our kids will denied the chance to continue with the Catholic faith.

Seems an odd approach taken by the church to me, you would think they would be glad to have our kids follow the faith.

That seems completely logical to me, if your kids aren't practising catholics why would the catholic church want them to take, what it considers to be, holy sacraments? They wouldn't be following the faith so much as getting communion for the sake of it. I'm not a catholic & have no fondness at all for the catholic church but I'm all for them limiting giving sacraments to people who are actually practicing catholics and not to anyone who wants to get married in a pretty building/get a child christened so as not to upset the grand parents etc.

I'm not religious, if I do have kids they won't be getting baptised. I couldn't stand up in front of someone and promise something I have no intention of doing (as in raising them in the faith)

andala

gmb wrote: »

I don't disagree with your comments above but the dilemma is how to balance what is right with ensuring that your children are not discriminated against

I'm Polish so I imagine my children will have to deal with some kind of discrimination at some point anyway. :cool: Is it legal that schools discriminate against non-baptised children? I hope my kids will be judged fairly with their grades being taken into consideration rather than what church they go (or not go) to.

Knight who says Meh

andala wrote: »

I'm Polish so I imagine my children will have to deal with some kind of discrimination at some point anyway. :cool: Is it legal that schools discriminate against non-baptised children? I hope my kids will be judged fairly with their grades being taken into consideration rather than what church they go (or not go) to.

It is legal if the school is catholic ethos i.e paid for by the state out of tax money but given to the church so that they can keep their little production line of drones moving. The fact that this self same church has a slightly chequered history in the old child fiddling area doesnt seem to deter either the state or the parents who feed their kids into the grinder.:eek:

optogirl

definitely wont be getting my child/ren baptised. I am an atheist so will allow them to discover what they believe for themselves.
I am hoping that the death grip the Catholic Church have on our education system will have loosened considerably in the coming years and religion will be for the home rather than the classroom.

As a wise person once said, religion has no place in schools just as science has no place in church.

philologos

optogirl wrote: »

As a wise person once said, religion has no place in schools just as science has no place in church.

I don't believe that science doesn't have a place in church. I don't see why faith schools shouldn't exist either.

If anything science should have a place in church because from a Christian perspective science is the analysis what God has made. I personally support wholeheartedly those those scientists who actively discuss the role that their work has in their faith.

superelliptic

bluewolf wrote: »

Baptising children into a cult you don't believe in just for the money is absolutely ridiculous, I cannot believe anyone would even mention it

It was a joke. Relax.


On another note, I would get my kids baptised. I come from a catholic family, I was baptised, so was everyone else in my family.

Also, while I may not be the most spiritual person around, I do think that christian philosophy is generally good, so why not be a part of it.

optogirl

philologos wrote: »

I don't believe that science doesn't have a place in church. I don't see why faith schools shouldn't exist either.

If anything science should have a place in church because from a Christian perspective science is the analysis what God has made. I personally support wholeheartedly those those scientists who actively discuss the role that their work has in their faith.

Faith schools can exist but they shouldn't be in the majority - in a lot of cases people don't have a choice because all of the local schools are catholic etc. I, personally, would much prefer if religion was not taught to my children with the underlying foregone conclusion that there is a god, which is how it was taught to me.
As for science having a place in church - I don't agree. I can't reconcile what I know of science with what the RCC teaches in particular in relation to homosexuality, contraception and the existence of a man who created the entire cosmos in 7 days (although no mention of the other planets in the bible so maybe they took a bit longer)

philologos

optogirl wrote: »

Faith schools can exist but they shouldn't be in the majority - in a lot of cases people don't have a choice because all of the local schools are catholic etc. I, personally, would much prefer if religion was not taught to my children with the underlying foregone conclusion that there is a god, which is how it was taught to me.

That should be your choice and liberty. I support the existence of secular schools where there is demand. I also support the right of parents to decide to bring their child to a faith school. I also support getting rid of the requirement for baptism certificates in certain schools.

optogirl wrote: »

As for science having a place in church - I don't agree. I can't reconcile what I know of science with what the RCC teaches in particular in relation to homosexuality, contraception and the existence of a man who created the entire cosmos in 7 days (although no mention of the other planets in the bible so maybe they took a bit longer)

I'm not a Roman Catholic. (N.B The RCC is a denomination Christianity amongst others).

We have no scientific evidence to suggest that sexuality in any form is biologically determined, but that's aside.

I have no issue with the use of artificial contraceptives. I do ultimately think that it is best if people wait until marriage but if they don't I would hope for their own sake that they would use contraceptives.

It is possible to be a Christian and believe in an old earth. The Hebrew word 'yom' in the Genesis chapter can be used for longer periods of time rather than a day.

As for other planets. The Biblical text is about God's revelation to mankind as such it is addressed in human terms. The Genesis passage starts off with the earth already formed but desolate. I don't believe that it is a science book, but rather a description of God's power in creation.

Pace2008

superelliptic wrote: »

On another note, I would get my kids baptised. I come from a catholic family, I was baptised, so was everyone else in my family.

I too come from a Catholic background, I was baptised, as was everyone else in my family.

I don't really see why that means I should have my hypothetical children baptised. I'm not a big fan of "the done thing" if it doesn't sit well with my views - and there's a helluva lot of stuff in the Catholic catechism that doesn't sit well with my views, and yours as well I'd guess.

I also descend from a long line of alcoholics, but I don't really feel compelled to carry on the family tradition in that respect.

Also, while I may not be the most spiritual person around, I do think that christian philosophy is generally good, so why not be a part of it.

Are you aware that treating others as you'd like to be treated yourself (which I assume you're alluding to when mentioning the "Christian Philosophy") is not a concept peculiar to Christianity?

michelledoh

One of my friends has a little girls of going to school age. When she talked to the schools about enrolling her daughter they all asked for baptismal certs. The child wasn't baptised so the mother had to organise one so she could attend school! Is it like that everywhere?

Colibri

michelledoh wrote: »

One of my friends has a little girls of going to school age. When she talked to the schools about enrolling her daughter they all asked for baptismal certs. The child wasn't baptised so the mother had to organise one so she could attend school! Is it like that everywhere?

I'm not sure if it's like that anywhere else but in my opinion, that's very bad parenting! I know it probably means nothing to the mother (and little girl) but if I learned that my mother did the same to me I'd be furious. I'm sure there are some fantastic non-denominational schools around. Pity!

Biggins

michelledoh wrote: »

One of my friends has a little girls of going to school age. When she talked to the schools about enrolling her daughter they all asked for baptismal certs. The child wasn't baptised so the mother had to organise one so she could attend school! Is it like that everywhere?

I have had a number of such cases reported to me this last while.
I and others have mentioned this already in this thread a number of posts back.
It is indeed a more common occurrence than most people realise.

The Master of Disaster

As an avowed atheist I'd obviously say no. But in reality it would probably depend just as much on (any future) other half in that if she was particularly set on it than I'd go along with it for her sake.

MadameCholet

JohnMarston wrote: »

Without getting too much into religious beliefs here, Christening is in fact a catholic custom. Baptism (as in full body immersion in water) is a Christian custom.

WHERE did you get that idea from??

Many christian denominations have christenings. In fact I think the clue is in the word Christian. (Christening? not catholicking) eg church of Ireland (anglican catholic), Methodists, Presbyterians. Catholics are just one christian denomination that christens babies.

MadameCholet

McTigs wrote: »

My daughter is not baptised because i'm not religious and neither is my girlfriend. The reasons why i don't want the catholic church anywhere near my daughter are valid and plentiful

For those non religious people who baptised their kids or will baptise their kids "to get them into good schools", fair play to ye for doing what ye can to maintain the ridiculous status quo.

McTigs, I completely agree with you in theory, but as a parent my FIRST duty is to my children, to give them the best education within the current status quo. I would like to push back the boundaries in some other way but not at the expense of my children's education...... I am ALL in favour of more ET schools.

partyatmygaff

optogirl wrote: »

As for science having a place in church - I don't agree.

Most Churches do agree however. There are certain of them who actually recommend people to study science as a complement to their religion. I am not so sure of the RCC's stance on the matter however as I am not a Catholic.

I can't reconcile what I know of science with what the RCC teaches in particular in relation to homosexuality, contraception

Science? What does science have to do with moral teachings?

and the existence of a man who created the entire cosmos in 7 days (although no mention of the other planets in the bible so maybe they took a bit longer)

No "man" alone created existence. Furthermore, not all Churches take the creation story of Genesis on a literal basis. Not even the RCC afaik.

kylith

Up-n-atom! wrote: »

Funny this thread has come up, I was just having this conversation with a friend the other day as there's been quite a few new babies amongst our family and friends (and they're all being baptised etc). Anyhew, since I have absolutely no plans to baptise any hypothetical children, I asked my friend would she baptise hers. She said she would as 'it would be a good party and all'. I was a bit gobsmacked but she's not alone, doing it for the convenience and a bit of a knees-up! The only situation I'd consider it, personally, is if it was absolutely required for a school, and even then I'd be very reluctant...

Why not just have an "I've had a baby!" party, if that's what's important? That's what I'll probably do with my kids, when I have some.

superelliptic wrote: »

On another note, I would get my kids baptised. I come from a catholic family, I was baptised, so was everyone else in my family.

Also, while I may not be the most spiritual person around, I do think that christian philosophy is generally good, so why not be a part of it.

So why not just teach them to be nice people, without the spiritual side of it?

Birroc

mariaf24 wrote: »

Yes, I christened my daughter and will christen my new baby too, even though i am a non practising catholic (I do believe in God (or something) though).
I suppose i christen them to make their choice for them to be a catholic and whether they wish to practice or not when they get older is their choice.

Do you decide which food they like?

partyatmygaff

Birroc wrote: »

Do you decide which food they like?

She probably does...

Most parents choose what their children eat and wear too. There's nothing strange about that.

JohnMarston

MadameCholet wrote: »

WHERE did you get that idea from??

Many christian denominations have christenings. In fact I think the clue is in the word Christian. (Christening? not catholicking) eg church of Ireland (anglican catholic), Methodists, Presbyterians. Catholics are just one christian denomination that christens babies.

I didn't want to get into religion but ok. Show me where in the Bible where it says you should christen babies

Any key?

Unless you intend sending your child to an Educate Together school most schools will require a baptismal cert. This is because of their ethos.Altho I suppose If you weren't having your child baptised you wouldn't want them to go to a Christian school anyway.

partyatmygaff

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Science? What does science have to do with moral teachings?

That there is no basis for these 'moral teachings'.

philologos

JohnMarston wrote: »

I didn't want to get into religion but ok. Show me where in the Bible where it says you should christen babies

Not arguing for this, but many people who do use Acts 16 as a justification. There were kids baptised in this example.

Birroc

JohnMarston wrote: »

I didn't want to get into religion but ok. Show me where in the Bible where it says you should christen babies

It doesn't afaik. Baptisms used to be done on adults initially I believe but the Catholic Church changed the rules to lock people in early.

MadameCholet

JohnMarston wrote: »

I didn't want to get into religion but ok. Show me where in the Bible where it says you should christen babies

What does that mean? Does it mean that you have now learnt that other christian denominations christen babies too?

I don't really mind/care what it says about christenings in the bible!!! I've no strong feelings. I was just correcting your misconception.

MadameCholet

RE: Educate Together Schools. Supposing your child is born in March, and you put their name down to start school the September four years and 6 months later, You could already be TOO LATE even though your child is only just out of the womb. All of the babies born in the previous 8-9 months have pipped your baby to the post already!! (not to mention the babies who missed out from the previous year and re-applied for the following year). They've all beaten your baby to that school place before your child was even born.

So, you can send your child to school when he/she is maybe 5 and 6 or 7 months, which means paying for an extra year of nursery fees!

Or, you can drag your weary carcass to mass/church once a month and that suddenly looks like a reasonable plan b.

So basically, don't be so sure that you won't be a 'hypocrite'!