And yet, apparently still easier than getting your child baptized in the Catholic church.
It's been awhile since I've sat through Catechism, so I am a little rusty on Canon Law. {No that is not law written to guide your use of an SLR.} Here's a breakdown of my basic religious philosophy. If you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, and you ask him to come into your life, you are going to heaven. Simple as that really. Now that's not Catholic philosophy which reads more like "earn your heaven by doing good deeds." It is born again Christian philosophy, but it is laid out pretty basically in the Nicene Creed which a Catholic says at every mass. Ahem.
Now on the whole baptism thing. I have no idea. Most faiths (as I understand it) baptize adults, or at least people old enough to decide for themselves they want to be baptized. Catholics baptize the young, the younger the better. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it's supposed to wash away sin or original sin or something. I know I know--I should study this (believe me I'll have the chance.) Anyway, the parents and godparents make the professions of faith for the infant (i.e. rejecting Satan and all his works). Then when the child is older, junior high or high school age, they make the sacrament of Confirmation, basically saying the same things their parents and godparents said for them many years ago. Okay. So that brings us to the present.
I don't agree with all the tenets of the Catholic church. (I am pro-life, but I don't pray to anyone but God. Oh and the whole confession thing with a priest--no, I'll take it up directly with the Big Man Upstairs, thankyouverymuch.) So the main reason I chose to have my kids baptized in the church, was for traditions sake. I know--excommunicate me--but I don't feel in my heart that God will send an infant to Hell (or Purgatory) who is not baptized. By the way I don't believe in Purgatory either. I'm not a very good Catholic am I?
Okay wait, now we are up to the present. I recently overheard a cousin (yes another one--I have 37 first cousins and 5 first step-cousins) speaking about getting the certificate of the godmother for the priest to baptize her kids. I've been checking around--well I've had my people checking around--here's the scoop. If you are a parent, you need to take a class to be certified, be married in the church, or not living in sin. If you are a godparent you need the same thing, except that only one godparent has to be Catholic. I think. In fact, only one godparent needs be present at the actual baptism. The other can be a 'stand in'. A stand in can have any questionable character whatsoever. Make sense?
Even more inviting: your certification only lasts for a limited time as determined by whichever parish you are using. One year in some cases, three years in others. Make sense?
But at one location you only need to contact them and they can fax a copy of your certificate even if it has expired...without you having to take the class again. Make sense?
I think, and I'm not a hundred percent on this, that I will need the following to have my second child baptized:
- my marriage license
- my baptismal certificate
- my husband's baptismal certificate
- my certification of taking the class
- my husband's certification of taking the class
- the godmother's certification of taking the class
- the godfather's certification of taking the class
- maybe their marriage licenses also--I'm just pulling that one outta my butt.
Here's why I think this is re-donkulous. Back in Bible days I don't think John the Baptist required anything of you to be dunked in the river but your willingness to repent. Am I right? I am certain that there was no certification or faxing of paperwork.
I'll leave you with another list titled Things That Are Easier to Do Than Baptize Your Child in the Catholic Church (from my personal experience):
- get (and keep) a license to sell alcohol in the state of Texas
- become certified to use the Texas Lotto machine
- get waited on at the Social Security office
- get an actual BINGO
- talk your husband into letting you name the children
- and finally, get married in the Catholic Church...no wait, that's about equal.
4 comments:
Meredith, sounds like you are having a rough time with the church right now. One thing to be glad of is that your husband agrees to baptize the children. My husband agreed for my two girls now grown and living on their own, both working and going to college, but backed away from the church when it came time to baptize our son who is a heathen who has dropped out of school and wants to sit around playing video games, and hanging out with his older friends who are out of school. We didn't get married in the church and had to have a radical senation - which means our hometown priest had to sign papers, our parents had to sign papers, our local priest had to sign papers for the bishop to recognize our marriage in the church - phew! glad we got that out of the way before the children came along. Can you imagine - oh the horrors! grins. One other aside - I think most of us think of it as asking for prayers (intercessions)when saying the Hail Mary, like you would ask a friend or relative to pray for you. Who better to ask than the mother of our Lord?
That's my Catholic philosophy!
In case this shows up more than once, I tried to delete the first one when I realized I had called you Lisa.
OMG... Im thinking thats a little crazy myself.
Yeah, I'm totally confused. lol Good luck figuring that one out!
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