Reyes, Dalila
Instr. Gross
English 103
March 24, 2011
At What Age Should One Baptize?
Baptism is a religious sacrament that uses the symbolism of water to erase original sin and it is also recognized as the acceptance of God. Raised in a Catholic family and having been baptized my self, I was expected to do the same for my children. Many years ago before I had my children, I had a conversation with my boyfriend and he challenged my religion’s practice of baptizing children at a small age. He asked me what the point was of baptizing a child upon birth if the child is to small to comprehend the responsibly and meaning of the sacrament. I was a bit surprised that he was interested and yet challenging my religion. He was brought up in a Christian religion, in which baptisms are performed once an adult is able to make the conscious choice and is able to understand the commitment one is making with God. Once I shared with him my religions information, the topic soon lead to a hypothetical question, if we one day conceived a child, what religion would that child be baptized under? This topic struck a very delicate conversation. We were both avoiding harsh words that would bring insult or hurt to each others families and religious beliefs. As in any discussion, I am very opened to ideas or suggestions, so I tried very hard to remain unbiased and hear him out. He stated that he would disagree with my decision of baptizing his children at such a young age. He didn’t not agree with a religion baptizing at an early age and he made it very clear that no child of his would be baptized in a Catholic church. I didn’t not fully agree with his view and began feeling very angered that he would not understand or have any consideration or respect for my religion. If baptism at an early age held no meaning for him what difference does a sprinkling of water at an early age make?
As I continued to ponder on the subject, I began to realize that we would both need to compromise if that day ever arrived. I evaluated my own personal reasons of wanting to baptize: I was not and still am not religious; was there really such thing as natural sin? Yet the only reason that I could rationalize is that my mother would like to see my children baptized one day. Holding off on baptism was not an option for me. A couple of years later, after I had my children, the subject reared its ugly head once again. I explain to the father, that baptizing was not an option. Although I am not an active member of the church, I would follow through with the sacrament. Once the children are older, they would be free to choose which ever religious path of their liking. His parent, the religious grandparents, would be free to teach our children about the Christian faith, and would be more than welcomed to take the children to mass. Compromise was not as simple for me but I realized that it must be done in difficult scenarios whether or not it’s to our liking.