Each month Bishop Manning answers questions from the Catholic Community of Parramatta Diocese, which is published in 'Catholic Outlook', the official diocesan newspaper.
To review previous questions and answers from the Bishop visit the archive.
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Each month Bishop Manning answers questions from the Catholic Community of Parramatta Diocese, which is published in 'Catholic Outlook', the official diocesan newspaper. To review previous questions and answers from the Bishop visit the archive. |
|
July 2009
Bishop Kevin Manning, Catholic Outlook, July 2009
Question
Our parish priest refused to baptise a five-year-old boy recently because he
said the parents were only seeking Baptism so that the child could be enrolled
in the local Catholic school. Would you kindly tell me what is the position of
the Catholic Church in having a child baptised, or not baptised?
Answer:
You are certainly touching on a very delicate area here, especially if a child
is refused Baptism.
Parents present themselves to the priest asking for Baptism for their child. The priest has to make a judgment on the hope that exists that the child will be brought up in the faith.
But Baptism is a sacrament, and carries with it the grace of God. It is not something that the child has to earn, even through its parents.
Last year, a somewhat similar question was put to Pope Benedict XVI, a question on admitting children to First Communion and Confirmation when they came to the required preparation classes but were not coming to Sunday Mass.
He replied that when he was young, he took a severe line: sacraments are sacraments of faith and, if there is no faith, the sacrament cannot be conferred.
Later, he said, "I came to realise that we must follow rather, the example of the Lord, who was very open with people on the margins of Israel of that time. He was a Lord of mercy, too open - according to many official authorities - with sinners, welcoming them … drawing them into His Communion".1
There is surely a parallel with Baptism. The priest must talk with the parents to establish why they want their child baptised. In the course of conversation, he may discover that that there is more than one motive; in other words, it may be that securing a place in the Catholic school is of great importance, but there is a glimmer of faith in one or both parents. In this case, he must do his best to encourage that glimmer of faith to grow stronger.
Canon law is pretty clear on this point. It requires that parents have their children baptised as soon as possible after birth, and that the priest does not baptise the child unless there is a well-founded hope that the child be raised in the faith. If that hope is not present, the priest must delay Baptism and give the parents the reason for the delay.
However, the word "delay" is the operative word here. Although the priest cannot absolutely deny anyone Baptism forever, he must insist that all the requirements for Baptism are met, and would suggest to the parents that they begin to look at their own lives, examine their commitment to the faith, before he would baptise their child.
But this is not to be a sentence of exclusion; rather is it an invitation to inclusion, to come closer to the faith. Discussions about Baptism are wonderful pastoral opportunities for the priest to help parents re-connect with their faith.
Let us take the example of unmarried parents. There is no Canon law that prevents unmarried parents from having their child baptised, but being married before one has children is a core Catholic principle.
This situation gives the priest the opportunity to explore with the parents their attitude to marriage in the Church in a pastoral rather than a punitive way.
Is this a couple where one or both parties were married before and trying to get the situation straightened out, or is this a couple who are merely cohabitating out of distain or indifference to Christ's teaching?
The child of a single parent cannot be refused Baptism simply because of that fact. The reason for delaying Baptism would be the same as the reason for delaying Baptism in the case of married parents. It is a question of the faith of the parent or parents.
To sum up: merely to bring the child along for Baptism so that he or she can enter a Catholic school is not, on its own, a justification for Baptism.
If the priest can satisfy himself that a glimmer of faith exists in one parent, and that he or she is willing to try to bring up the child in the Catholic faith, that Baptism is justified.
1 Pope Benedict XVI, Meeting with the Clergy of the Diocese of Bolzano - Bressanone, 6 August, 2008, www.vatican.va
