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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

AIBU to not want to baptise my babies?

156 replies

TheMummyJade · 31/10/2024 04:11

Hi! So basically, my eldest is baptised as per request of both sets of grandparents, because my husband and I both enjoyed growing up surrounded by people in the faith, and because my husband and I want to enrol him in the local Catholic primary school. However, we didn't when it came to our second son because we had both just been starting new jobs, moving into a new house, and were busy with two young boys. Now that I'm due with 3 babies, I don't think we'll have the time, or that we really need, to baptise them. Neither my husband or I are practising Catholics, however both of fathers are, and our mothers just think it would be nice for us to have them baptised. I also feel a bit silly if we were to have 4 out of 5 kids baptise and our second son isn't.
Thanks in advance Mumsnet, and thank you for all the love and advice on my last thread 😊

OP posts:
Notreat · 01/11/2024 10:02

Sheri99 · 31/10/2024 04:36

Get it done, all of them.

No one knows the time and place of disaster. The last thing you want to do is have a funeral of a child and realize you didn't make time for the most important thing in this world.

Neither of my children are christened i thought It important to let them chose when they are old enough. They chose not to. And and my grandchildren aren't christened either.
If you are not practising Christians then I don't think you should do it.
It's certainly not the most important thing

Sassybooklover · 01/11/2024 09:57

If you've had the first child baptised, then in all honesty any subsequent children should be baptised too. You are then treating all the children the same. To the best of my knowledge the majority of religious schools are over-subscribed and children of faith, who attend church regularly and are baptised will be given priority over those who aren't religious. The local faith schools in my area require a letter from the priest/vicar from your church, confirming your regular attendance, along with the admissions form! However, the choice to baptise should be solely yours, and not based on other family members opinions. I was baptised, it was common when I was born, but my son hasn't been baptised. My husband and I aren't religious, and we didn't marry in church. My attitude is, if my son wants to be baptised later in life, that's his choice.

ThatsNotMyTeen · 01/11/2024 09:46

wow triplets! Congratulations

No of course you don’t need to get them baptised but if you do, there’s no reason why your second baby couldn’t be done at the same time as the triplets

Yelloworangetomato · 01/11/2024 09:44

LordEmsworth · 01/11/2024 09:19

Erm, when the only thing you (think you) know about Catholic women is that they lie on their backs with their legs in the air at the behest of the Pope - then yes it's pejorative.

It's not funny unless everyone's laughing.

Yours,
A Catholic woman.

Are there other posts from that poster to suggest that is what the poster intended? If so, I didn't see them, forgive me. But as a stand alone post there is nothing in that joke that a Catholic might not make themselves.

Yours,
another Catholic woman

Driedonion · 01/11/2024 09:34

Sheri99 · 31/10/2024 04:36

Get it done, all of them.

No one knows the time and place of disaster. The last thing you want to do is have a funeral of a child and realize you didn't make time for the most important thing in this world.

Genuinely interested - please can you tell me the bit in the bible where it talks about baptising children to guarantee a place in heaven for them?
I don’t understand how a man made ceremony can change what god might decide.

ThomasPatrickKeatingsDegas · 01/11/2024 09:31

It wasn’t funny. It was a lazy stereotype.

LordEmsworth · 01/11/2024 09:19

Yelloworangetomato · 01/11/2024 08:59

How was she being slagged off?! It was a funny joke. It is very sad you interpret 'Catholic' as something pejorative

Erm, when the only thing you (think you) know about Catholic women is that they lie on their backs with their legs in the air at the behest of the Pope - then yes it's pejorative.

It's not funny unless everyone's laughing.

Yours,
A Catholic woman.

ThomasPatrickKeatingsDegas · 01/11/2024 09:16

Moonshiners · 31/10/2024 08:37

Lol. That is ridiculous. This is one of the many reasons I hate Catholicism.
I was baptized against my parents wishes and I feel really weird about it.
To me means absolutely nothing and if it did I would organize getting myself baptized.

Why do you feel weird about it? If you didn’t get confirmed as Catholic you haven’t completed your baptismal Grace.

Yelloworangetomato · 01/11/2024 09:02

You have to go through RCIA classes if you choose to get Baptised as an adult. They're time consuming and might out many off. They are a good idea however, you can't just baptise someone because they demand it, but it might demand a lot from the person seeking Baptism

Yelloworangetomato · 01/11/2024 08:59

LordEmsworth · 31/10/2024 05:17

Wow. Is slagging off Catholic women for getting pregnant 3 times still something people do? Interesting to know, thought it does out in the 90s

How was she being slagged off?! It was a funny joke. It is very sad you interpret 'Catholic' as something pejorative

triballeader · 01/11/2024 08:53

DH is a CofE priest, we opted for a Thanksgiving for all of ours so they could make that choice themselves. I think it’s possible to request a thanksgiving for the safe delivery and blessings for a child from the Catholic Church BUT such does NOT replace the sacrament of baptism. Something to bear in mind if your considering a Catholic primary school.

Just for info in the hope this is never needed: IF you ever needed a hospital chaplain in future they would still come especially at a time of real need. You can ask the nurses to call them for you. Hospital Chaplaincy services cover a wide range of world faiths and denominations. If you get the duty or lead chaplain they will listen to you and call in the chaplain you may have a need of. They care for those at a point of need, almost all are truly compassionate and will not expect you to prove you are practicing the faith you grew up in.

NannyR · 01/11/2024 08:51

Chaoslatte · 31/10/2024 20:02

The upside is that they can get easier entry to OP’s preferred school and it’s less hassle if they want to do it when older.

I don't get why it's a hassle to be baptised as an adult. At my CofE church, if you told the vicar you wanted to be baptised, he would have a chat with you over coffee to make sure you understood what baptism was and then he would get the baptism pool out the following Sunday. I understand that the Roman Catholic church may have classes to attend, but that shouldn't be a hassle if your faith is that important to you.

I was baptised Catholic as a tiny baby, but really wish I could have made the decision myself. An adult, believers baptism is a really lovely, meaningful service that I sort of feel I have missed out on.

whyalltheusernames · 01/11/2024 08:44

I can't stand threads that slag off catholics. If you don't believe in God that's fine. Leave others alone.

Please don't baptise your children just so they can go to the best school in the area. It's very hypocritical.

And those who ask if God doesn't let unbaptised children in heaven? You don't believe in God or heaven? So what are you on about?

MellersSmellers · 01/11/2024 08:43

😂😂to exorcism. Are you actually a RC??
I think you should have a reason other than the school to have them baptised, but be aware they may not be able to go to the same school as your DC1 if they're not baptised.

OneDandyPoet · 01/11/2024 08:33

Jk987 · 01/11/2024 08:30

Schools should not be affiliated to any religion. That's where the problem lies.

Exactly! And the tax payer should not paying for the running of religious schools.

Jk987 · 01/11/2024 08:30

Schools should not be affiliated to any religion. That's where the problem lies.

Growlybear83 · 01/11/2024 08:11

If you're not practising catholics and don't attend church regularly then I think I don't think it's right to baptise your children to please others or to get them into a particular school. I'm not at all religious but have enough respect for religions to think it is incredibly hypocritical to just attend church to get married and have your children baptised or christened. If they want to be baptised then they can have this done at any point in their adult lives - my mum was in her 80s when she was baptised.

Tattletwat · 01/11/2024 08:06

Jk987 · 01/11/2024 07:45

😦 nice.

So you're saying do it while they have no choice.
And you can't possibly be busy when having 5 children?

I meant I would let them decide when I'm older. It's an antiquated process.

It's a day out of 365, the OP states they are always busy, do they have anytime for spending with more kids.

Jk987 · 01/11/2024 07:45

Tattletwat · 31/10/2024 08:10

I wouldn't let them decide when they are older.

Not sure the not having time thing is about though as it would be one day, but you seem to bang on about being busy a few times since your post.

Edited

😦 nice.

So you're saying do it while they have no choice.
And you can't possibly be busy when having 5 children?

Jk987 · 01/11/2024 07:40

Sheri99 · 31/10/2024 04:36

Get it done, all of them.

No one knows the time and place of disaster. The last thing you want to do is have a funeral of a child and realize you didn't make time for the most important thing in this world.

I'm shocked at this response. The most important thing in the world is that you and the babies are happy and looked after. Not whether they go through some ceremony to be part of a judgmental religion. I mean, how do you even get 3 newborns and 2 kids out of the house?

Jk987 · 01/11/2024 07:35

You're having triplets? Wow congratulations! Getting them
Baptised or not is waaaay down the priority list. Do what you need to do to cope with your rapidly expanding family.

OneDandyPoet · 01/11/2024 07:31

Drom · 01/11/2024 07:24

Certainly, to an extent, when I went to school in the 70s and 80s. Not now.

Perhaps, that has changed now, thankfully. Also, in Catholic schools from late 70s into very early 90s, we were most definitely taught many things as facts.

Drom · 01/11/2024 07:24

OneDandyPoet · 01/11/2024 07:02

What? I not sure what kind of Catholic school you went to, but if you attend a Roman Catholic school, religion, specifically Catholicism is at the core of its curriculum. That’s why people send their kids to faith schools - they want their children to be educated in that faith, they want them to be surrounded in it. This is partyly how for many people, unconditional faith is perpetuated. You are very much taught things as “facts”, when it comes to religion. To this day, I have former classmates, that believe in the holy trinity as a “fact”, in transubstantiation as a “fact”, in hell as a literal place, so a “fact”, and so on. But in any case, you attended your school as a non catholic, so it was easier for you to be more impartial to it anyway.

Certainly, to an extent, when I went to school in the 70s and 80s. Not now.

Drom · 01/11/2024 07:22

OneDandyPoet · 31/10/2024 19:26

Well you are taught religion as a fact, in a Catholic school, (regardless of whether or not you personally believe) at the expense of the UK taxpayer. In 2024, the public purse should not be funding such schools.

You really aren’t, you know. My (unbaptised, unconfirmed) DS attends a Catholic secondary, because it’s our closest school, and other than teaching about faiths, Catholicism is limited to a token prayer over the intercom at the start and end of the day that pupils do not have to join in with.

The closest DS has ever come to being taught ‘religion as fact’ was at his C of E primary where the evangelical creationist vicar used to come in and teach the Bible as literally true.

OneDandyPoet · 01/11/2024 07:02

What? I not sure what kind of Catholic school you went to, but if you attend a Roman Catholic school, religion, specifically Catholicism is at the core of its curriculum. That’s why people send their kids to faith schools - they want their children to be educated in that faith, they want them to be surrounded in it. This is partyly how for many people, unconditional faith is perpetuated. You are very much taught things as “facts”, when it comes to religion. To this day, I have former classmates, that believe in the holy trinity as a “fact”, in transubstantiation as a “fact”, in hell as a literal place, so a “fact”, and so on. But in any case, you attended your school as a non catholic, so it was easier for you to be more impartial to it anyway.