A person who rejects the Church's teaching isn't likely to follow it in this matter. But a Catholic is obligated to baptise the baby. It is a matter of spiritual care-taking.
It is the spiritual parallel to feeding, bathing, clothing, and loving the child. In fact, it is the expression of it.
Parents who don't see this are a bit more concerned about their own beliefs that either their child's or the Church's, and, frankly, they are either ignorant (for which charitable allowances can be made) or frighteningly self-centered.
“But a Catholic is obligated to baptise the baby. It is a matter of spiritual care-taking.
It is the spiritual parallel to feeding, bathing, clothing, and loving the child. In fact, it is the expression of it.”
What of Catholics who have their babies baptized simply because they feel it’s an obligation or tradition, and don’t contribute to the child’s spiritual upbringing in any significant way after that? I know “Catholics” who baptized their children, but that was one of the rare instances the kids ever saw the inside of a church. How does the baptism of those children amount to anything?