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Sign Me “Off” For the Christian Jubilee: On the Disturbing Trend of “De-Baptisms” in Europe
Archdiocese of Washington ^ | January 11, 2011 | Msgr. Charles Pope

Posted on 01/12/2011 2:01:43 PM PST by Salvation

There’s an old song that says, Sign me up for the Christian Jubilee! Write my name on the roll!….I want to be ready when Jesus comes!  But, tragically there are some in Europe who are formally renouncing their faith through a process they call “de-baptism.” In effect they write to the parish where they were baptized and asked that their name be blotted out from the book of life, also known as the Baptismal Register. Of course the Catholic Church does not remove the names, but does make a notation that they have formally renounced the Christian faith, that they have renounced their baptism.

The video below depicts such “de-baptisms.” A young Belgian, named Damien,  is interviewed, and shown holding a document he has signed entitled Acte D’Apostasie A qui de droit. (Act of Renunciation (Apostasy) from the faith). You don’t have to know a lot of French to see the word “Apostasy” in the title. I had an opening and so offered Mass today for this man, for his return to the faith. I hope you’ll pray too for him and the over 1000 Belgians who have renounced their faith this past year.

Apostasy Association? There is actually an organization that exists to encourage and facilitate such renunciations. The head of this organization says many have renounced their faith due to anger over the sex-abuse scandal, though he admits there are other reasons too.

Red Herring – I do not know the particulars in Damien’s case so I cannot assess his personal motives. However, generally speaking, the abuse excuse, serious though the scandal was, is largely a red herring. People don’t usually leave the Church due to the Church’s sin, but rather, due to their own sins. People who leave (as distinct from those who drift away) are usually at odds with one or more of the moral teachings of the Church. And they are usually at odds with such teachings because they are breaking one or more of those moral precepts. They want to live as they please, and so they leave. In pointing to sin in the Church (real though it is) they get to tell themselves they are doing a noble, even conscientious thing. But in the end it is more usually a baser motive rooted in their own sin.

I’ve been re-reading Archbishops Sheen’s book Three to Get Married. In it he writes:

Every rationalization is farfetchedand never discloses the real reason. He who breaks the Divine Law and finds himself outside of Christ’s Mystical Body in a second marriage will often justify himself by saying: “I could not accept the doctrine of transubstantiation.” What he means is that he can no longer accept the Sixth Commandment…..What is important is not what people say, but why they say it. Too many assume that the reason people do not come to God is because they are ignorant; it is more generally true that the reason people do not come to God is because of their behavior. Our Lord said: “Rejection lies in this, that when the light came into the world men preferred darkness to light; preferred it, because their doings were evil. Anyone who acts shamefully hates the light” (John 8:19, 20). It is not always doubt that has to be overcome, but evil habits. (Three to Get Married, Kindle Edition Loc. 149-58).

In Damien’s case the specific reason is said by the interviewer to be anger over sex abuse. But Damien himself is less clear. He states, in effect, he doesn’t agree with what the Church is doing. It is not so clear that the abuse scandal is what he means, since this is not something the Church is “doing” but rather something she did not do. He more likely means he disagrees with some of her moral teachings. He also claims he never chose to join the Church anyway, since it was his parents who had him baptized.

Self-congratulatory apostasy?  - In the end he calls himself a “conscientious citizen” for getting de-baptized. Sadly, there is another word that more aptly describes what he has done and it is right at the top of his own letter: “Apostasie.” One can only hope his ignorance is so great that he does not really comprehend what he has done and will not face the full effects of his ill-informed choice.

Bad Idea! – But for the record, asking to have your name taken “off the roll” is a VERY BAD idea. Scripture could not be clearer;

  1. Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books…..If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire (Rev 20:11-15).
  2. Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches!  (Rev 3:4-6)

Someone may object  that a baptismal register is not the book mentioned, and that the image of “the book of life”  cannot be mechanistically reduced to inkblots on the page of some earthly book, etc. True enough. But the problem is not the earthly book, but what the earthly book indicates. It indicates baptism, not just membership. And to renounce baptism is to renounce faith in Christ Jesus. Thus, rejecting saving faith in Jesus Christ DOES affect the true and heavenly book. The earthly book is but a copy but it does point to the heavenly one and it is a very bad idea to go on record renouncing your faith, and asking that your name be “blotted out.” In Scripture Jesus says that the greatest gift is to have our names written in heaven: However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven (Luke 10:20).

And perhaps the scariest thing about all this is that Scripture also indicates very clearly that Jesus will ultimately abide by the decision of those who reject him and ratify it:

  1. If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels (Mk 8:38)
  2. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven (Matt 10:33)
  3. If we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us, if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself. (2 Tim 2:12-13)

So please pray for this young man, Damien, and others like him. Do not simply presume invincible ignorance on his part. We often rashly presume that adults “don’t know any better.” Well, don’t presume,  pray for him. I offered mass for him today and others like him. Perhaps you might offer the fruits of holy Mass as well?

Pray, this is very serious. It is bad enough to drift away from the faith, but to formally renounce ones baptism is to really ramp things up to a mega-serious level. Pray, pray, pray.



TOPICS: Apologetics; Catholic; History; Theology
KEYWORDS: baptism; catholic; catholiclist; msgrcharlespope
Videos may be viewed here: Archdiocese of Washington
1 posted on 01/12/2011 2:01:50 PM PST by Salvation
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To: Salvation

**He more likely means he disagrees with some of her moral teachings.**

I think this could be cited by anyone leaving any faith for another.

Look at the Anglicans who are coming toward the Catholic Church because they disagree with the moral teachings of some in their church.


2 posted on 01/12/2011 2:04:54 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Salvation
A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.

-CS Lewis.
3 posted on 01/12/2011 2:09:07 PM PST by cripplecreek (Remember the River Raisin! (look it up))
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To: Salvation
A young Belgian, named Damien,...

Does anyone else have a feeling that this won't end well?

4 posted on 01/12/2011 2:21:31 PM PST by DuncanWaring (The Lord uses the good ones; the bad ones use the Lord.)
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To: All
....tragically there are some in Europe who are formally renouncing their faith through a process they call “de-baptism.” In effect they write to the parish where they were baptized and asked that their name be blotted out from the book of life, also known as the Baptismal Register. Of course the Catholic Church does not remove the names, but does make a notation that they have formally renounced the Christian faith, that they have renounced their baptism....

....Someone may object that a baptismal register is not the book mentioned, and that the image of “the book of life” cannot be mechanistically reduced to inkblots on the page of some earthly book, etc. True enough. But the problem is not the earthly book, but what the earthly book indicates. It indicates baptism, not just membership. And to renounce baptism is to renounce faith in Christ Jesus. Thus, rejecting saving faith in Jesus Christ DOES affect the true and heavenly book. The earthly book is but a copy but it does point to the heavenly one and it is a very bad idea to go on record renouncing your faith, and asking that your name be “blotted out.”

"Roman Catholics, the largest U.S. church with a reported 69 million members, start counting baptized infants as members and often don’t remove people until they die. Most membership surveys don’t actually count who’s in the pews on Sunday. To be disenrolled, Catholics must write a bishop to ask that their baptisms be revoked..."
....it is possible, for example, to be born Catholic, married Methodist, die Lutheran and still be listed as a member of the 1 billion-member Roman Catholic Church....
"...The Catholic understanding of membership is that a person becomes a member upon baptism and remains a member for life," Gautier said. "Whether you show up at church or not is not what determines whether you're a member."
-- from the thread When It Comes to Church Membership Numbers, the Devil's in the Details
Related threads:
‘De-baptism’ trend spreads in Belgium
Austrian Catholic church exits increase to a record high since 1945
Irish service offering defection from Catholic Church is suspended ["no longer possible to defect"]
Why I left the Catholic Church
Actus Formalis Defectionis ab Ecclesia Catholica

5 posted on 01/12/2011 2:24:14 PM PST by Alex Murphy ("Posting news feeds, making eyes bleed, he's hated on seven continents")
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To: Salvation

Infant baptism is entirely meaningless as the infant has no choice in the matter. A “de-baptism” has as much impact on the individual’s immortal soul.


6 posted on 01/12/2011 2:25:59 PM PST by Dr. Thorne (Buy Gold and Guns Now!)
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To: cripplecreek

This is downright creepy. The anti-Christian patterns rampaging through Europe is unbelievable.

This tells me that the ones officially denouncing Jesus know that baptizism is real in the Spiritual realm. This means they are forwardly and knowingly choosing the dark side for their eternal lives. That is too much!


7 posted on 01/12/2011 2:35:26 PM PST by SaraJohnson
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To: Salvation; Religion Moderator

Duplicate:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2655473/posts

Good article though... thank you Salvation.


8 posted on 01/12/2011 2:42:24 PM PST by GCC Catholic
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To: DuncanWaring

There’s more than one way to get into hell, right?

Renouncing God, Father, Son and Holy Spiri is one of them.


9 posted on 01/12/2011 2:49:51 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Dr. Thorne

I disagree with you. The soul is marked forever at Baptism — even as an infant. It can’t be undone.

Are you aware of the Baptismal promises a person makes? Or the parent and godparents make?


10 posted on 01/12/2011 2:51:22 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Dr. Thorne

**Infant baptism is entirely meaningless as the infant has no choice in the matter. **

You are looking at this, it seems, from the viewpoint of man, not the viewpoint of God.


11 posted on 01/12/2011 2:52:36 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: SaraJohnson

...they are forwardly and knowingly choosing the dark side for their eternal lives.

^^
So true. The Evil One is working hard these days and prospering. Our God will prevail, however.


12 posted on 01/12/2011 2:53:28 PM PST by Bigg Red (Palin/Hunter 2012 -- Bolton their Secretary of State)
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To: Dr. Thorne

Dr. Thorne,
these are people leaving the Catholic Church (in the article), where the solemn teaching in regard to Baptism is this:
1. It is a Sacrament
2. That imprints a character on the soul
3. Water is necessary for its administration
4. It removes all stain of Original Sin and all Actual Sin, along with all temporal punishment due to Actual Sin.
5. It is necessary for salvation.
6. It can be validly received even by infants.
(Taken from This Is The Faith, p228, Canon Francis Ripley)

For us, this is not just symbolic, but true. And likewise, while the adults can leave the Church, if they wish, Church teaching is that Baptism is forever, indelible. Just as people leaving Christ’s body are a true tragedy, FRiend.


13 posted on 01/12/2011 2:54:14 PM PST by sayuncledave (A cruce salus)
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