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Update 41 page 7.

In Update 41:
Burning Boats?
CW Baptism
For infants?
Not out of mind
Baptism & Unity
Praxis Pack
What is Baptism?
Initiation initiatives

Baptism, 'Rebaptism' and Unity

Summarised from parts of "Baptism, Reconciliation and Unity" by Kevin Roy, Baptist Theological College, Cape Town (Paternoster 1997)

God’s work through Christ is restoration and reconciliation, and reuniting into one that which has been broken and divided by sin. Baptism signifies reconciliation, whereby we are incorporated into the one body and made to drink of the one Spirit (1 Cor 12:13), united with Christ and with one another (Rom 6:5, Gal 3:26-28).

What a supreme irony it is, therefore, that baptism, the sacrament of unity and reconciliation, should have become a source of division and estrangement. This extraordinary inconsistency in the church should be a source of shame and sorrow to all Christians.

A survey of 182 students at five theological colleges in South Africa, of both paedobaptists and credobaptists (i.e. baptising only ‘believers’) showed that two-thirds of both groups thought it was possible to accommodate those of differing baptismal convictions in one congregation. However, it was less clear how this might be done!

65% of paedobaptist students were definitely against what they saw as ‘rebaptism’, even though 50% were prepared to allow parents to delay the baptism of their own children. And 50% of credobaptist students definitely did not want to grant any recognition to infant baptism, to countenance the baptism of infants of church members, or to admit to membership those only baptised as infants.

There is no simple solution to this problem. The foundation of any reconciliation between different viewpoints among Christians must be freedom of conscience granted to the Christian believer, as enshrined in the scriptures. Particularly in St Paul’s writings this theme of freedom is notable (see Luther’s tract “The Freedom of a Christian” and F F Bruce in “Paul: the Apostle of the Free Spirit”, Paternoster 1985). In view of Paul’s attitude to circumcision in his day (Gal 6:15 etc vs Acts 16:3), would it be heretical to suggest that in our day he might have written “Neither infant baptism nor believers’ baptism has any value. What counts is faith expressing itself through love”?

Churches could take steps to take the heat out of these differences. Credobaptists might allow parents to follow their consciences on what they wished for their children. Paedobaptists might allow adults to be baptised as believers if they wish, notwithstanding their earlier infant baptisms. “The church itself should be a realm of freedom, as well as the advocate of freedom in the world” (Hans Kung).

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This web page was last updated on 14th January 2003.