There are a lot of arguments surrounding the invalidity of the Church though this is a relatively short piece. I’ve spoken to a couple priests about my problems with the practice but I was reassured of purity in them teaching that baptism doesn’t mean salvation instead of being convinced that the proper protocol would be to baptize all infants in the Church.
I have recently been given help in an explanation I try to give in the writings of my book for an extremely controversial topic. The issue we are speaking on is the concept around infant baptism and its validity. I was finally making my way through reading Augustine’s Confessions, being inspired throughout when suddenly he brings up his canceled baptism. I find the words he wishes to use to affirm how it was proper for the cleaning to be later in life to have greater impact as mine being that he is known as the most impactful theologian of the Catholic Church in history. Still though first I will state my case for why the practice of baptizing infants is a false teaching, then, hopefully the words of Saint Augustine will convince you they can be to the detriment of man.
Let us begin with the argument of being self-evident. This is the idea that through reading the Gospel you should naturally come to this conclusion. It should be like trying to argue with another about how men have deeper voices than women. This is an observation, the sun rises in the east and sets west. There is no argument to be had here. Baptism in the Bible is a rebirthing confession of the spirit in the acceptance that Jesus Christ is the way of truth and life. An infant cannot even understand a word, let alone any concept that was taught by Jesus. We are calling it a cleansing as Augustine did as the baptism is a washing away of sins. The problem sociologically is that infants who were baptized grow away from the teaching without ever properly repenting for any of their later sins committed when awake. Believing that they will be saved, yet were never reborn in the cleansings of sins through water and profession of Christ.
Part of our argument here is how the fathers of the Church allowed misteaching. Allowed for the impurity of the text. The Catechism that explains their current practice reads like an attempt to deceive us. We know who the father of all lies is. What it does, is try to import infants in the homes of people baptized in the Acts. Then it goes on to tell us that because some early fathers did so, that then it is inherently a just decision. The Catholics rule with the premise that they are the ones adherent to the traditions from the Apostles but history seems to read that they have given up the sanctity of the most essential sacrament. The practice of confirmations too seem to imply that they recognize that their baptism as an infant wasn’t sufficient enough as when they baptize adults their confirmations are done at the same time.
The backbone of our arguments are justified through the understanding of who Jesus was, as a person. What His personality was and how He acted. Jesus was an unwavering man who would scold his closest friends in order to maintain what is proper teaching. He physically cleansed the temple of money changers. The purpose behind the weight of messaging was that a society led by misused teachings will collapse upon itself. This is how it showcases as a detriment, when the world is filled with adults who carelessly sin because they believe eternal life is in them. When Augustine was an infant he almost was baptized because of being ill, and the practice to baptize infants so that they may reach heaven. As a Bishop he writes “So my cleansing was delayed as if it must needs be that I would become yet more defiled if I lived, for indeed the guilt and defilement of sins committed after that cleansing would be greater and more dangerous.” This comes after his description of how through God’s grace he does not remember his infancy because of the temperamental nature we have during that time. His statement was if there’s certainly more pain and sin he will commit through his own nature. To Augustine, he shows that baptism is a needed healing. We need to remember that most will not enter the Kingdom. “For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 5:20).