Statement of the ELCSA(N-T) on the subject of 'Baptism and re-baptism'

The topic of Baptism and Re-baptism was discussed at the Church Synod 1995 in Bonaero Park. It became clear that this theme was being judged and understood from differently. Church Synod therefore requested the Church- and Ecclesiastical Councils to use the thoughts mentioned in the discussion as the basis to a statement which was to be sent to all congregations.

  1. Jesus' baptismal command in Matthew 28,18-20, to "go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you, " and his promise "I am with you always, to the very end of age", unites us in faith. According to Mark 16 faith and baptism are bound closely together. We understand baptism as God's saving act for us. God's grace precedes our explicit answer. According to the witness of the whole New Testament it is God alone who grants salvation. Especially in infant baptism it becomes evident that God's offer of salvation is unconditional and precedential. Children too receive the promise of God's grace effectively and permanently. According to this understanding of baptism, a repetition of the baptism is impossible because God keeps his promises.
    The Bible neither demands explicitly the baptism of infants, although small children were hardly excluded if someone "was baptised with his whole household", (Acts.16,15; 16,31, 18,8; l.Cor.l,16.), nor does infant baptism contradict the concept of acceptance by grace in the New Testament.
  2. We emphatically support all pastoral efforts with members of our congregations who can no longer associate themselves with the baptism which they have received as infants. The pastoral care of a congregation must go so far as to enable that specific member to stay in the congregation. This is important because those people who have been re-baptised often take their faith very seriously and for various reasons decide to be rebaptised. Their serious quest and struggle to gain an answer to their faith are acknowledged. The Church has to seek possibilities of accommodating public confessions. (Refer 16:1-7 below).
  3. We recognize that the re-baptisms justify a critical investigation into the practice of baptism in our Church, e.g.:
  1. It must once again be strongly emphasized that no where in the New Testament a repetition of the baptism is mentioned, approved or even demanded. Re-baptism is based on a different view of God" s grace and a different approach to the understandings of Scripture.
  2. Baptisms are performed publicly in front of the congregation, the congregation is a witness of the integration of the baptized into the congregation and are actively involved in intercessions and prayers during the baptism and in their joint confession of faith.
  3. The complete immersing under water is not a deciding factor in our Church, because the Word of God gives the water (the element) its meaning, and not the way in which the water is used.
  4. No one has the right to judge or to dispute another's faith.
  5. The Constitution of our Church, the Congregational Constitution and the Order for Church Life in line with other confessional churches hold to the Old Church principle that the baptism is constitutive to the membership into a congregation and the Church. Through baptism one becomes a member of the congregation and of the Church. In the case of a change from one confession to another, a baptism is not repeated when one has been baptised with water in the Name of the Triune God.
  6. When someone performs a baptism without an explicit instruction from his congregation, he jeopardizes the unity of the congregation. Baptisms by members of a congregation or even strangers are contradictory to the accepted statutes of the congregation in which the pastor is called by the congregation to administer the sacraments (with the exception of an emergency, in which case every christian may perform this service).
  7. Our Order for Church Life states that Christians who reject infant baptism cannot become godparents. If the godparents have been re-baptised, the parents should see to it that their children's faith is not jeopardized.
  8. At their inauguration into the various services of the congregation, members promise to administer their duties in faith according to the confession of our Church. Those who cannot make such a promise, should not be given an office in the evangelical Lutheran Church.
  9. If someone who has been re-baptized desires to distance himself from this act of re-baptism, a respective declaration to the pastor will suffice. If his re-baptism has become known to the congregation, they are to be informed of his decision.

Further comments:

  1. If an adult who has not been baptized as an infant, is converted and desires to be baptized, this request should naturally be granted as is testified in the statutes of our Church. When an adult is baptized, the confirmation, which is the prerequisite for obtaining church rights, becomes superfluous.
  2. No objection is raised against blessing children who have not been baptized, provided the blessing does not replace the baptism itself. Parents should rather be encouraged to have their children baptized. Only baptized people will be listed as members of the congregation.
  3. All christians and congregations are called to make the gift of baptism known in the personal as well as congregational life of members and to have serious regard for the practice and consequences of the infant baptism. Daily we should live from our baptism and stay in Christ in a life-long growth of our faith.

The following practical hints are suggested:

  1. The theme Baptism should not only be discussed in the confirmation classes, but in groups (e.g. Adult Education, Christian Teachings, Bible Studies, etc.) so that the whole congregation is included. Excellent information regarding the teachings of our church can be found in the Evangelical Adult Catechism ( 1975, 1. Edition pp. 1059 ff). The statements of the different denominations are also mentioned in this book. In the Confessional Writings, especially in Martin Luther's Large Catechism important and understandable testimonies regarding baptisms are found.
  2. During the ceremony of Baptism the congregation is asked to accept its responsibility towards the infants to be baptized through intercession and witness.
  3. Parents who have difficulty in finding a suitable godparent, may request a member of the congregation to act as a stand-by godparent.
  4. Specific Sunday Services should be utilized to remind congregational members of their Baptism. (e.g. Quasimodogeniti Sunday or the 6th Sunday after Trinity).
  5. Members should be encouraged to commemorate their own day of Baptism, also by way of congregational activities.
  6. Congregational members who wish to renew their confirmation vow to Christ as Lord of their Life by confirming their Baptism as a gift from God, should be granted the possibility of doing so in a Sunday Service. Such a public confirmation of faith, which may be repeated, should be encouraged in a suitable manner.
  7. An agenda for such a Sunday Service could be drafted or, if already in existence, should be made available to others.

Georg Scriba according to German original see NT4734/96 drl. hh6. 70

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