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More than 100 students baptized without parents’ permission at North Carolina school

Should children decide on their own if the get baptized

  • yes

    Votes: 18 64.3%
  • no

    Votes: 10 35.7%

  • Total voters
    28

We Never Know

No Slack
Since its been discussed on a few threads to what choices/decisions children should be able to make for themselves,,, should they be able to make this decision?

"FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WGHP) — A North Carolina school apologized after baptizing more than 100 children without their parent’s permission, according to the Fayetteville Observer.

Northwood Temple Academy, a private Christian school in Fayetteville, posted on Facebook on Thursday, “I feel it in my bones, You’re about to move! Today we had over 100 middle and high school students spontaneously declare their faith and get baptized today. We will have more pictures of these powerful moments posted over the next couple of days!”

That morning, three students had their scheduled baptisms at the school as part of Spiritual Emphasis Week. The offer was then extended to other students who had not been scheduled. More than 100 students in total were baptized.

Renee McLamb, the head of the school, sent families a letter to explain.

“The Spirit of the Lord moved and the invitation to accept the Lord and be baptized was given and the students just began to respond to the presence of the Lord,” McLamb said in the letter, which was obtained by the Observer.

The school says it typically notifies and invites parents to be present for any baptisms that happen on campus, and “it was not the intention of any faculty member to do anything behind a parent’s back or in any kind of secret way.”

“I do understand that parents would desire to be a part of something so wonderful happening in the lives of their children, and so I apologize that we did not take that into consideration in that moment,” McLamb said. “I pray that at the end of the day we will all rejoice because God truly did a work in the lives of our students.”

McLamb told the paper that the school should have given students a chance to contact parents and ask permission. “We were not expecting such an overwhelming response to the message that was spoken, but as a mother I certainly can empathize with why some parents were upset,” she said.

McLamb said that most of the parents that contacted her were glad, but some were unhappy with the move. Some of the children had already been baptized, and at least one family was concerned that a second baptism could undo the first."

More than 100 students baptized without parents’ permission at North Carolina school | WGN-TV
 

lewisnotmiller

Grand Hat
Staff member
Premium Member
I'm finding the poll question hard.
If my kids wanted to be baptised, and understood the purpose behind it, etc, they'd be allowed. However, I would never decide to baptise them. So in my eyes, that means 'Yes, kids can decide to get baptised'.

But the caveats are important. The child needs to understand what the decision they are making pertains to. They should be free of peer pressure, and perhaps have a cooling off period (not meaning a mandated, contractual thing...just wait a month and see if you still want to do it. Often important to do with kids on all sorts of choices, like 'Hey, I want to take up German folk dancing, can you buy me $1000 worth of costumes?' 'Yeah, let's sit on this for a few weeks and see if you still want to do it...')

And the parents should absolutely know ahead of time. The school and church see this as a big thing, yet DON'T tell the parents? I get alerts from the school for all sorts of minor crap I could care less about, but something as 'important' as baptism is done without permission? Yuck. Seems sneaky, and unwarranted.
 

VoidCat

Pronouns: he/him/they/them
Of course it's my ****ing state. Of course it is. I'll be banned tommorrow tho so I won't be able to discuss long on the topic but I'd be pissed. In such a large environment a kid could feel peer pressure they should be asked alone before hand given at least a few weeks prior to think on it and the parents should be notified first. They should be allowed to make the decision on their own but they need to be sure it's something they understand and believe in for sure and aint doing for peer pressure
 

JustGeorge

Not As Much Fun As I Look
Staff member
Premium Member
Of course it's my ****ing state. Of course it is. I'll be banned tommorrow tho so I won't be able to discuss long on the topic but I'd be pissed. In such a large environment a kid could feel peer pressure they should be asked alone before hand given at least a few weeks prior to think on it and the parents should be notified first. They should be allowed to make the decision on their own but they need to be sure it's something they understand and believe in for sure and aint doing for peer pressure

My husband actually lived in this place... He calls it a war zone. Got the tar beat out of him on almost a daily basis as a kid.

He says this is crazy even by the standards he remembers.
 

F1fan

Veteran Member
I think that if a child "wants" to be baptized then the child has already been subjected to religious indoctrination. This is how religion gets assed on to new generations, it's not a choice as it seems to be. Children don't have the cognitive development to make rational judgments about complex ideas. Adults know they are vulnerable and indoctrinate them. I find this borders on child abuse.
 

VoidCat

Pronouns: he/him/they/them
My husband actually lived in this place... He calls it a war zone. Got the tar beat out of him on almost a daily basis as a kid.

He says this is crazy even by the standards he remembers.
Fayetteville can be rough. I don't know about that school but I lived in Fayetteville for a little while as a kid. It's ok in some areas but other places...its bad.

In the area over i was in for a year I watched a few drug deals right in front of me happen. One shooting...among other things
 

Exaltist Ethan

Bridging the Gap Between Believers and Skeptics
You shouldn't be baptized until you are a believer. You cannot be a believer until you reach adulthood. It's like the age of consent. You cannot consent to sex until you are an adult. And you cannot consent to baptism until you are an adult too. This story is ridiculous.
 

Aštra’el

Aštara, Blade of Aštoreth
I think that if a child "wants" to be baptized then the child has already been subjected to religious indoctrination…

…Children don't have the cognitive development to make rational judgments about complex ideas. Adults know they are vulnerable and indoctrinate them. I find this borders on child abuse.

If I were to replace three words…

“I think that if a child "wants" to be __transgender__ then the child has __likely__ been subjected to __radical leftist__ indoctrination. Children don't have the cognitive development to make rational judgments about complex ideas. Adults know they are vulnerable and indoctrinate them. I find this borders on child abuse.”

…then suddenly you are Socrates.
 

Debater Slayer

Vipassana
Staff member
Premium Member
I find the poll question difficult, because while I'm not particularly fond of the idea of baptizing children against their will, I also don't believe that children can give consent to such things. For them to be able to consent to baptism, they would need to be able to comprehend the various aspects of the associated religious belief, what it entailed, and what baptism stood for.
 

The Hammer

[REDACTED]
Premium Member
I find the poll question difficult, because while I'm not particularly fond of the idea of baptizing children against their will, I also don't believe that children can give consent to such things. For them to be able to consent to baptism, they would need to be able to comprehend the various aspects of the associated religious belief, what it entailed, and what baptism stood for.


Most adults can't even do that.
 

Debater Slayer

Vipassana
Staff member
Premium Member
If I were to replace three words…

“I think that if a child "wants" to be __transgender__ then the child has __likely__ been subjected to __radical leftist__ indoctrination. Children don't have the cognitive development to make rational judgments about complex ideas. Adults know they are vulnerable and indoctrinate them. I find this borders on child abuse.”

…then suddenly you are Socrates.

Unlike baptism, gender dysphoria is a medical condition that requires professional treatment. So while your attempt to inject a far-right bugbear into the discussion may superficially appear to be relevant, it's an entirely different scenario when a child is diagnosed with gender dysphoria by multiple professionals and genuinely needs medical help.
 

Evangelicalhumanist

"Truth" isn't a thing...
Premium Member
Baptism symbolizes, at its most basic, membership in the church. I personally like to choose my own memberships -- I don't wish to have somebody else decide to enrol me as a member of the Boy Scouts, the Nazi Party, Phi Beta Kappa, or any other particular club. That is for ME to decide.
 

Brian2

Veteran Member
Parents should have been contacted imo.
This also goes for parents being contacted and having input into whether their children start gender transfer therapy.
 

Brian2

Veteran Member
Unlike baptism, gender dysphoria is a medical condition that requires professional treatment. So while your attempt to inject a far-right bugbear into the discussion may superficially appear to be relevant, it's an entirely different scenario when a child is diagnosed with gender dysphoria by multiple professionals and genuinely needs medical help.

Why is it a far-right bugbear for parents to want the right to have a say in whether their children start gender transfer therapy or not?
 

Debater Slayer

Vipassana
Staff member
Premium Member
Why is it a far-right bugbear for parents to want the right to have a say in whether their children start gender transfer therapy or not?

The far-right bugbear is the fixation on transgender therapy and categorical dismissal thereof.

Gender therapy for children is quite a complex topic. My opinion, in a nutshell, is that children who report severe discomfort in their bodies due to gender identity should be evaluated by multiple professionals, who would in turn inform the parents of the condition (or lack thereof) in detail after evaluating it.

I'm not for readily pushing children into irreversible and life-changing medical procedures, but I'm also not for taking away the option for children to have the necessary treatment if professionals determine that they need it. This applies to any medical condition requiring drastic intervention, not just trans-related therapy.
 
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