Can i perform a baptism

But what about the person who does the baptizing? Some churches require that a person have some special qualifications before they can perform a baptism. What does the Bible say about who may or may not baptize another person? Occasionally the Bible tells us that people were baptized by the Christians who taught them the truth Acts But in most cases we are not even told who actually did the baptizing Acts ; ; ; ; ; We are simply told that the people were baptized.

The important thing was obeying God in baptism, not who performed the act. In at least two passages we are expressly told that the man who did the teaching was not the one who did the baptizing. See John ,2. Note especially 1 Corinthians , where Paul says clearly that he generally did not do the actually baptizing, even for the people whom he taught.

Baptism is a covenant of grace and the promise of God's forgiveness, applied personally. A person baptized in the Catholic Church also receives a Christian name. Find an area in the home that is suitable for the baptism. Most adults are too large to be emerged into a bathroom, and there is not enough room to share the moment with others. A pool or outdoor Jacuzzi may be used for emerging.

If being baptized by sprinkling water on the head and receiving a blessing from the priest, any room in the home would be suitable.

Make it a large affair, by baptizing several people on the same day. Choose a person to perform the baptism. In the Catholic Church, only an ordained priest is eligible to perform the sacrament. Some churches state that duly appointed ministers have the authority to perform it. Other churches conclude it does not matter who performs it as long as it is being performed scripturally.

In other words, Catholic baptisms should not take place at home, but in a Catholic church, unless it is a "case of necessity" or a "grave cause. In general, when the Catholic Church refers to a "case of necessity" regarding the circumstances in which a sacrament is administered, the Church means that the person who is to receive the sacrament is in danger of dying. So, for instance, an adult undergoing hospice care at home who desires to be baptized before he dies could be licitly baptized at home by his parish priest.

Or a child who was born with a congenital defect that will not allow her to live long outside of the womb could be licitly baptized at a hospital. A "grave cause," on the other hand, may refer to circumstances that are less than life-threatening but might make it very hard, or even impossible, to bring the person seeking baptism to his parish church—for instance, a severe physical handicap, old age, or severe illness.

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