infant baptism

Wings of an Altarpiece
c. 1620
Oil on panel, 270 x 85 cm (each)
O.-L. Vrouwekathedraal, Antwerp
Other works by the artist...

note at the outset: this is a thread for those to participate who believe in the baptizing of infants. i do not wish for this to get tangential in that arguments ensue against same at the outset, based on your belief system. thanks.

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last night at RCIA, the topic was Baptism. we have two adults in our class that will be baptized at the Easter vigil and it is always a thrill to have baptism as part of the liturgy.

the discussion of infant baptism came up and Deacon said that the Church (or maybe the diocese? but i do not know how the diocese cannot move under its own authority without authorization from the Church...) may, in the future, deny baptism if the parents of the infant/child are not fully active in the Church. if they do not participate in the Church by at least attending Mass faithfully, it was said that baptism will not be afforded to the infants. Deacon wholeheartedly agreed with this stance, as did the other presenters. i basically sat there in disbelief.

i am the most vocal dissenter in my group! after i listened to all of their opinions, i said that i believe the single-most wonderful thing my parents ever did for me was have me baptized! my sister and i were the only ones in our family of five and are now the only ones who still attend church (or Mass, in my case) faithfully. my brothers are coming along, but as a child and young teen growing up, i knew in my heart of hearts that no matter what, Jesus loved me. there is such a significant thing that happens when you are baptized: it is indellible, it is inherent, and it is deep - the Holy Spirit enters in and leaves His holy signature on your heart. you are claimed as His and to me, that is no small thing.

my parents were not faithful Catholics at the time i was baptized. they may have had good intentions to go (please do not use the cliche about "the road to hell..." thanks), but we never attended Mass and never went to church growing up - i had friends who were Methodist and we went to youth group and eventually Sunday school and church with them. it was a place to drop us off, so to speak. i believe by being sealed with the Holy Spirit as an infant, both my sister and i chose a path of righteousness at an early age and if that were not afforded to me......oh, if you only knew what kind of a rebel i was!!......things could have ended up very differently in my life -- there is something tremendous to be said about grace.

by the end of my dissent, it was stated that i gave the Deacon and my fellow presenters something to think about, that they no longer felt their stance was as *cut and dried* -- being as one of the presenters is a lawyer -- 'nuff said from me :)

what do you think? do you think if the parents are not practicing Catholics they should be denied the right to have their baby baptized, or do you feel that because their intentions are good at the time of the baby's/child's baptism, that the baptism should move forward and reliance placed on the grace of God to carry that child's faith (and perhaps ultimately, its parents') to fruition?