Child dedication
A child dedication or baby presentation is an act of consecration of children to God practiced in
Child dedication is practiced by organisations, such as the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, in which parents promise to help their child live a life free from alcohol and other drugs.[3]
Christianity
Origin
The child's presentation has its origin in the
History
Even though the Christian Church had not practiced child dedication for 15 centuries from its inception, in 1523, the
Form
The form of the presentations may vary by church. The ceremony is usually performed before or after the
Practice by denomination
Baptist Churches
Many
Methodist Churches
Many Methodist denominations, such as the
Woman's Christian Temperance Union
The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) conducts a White Ribbon Recruit (WRR) ceremony, in which babies are dedicated to the cause of temperance through a white ribbon being tied to their wrists, with their adult sponsors pledging to help the child live a life free from alcohol and other drugs.[3]
See also
References
- ISBN 978-1-5381-2252-5.
However, in response to parental requests to recognize the value of children among the people of God in parallel with paedobaptist churches, some Baptists will create a child dedication service to receive a child into the nurture of a congregation following the time of birth. Parents typically would be asked to make committments to raise the child "in the fear and nurture of the Lord."
- ^ ISBN 978-1-5381-2252-5.
- ^ a b Rollins, Christin Eleanor (2005). Have You Heard The Tramping of the New Crusade?: Organizational Survival and the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. University of Georgia. p. 52.
- ^ Exodus 13:2 (NIV), [1], "Consecration of the Firstborn", Accessed May 2019
- ^ 1 Samuel 1:20-28
- ^ a b c Don S. Browning, Bonnie J. Miller-McLemore, Children and Childhood in American Religions, Rutgers University Press, USA, 2009, p. 88
- ^ Luke 2:22.
- ^ Luke 18:16.
- ^ Kirk R. MacGregor, A Central European Synthesis of Radical and Magisterial Reform, University Press of America, USA, 2006, p. 144
- ^ Ronald F. Youngblood, Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary: New and Enhanced Edition, Thomas Nelson Inc, USA, 2014, p. 142
- ^ a b "Baptism and Dedication". Free Methodist Church. 3 December 2008.
When they baptize babies, pastors should make sure that their prayers include clear requests that God will bring the children to a personal faith that "owns" what the parents are promising at a time when the children (who "belong" from day one) cannot act for themselves. And when they dedicate children, pastors should make sure that their prayers include clear gratitude to God for the fact that he is already at work in the life of that child, who already "belongs" in the Christian community. Here's what must be stressed: whether at the time of baptism (in the adult baptism tradition) or at the time of confirmation when the vows made earlier by the parents are personally "owned" (in the infant baptism tradition), it is faith in Jesus (dependent trust, not mere cognitive affirmation) that is crucial. Paul goes so far as to say that without faith and obedience, the old rite of circumcision has no value (Romans 2:25). The same is true of baptism. With either rite, clear evangelistic follow-through is crucial.
- ^ a b The Discipline of the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection (Original Allegheny Conference). Salem: Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection. 2014. pp. 140–146.
- ^ a b David Blankenhorn, The Faith Factor in Fatherhood: Renewing the Sacred Vocation of Fathering, Lexington Books, USA, 1999, p. 103
- ^ John H. Y. Briggs, the Dictionarys of European Baptist Life and Thought, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2009, p. 81
- ^ Stephen R. Holmes, Baptist Theology, T&T Clark, UK, 2012, p. 145