Results 1 - 4 of 4
|
|
|||||
Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | whole household rejoiced? even kids? | Acts 2:38 | reilly1041 | 81676 | ||
I know this is dredging up an old posting, but I have a question about using the "whole household" argument of infant baptism. In Acts 16, the jailer and his whole household were baptized. But, then in vs. 34, it states that the whole household rejoiced because they believed in the God (NLT). Doesn't that indicate that infants and small children were excluded because an infant couldn't rejoice in his believing? stephanie |
||||||
2 | whole household rejoiced? even kids? | Acts 2:38 | Emmaus | 81684 | ||
Stephanie, I suspect that when you were baptized as an infant "the whole household rejoiced becaused they believed in God" and they were going to raise you in the faith and you would believe too, at least until such time as you rejected it or committed yourself day by day, week by week, year by year. You may recall that every Sunday at Mass you have the opourtunity to reaffirm your faith in the Creed and in the Communion prayers. Every Easter you renew the baptismal vows which your parents made for you as an infant. At some point in adult life one either does it in good faith or bad faith or declines to renew their vows. Next time you go to Mass focus on what is being said. They are not supposed to be empty words. Sometimes when we stop paying attention to things that become common place for us and they loose their power and impact. Prayers, like cursing, can become a habit that we give no thought to whatsoever. That is not the fault of what is being said but the person who is doing the saying. Empty prayers and are almost akin to saying God's name in vain. Did you know that almost every sentence of the Mass is rooted in scripture either by direct quote, paraphrase or allusion? And I am not even including the four readings, OT, Psalm, Epistle and Gospel in every Sunday Mass. In the three year cycle of daily and Sunday readings, 80 percent of the entire Bible is read. Now there is food for thought! Sorry for drifting a little off your stated question but one train of thought led to another. Emmaus |
||||||
3 | whole household rejoiced? even kids? | Acts 2:38 | reilly1041 | 81721 | ||
Emmaus, I knew I could count on you to have a good answer to my question! Yes, I know my whole household rejoiced as my two children were baptized as infants. I often picture the writers of the books of the Bible to be sitting in heaven, thinking, "Wow, these people are dissecting our every word!! I was writing a letter for goodness sake!!". I know, I know, that letter was divinely inspired... Yes, I absolutely agree with you re: the renewal of the baptismal vows at Easter Mass and renewal of your beliefs each Sunday w/the creeds. It is interesting, since I have become a Bible studier and had what I believe is a born-again experience, I have truly started listening to every little thing at Mass, and it is really beautiful. It is easy not to really listen, however, since one can certainly drift off while still reciting the prayers. I know that an awful lot of the Bible is covered throughout the 3-yr cycle, but it still seems to me that as I read it in the Bible, it seems totally new to me. I think it just reads very differently when you read an entire book, instead of having a brief excerpt at Mass. Don't you agree? In fact, several times, I have sent verses to my priest asking why we don't ever hear it in church, and he always finds it in the cycle somewhere. Or perhaps, it's the 2nd reading when the correlating gospel is something that will definitely be the topic of the homily. Maybe for me, I retain better when I am personally reading as opposed to being read to. I don't think I can be convinced that attending Mass weekly and listening even intently will give one the same sense of the Bible as actually reading it. Anyway, thanks for your input on the household thing. Stephanie |
||||||
4 | whole household rejoiced? even kids? | Acts 2:38 | Emmaus | 81722 | ||
Stephanie, I too am familiar with the "born again" experience in a Catholic context. Catholic spiritual writers through the centuries call it a conversion or second conversion experience. It is the essence of an adult deepening and maturing in the faith, which sadly many seem not to reach although it is difficult to speculate about those we do not know intimately. You will see these conversion or spiritual awakening stories again and again in the lives of the saints. The lectionary readings do follow a distinct pattern with a specific goal in mind. The three years cover in order Matthew, Mark and Luke, with John read every years at various times but especially during Lent, Holy week and the Easter season. Generally speaking, during most of the cycles, on Sundays you will find a study in typology where the Old Testament reading and the Psalm are tied together thematically with the Gospel reading, often showing foreshadowings of events in Christ's life or characteristics of Christ prefigured in Old Testament characters. The epsitles are read sequentially and may or may not be related to the Gospel theme. In the Easter season a reading from Acts often takes the place of one of the other readings. You are correct that we do get a better big picture and sense of continuity reading entire books and the Church encourages that kind of devotional and prayer reading of scripture at home. Below are two documents encouraging the study of scripture. The first is the document on Scripure produced by the Second Vatican Council in the 1960's, which is found in the front od many catholic Bibles. The other was a papal Encylcial written in 1943. You may find them interesting. Have a blessed celebration of the Resurrection of the Lord. Chirst is risen, Alleluia! He is risen indeed, Alleluia! http://www.ewtn.com/library/COUNCILS/V2REVEL.HTM http://www.ewtn.com/library/ENCYC/P12DIVIN.HTM Emmaus |
||||||