Baptism on the 8th Day?

[Doom]

I was just reading an article by a Reformed author on baptism and the author claimed that in Catholicism "babies are baptized on the 8th day after being born to make it similar to circumcision"



Where did this "8th day" stuff come from? Given that infant baptisms are usually done during Sunday Mass, wouldn't this imply that Catholics are somehow always born on Sunday? How could we possibly arrange that?

Is this "8th day" thing actually a custom anywhere? Usually, as long as the infant is in good health and not in danger of dying suddenly dying baptism seems to be done somewhere between 1 and 3 months, the later ones probably mainly due to bureaucratic hurdles that need to be overcome to get it done during Mass.

I know I was baptized only a few hours after being born but that was because I was born prematurely and the doctors didn't think I would live very long. I guess I proved them wrong.

Did this author just completely make this up? I think he did.

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

I've never heard of it before. At a random guess, it might be associated with the (sadly neglected) responsibility of parents to have their children baptized soon after birth instead of waiting until all the people can be there for the party afterwards.

[Doom]

Sometime in the first month seems like a reasonable time, that gives time for the parents to get all the sponsors and so forth lined up and for the parish to arrange everything for the baptism during Mass. If both parents are regular churchgoers known to the priest beforehand it probably doesn't usually take long to arrange it. But if parents who have never previously darkened the door of a church suddenly walk in and ask for the child to be baptized, that is probably when it takes longer to arrange probably because the priest is wondering if the child will actually be raised in the faith or if this will be the only time in the child's life where he will enter the doors of a church.

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

In Ye Olde Dayyes, that scenario didn't happen much. It does more now

[Doom]

So you agree this Reformed author probably made this up? It was part of an extended attack on the doctrine of baptismal generation. Reformed theologians hold to the very bizarre teaching that baptism does nothing, is not necessary for salvation, but should still be done because Jesus said so.

I think I'll put this claim in the same category as the weird argument I once encountered that Catholics belief that you have to receive all 7 sacraments to be saved (I feel sorry for all the women who are going to hell because they cannot be ordained as priests ).

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

I don't know that he made it up, but at best he definitely misunderstood something badly.

[Doom]

He asserts that Catholics believe baptism has to be done on the 8th day, which I knew was nonsense as it would be impossible to fulfill if you wanted it to be done in a church, but I am wondering if there is some custom in some Catholic country that he had heard about but exaggerated

[peregrinator]

https://www.clerus.org/bibliaclerusonli ... w2.htm#brm

1082 Fortieth, that children can be baptized before the eighth day and that baptism cannot be by any liquid other than pure water.

That is, it was an error of the Armenians (or was believed to be an error held by them) that one had to wait until the 8th day to baptize.

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

I bet he read that and didn't realize it was a condemned proposition.

[Doom]

But even then, saying you can't baptize before the 8th day (guess that leaves all infants who die before then unbaptized) and saying you MUST baptize on exactly the 8th day

[peregrinator]

But even then, saying you can't baptize before the 8th day (guess that leaves all infants who die before then unbaptized) and saying you MUST baptize on exactly the 8th day

I believe that was the exact error that this was intended to address.

[anawim]

I read that they did it on the 8th. day in the very early church, but was quickly abandoned for practical reasons.