Q: My wife has four nieces who have
a tough time dealing with what they
say was a Roman Catholic custom lasting
into the 1950s.
They are disturbed that their saintly
mother was never allowed to attend their
Baptisms, all occurring in the 1950s. One
of them says that they "pound the pews
in rage" when they witness Baptisms today.
I have tried to find the answer online
but get only so far. I have read about such
terms as churching and unclean. One niece
even says that her mother was prohibited
from receiving Holy Communion until she
was churched.
Their mother, my sister-in-law, was as
close to sainthood as anyone I know, and
I would certainly like to hear an answer.
Was this simply the policy of their pastor
then? I will be most grateful for any light
you can shed on this subject.
A: I am sorry for your nieces' continuing
anger about this matter.
It is true that in the past mothers were
often not present at a child's Baptism.
Two factors explain this: 1) There was
a concern that a newborn child be baptized
as soon as possible to avoid any
possibility of dying without benefit of
Baptism, and 2) Medical care then
available often required extended bed
rest for mothers immediately before
and following a birth. Many more
women died in childbirth than is the
case today.
The concern for baptizing a child
promptly was given priority over a
mother's presence at the Baptism. That
is still true in emergency situations.
The first Baptism I performed was
in a neonatal unit of a non-Catholic
hospital. As a first-year theology student
in 1971, I was the Saturday night
chaplain in the emergency room and,
at the family's request, was called to
baptize a newborn whose future was
very uncertain. That Baptism was formally
acknowledged during a liturgical
ceremony several weeks later—with
both parents present. Neither father
nor mother had been present when
their child was baptized in the neonatal
unit.
Regarding a prohibition of receiving
Holy Communion before a new mother
had been churched, I consulted three
priests ordained in the 1950s; they confirmed
that there was no universal law
requiring this blessing before a new
mother could receive Holy Communion.
In some places, there was indeed a
special blessing for women who had
recently given birth, based on the Old
Testament custom of doing so 40 days
after a child was born (see Leviticus
12:1-8). This is the practice that
brought Mary, Joseph and Jesus to the
Temple in Jerusalem (Luke 2:22-38) and
which our liturgy acknowledges on
February 2 as the Presentation of Our
Lord.
In the 20th century, this custom was
strong within certain ethnic groups,
but it was not a universal requirement.
I was baptized as an infant and was a
teenager in the 1960s before I heard
of this custom.
The Rite of Baptism for Children,
revised and approved in 1969, presumes
that a mother is present when
her child is baptized. For example, both
the mother and father are asked what
name they have given the child, they
are asked if they are accepting the
responsibility of training this child in
the practice of the faith, and they trace
a cross on the child's forehead.
Before the renunciation of sin and
profession of faith, the celebrant tells
the parents: "You must make it your
constant care to bring him (her) up
in the practice of the faith. See that
the divine life which God gives him
(her) is kept safe from the poison of
sin, to grow always stronger in his (her)
heart.
"If your faith makes you ready to
accept this responsibility, renew now
the vows of your own Baptism. Reject
sin; profess your faith in Christ Jesus.
This is the faith of the Church. This is
the faith in which these children are
about to be baptized."
Parents are addressed when a candle
is lit from the paschal candle and presented
to them. The special blessing
for mothers reads: "God the Father,
through his Son, the Virgin Mary's
child, has brought joy to all Christian
mothers, as they see the hope of eternal life shine on their children. May he
bless the mother of this child. She now
thanks God for the gift of her child.
May she be one with him (her) in
thanking [God] for ever in heaven, in
Christ Jesus our Lord."
Your sister-in-law clearly passed on
her faith to her four daughters. While
their mother's absence at their Baptisms
was regrettable in view of today's
practice, should they allow that fact to
cancel out their mother's diligence at
passing on her faith in Jesus, the same
faith celebrated in the Sacrament of
Baptism? They and the rest of the
Church owe each newly baptized child
a positive witness of what faith in Jesus
means.
Q: Does purgatory really exist? If so,
who goes there and when? Is it for
punishment due to sins that you already
confessed? Is it for mortal sins that you did
not confess? For venial sins?
A: Yes, purgatory exists. It is more
a process of cleansing and
preparation to enjoy the eternal banquet
than a place of suffering. The Catechism
of the Catholic Church teaches:
"All who die in God's grace and friendship,
but still imperfectly purified, are
indeed assured of their eternal salvation;
but after death they undergo
purification, so as to achieve the holiness
necessary to enter the joy of
heaven" (#1030).
The Catechism then continues: "The
Church gives the name purgatory to this
final purification of the elect, which is
entirely different from the punishment
of the damned. The Church formulated
her doctrine of faith on purgatory especially
at the Councils of Florence and
Trent" (#1031).
Purgatory is linked to the idea of
temporal punishment due to sin. Any
sin continues to have negative consequences
even after it is confessed and
forgiven. If I murdered someone and
was truly sorry before God, I could be
forgiven, but my sorrow would not
bring that person back to life.
Sin has a life of its own, and that is
one of life's hardest lessons. Once I
commit a sin, it is no longer under my
control. Unconfessed venial sins are
cleansed in purgatory, which is not a
scaled-down version of hell.
I could die having lived a good life
but still having a moral blind spot or
two. For example, if I couldn't stand
people from Australia (not true!), I
would need some purification before I
would be ready for the eternal banquet
where someone might greet me with
"G'day, mate!"
The Church does not understand
purgatory as an opportunity to repent
of mortal sins. Hell is still possible,
though only God knows how many
people may be there.
Father Leonard Foley, O.F.M., former
editor of this publication, chose to end
his classic book, Believing in Jesus: A
Popular Overview of the Catholic Faith,
with this Postscript: "A discussion of
purgatory may seem a wry way to end
a book on our life in Christ. But, as we
saw, p45rgatory rests on a big if. There
must be a period or process of purification
if we need to be purified. It is
possible that some persons are completely
purified in this life.
"So the present is purgatory too—adjective and noun. Being saved is
being cleansed, liberated, raised up to
the life of Jesus daily. Purification is
the daily dying to whatever is selfish,
untrue, un-Christlike, and daily being
raised by him to a deeper sharing in his
own life.
"We are called to be like persons in
purgatory in one crucial way: We are
trying to learn to say the last words of
the Bible as they say them, with bursting
desire. To say them with no lingering
strains of selfishness, with no
lack of trust, with our whole heart and
soul, mind and strength: Come, Lord
Jesus! (Revelation 22:20)."
Q: At a regularly televised Mass, gifts are not brought up at the
Offertory, the sign of peace is not given and Holy Communion
is not offered from the cup. Do they have the right to omit these
practices?
A: Because gifts should not be present on the altar at the start
of Mass, they must be brought there eventually. Although a
server may bring them from a credence table, an offertory procession
is presumed by Article 140 of the General Instruction of the Roman
Missal. People can be invited to exchange the sign of peace (#154). Communion
from the cup may or may not be offered (#160), perhaps because
of time constraints. The local bishop of the place where a televised Mass
is celebrated may issue additional instructions for such Masses.
If you have a question for Father Pat, please submit it here.
Include your street address for personal replies enclosing a stamped, self-addressed envelope, please. Some answer material must be
mailed since it is not available in digital form. You can still send questions to: Ask a Franciscan, 28 W. Liberty Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202.
|
Still Angry About Mother's Absence
at Their Baptisms
