To Baptize or Not to Baptize, That is the Question

In the Catholic church, you are taught that Baptism is the sacrament that saves a child from purgatory. My Mom tells a story of how the Nuns in the hospital instructed them to sprinkle water on infants who were not baptized and at risk of death, just in case a priest could not be called in time. My father says that the Baptists believe that you should not be baptized until you are an adult as Jesus and John the Baptist never baptized children. Regardless of your religious affiliation, Baptism is a right of passage and a statement of your faith and membership into a particular church. So what is a parent to do if he/she has no interest in joining or participating in a particular church?

I have spent the past six years really searching for what I believe and how I want to live my life. This search has not led me to the door of any church even though I have including reading of various church doctrines in my attempt to discover my faith. Bill Maher once scoffed at people who say that they are not religious but spiritual, and I have thought about that statement for quite a while during this journey. What does it mean to be spiritual or faithful? What am I faithful to? What spirits do I believe in if any? I have come to a point where I cannot say what I believe or express how I feel inside. All I can say is that I "am," and I am trying every day to "be."

Last night, I read a passage from my daily meditations by Anthony DeMello that stated:
"Why do you travel so little?" a reporter asked.
"To look into the face of just one person or thing every day of the year and never fail to find something new in it-that is a greater adventure by far than any travel canoffer," said the Master
Every time I look into my son's face I see something new, something amazing, something unexpressable. I am in awe that he is here, that I had a major part in bringing him into this world, and that the effort of creating his life was a partnership with the person with whom I share all of my hopes and dreams.

Baptism is a ritual focused on the child, but I believe that it is we that need the baptism and not the child. The baby is perfect inside and out. The baby sees the world with fresh and awestruck eyes. It is we who are trying to get back to that awareness, that purity, that point where we are washed of our impurities. Maybe instead of baptisizig the baby, we should wash away our sins in an attempt to be more like the child who has just entered the world.