Church of England agonises over asylum seekers’ bogus conversions row
London, UK Reuters The Church of England will not adopt a set of cast-iron criteria when deciding whether to baptise asylum seekers as it was impossible to see into someone’s heart, a bishop said on Tuesday amid a row over fake conversions to Christianity. The centuries-old church launched a review into its advice to clergy […]
Transsexuals can be baptised Catholic, serve as godparents, Vatican says
Vatican CityReuters Transsexuals can be godparents at Roman Catholic baptisms, witnesses at religious weddings and receive baptism themselves, the Vatican’s doctrinal office said on Wednesday, responding to questions from a bishop. The department, known as the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith, was vague however, in response to a question of whether a same-sex […]
The Long Read: The River Jordan – Rich in holiness, poor in water
MARIAM FAM, of Associated Press, reports on concerns over the decline of the river in which Jesus was baptised…
Greek Church protests US baptism for celebrity same-sex parents
Athens, GreeceAP Greece’s Orthodox Church says it will send a letter of protest to the archbishop who heads the church in the United States after he baptised the children of celebrity fashion designer Peter Dundas and his partner, Evangelo Bousis. Archbishop Elpidophoros of America presided at the 9th July ceremony near Athens while in Greece […]
Postcards: Virtual bathtub baptisms help Maryland megachurch gain online members during pandemic
ADELLE M BANKS, of Religion News Service, reports on how some churches have embraced the idea of virtual baptisms…
First German Catholic diocese allows women to perform baptisms
Berlin, GermanyAP The Roman Catholic Diocese of Essen has become the first in Germany to allow women to perform baptisms, citing a lack of priests. The diocese said in a statement Monday that Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck tasked 18 lay ministers – 17 of them women – with conferring the sacrament of admission into the Church […]
Like in Arizona, botched baptisms roiled Michigan church
Detroit, Michigan USAP One word caught the ear of a young priest a few years ago when his father shared a video of his 1990 baptism at a suburban Detroit church. “Wait,” Rev Matthew Hood recalled thinking. “Something doesn’t seem right here.” Indeed, an error by a deacon who said “We baptise” instead of “I […]