"D. Stussy" <kd6lvw@bde-arc.ampr.org> wrote in message news:<Pine.LNX.4.44.0203112123030.23113-100000@exp.bde-arc.ampr.org>... > On 10 Mar 2002, Cloy Tobola wrote: > >Although the following items are from an old thread, I just came > >across it and some clarifications are in order. I'd also like to > >continue this discussion, as I think it's imporant. > > > >The thread began discussing the fact that the French government was > >[supposedly] limiting access to some records because they objected to > >Mormon church's practice of performing a baptism ceremony on behalf of > >people (including non-Mormons) after they had died. > > <snip> > > How is this a "REAL Baptism?" Are they digging up corpses? This is a baptism by proxy, or a vicarious baptism. A living person is baptized on behalf of the dead person. > From the religious point of view, don't they only have any "right" to do this > ONLY if the deceased was a Mormon? No. They vicariously baptize non-Mormons; and that's exactly the issue. > Otherwise, I see this as religious > infringement upon the deceased which could easily be an offense against the > descendants of that deceased. That's one way to look at it. Mormons would likely counter by saying that this simply gives non-Mormons the OPTION of accepting or rejecting Mormon beliefs in the afterlife. The problem with this is that it smacks of syncretism -- the attempt to embrace several religous traditions, often to ensure that you've "got your bases covered." Kind of like the person who wears a crucifix, an ahnk, a Buddah and a Star of David around his neck to ensure that if he gets run over by a bus maybe one of them will get him into heaven. Unfortunately, "playing the field" is considered wrong in many religions. Another position held my non-Mormons is that they don't believe it accomplishes anything, so they don't care. On a practical level, the issue is respecting the views of all people -- including those who object to this practice. In my own experience, I've run into people who hesitate to provide genealogy information for fear that it will be used to baptize them into a faith they disagree with. I'm not sure how to deal with that issue.... Excelsior! -Cloy