This practice is beyond disgusting. I have been to Christian Baptisms and a baby usually cries because water gets in their eyes. That's about all the pain they feel. I can't even imagine the pain that little baby must feel. I agree that this must stop and must be spread so that others know. I am sure most people don't even realize what goes on. These are sick individuals that participated in this abuse. Yes it is abuse. These rituals are usually practiced by and in Hasidic communities.
I have been to Christian Baptisms and a baby usually cries because water gets in their eyes. That's about all the pain they feel.
What you describe is clearly child abuse, and I am completely opposed to it. If what you're doing makes a child feel pain, and you're doing it for your religious beliefs, then you're abusing your child--not bestowing upon them some kind of magical religious benefit. Water getting into the child's eyes is traumatic for them and a betrayal of their trust in their parents to keep them safe.
Also, sometimes baptism is done in an even more abusive way, which is nothing short of torture. Here is a video of such baptism in Tbilisi, Georgia, in which the Christian Orthodox priest submerges the child's head in water (warning: child abuse). You can clearly see the panic on the victims' faces. Notice the adults standing around snickering uncomfortably, too afraid to stop the "holy ritual". I have no doubt that these children will suffer long-term psychological harm as a result of this abuse.
It's not pain to get a little water in the face. It is a minimal sprinkling not a gush of drowning water. If there is any torture involved I have never seen it. The last one I went to the priest wet his thumb with Holy Water and made the sign of the cross on the baby's forehead.
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carmencita ago
This practice is beyond disgusting. I have been to Christian Baptisms and a baby usually cries because water gets in their eyes. That's about all the pain they feel. I can't even imagine the pain that little baby must feel. I agree that this must stop and must be spread so that others know. I am sure most people don't even realize what goes on. These are sick individuals that participated in this abuse. Yes it is abuse. These rituals are usually practiced by and in Hasidic communities.
LukeArtanis ago
What you describe is clearly child abuse, and I am completely opposed to it. If what you're doing makes a child feel pain, and you're doing it for your religious beliefs, then you're abusing your child--not bestowing upon them some kind of magical religious benefit. Water getting into the child's eyes is traumatic for them and a betrayal of their trust in their parents to keep them safe.
Also, sometimes baptism is done in an even more abusive way, which is nothing short of torture. Here is a video of such baptism in Tbilisi, Georgia, in which the Christian Orthodox priest submerges the child's head in water (warning: child abuse). You can clearly see the panic on the victims' faces. Notice the adults standing around snickering uncomfortably, too afraid to stop the "holy ritual". I have no doubt that these children will suffer long-term psychological harm as a result of this abuse.
carmencita ago
It's not pain to get a little water in the face. It is a minimal sprinkling not a gush of drowning water. If there is any torture involved I have never seen it. The last one I went to the priest wet his thumb with Holy Water and made the sign of the cross on the baby's forehead.
RURAL-TROOPER ago
Infant baptism is not biblical.