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Major_Bother8416 t1_ja02hl6 wrote

That’s absurd. There’s no baptism fee. And if there is, you should leave that church.

The reason they require a class is because most people don’t understand the theology behind baptism. Many people want to dunk their children because they think it’s hell insurance. As long as I make sure my baby is baptized, I’m covered, even though I have no intention of raising them in the faith. What church should condone that?

And yes, they keep paperwork. You get a baptism certificate and the church keeps records because that community of faith is promising to help raise the child. Those records get used by historians hundreds of years later sometimes.

I’m not saying there aren’t churches that operate like businesses. And there have certainly been con-artist pastors, but it’s not fair to assume most churches are making people jump through hoops for no reason.

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ScratchMoore t1_ja0ate4 wrote

Like I said in another comment, they can call it a fee or alms for the poor or a donation or whatever. There is an expectation of some sort of payment.

It’s like tipping. There is no rule forcing you to leave your server a tip, but if you go out to eat, you always leave a tip. Same in this case.

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