Baby Blessings

Public dedication of an infant to God is an old and revered practice. Although “official membership in the Church” begins at age 8 for most who are blessed as babies, membership in the church family starts unofficially with the blessing – and I like the symbolism of that being in Sacrament Meeting.

Also, one of the most incredible experiences of my life involved a baby blessing – and event that has become characterized by my oldest son as our own Christmas star. Granted, that was one out of six, but what was said was a direct and prophetic blessing addressed directly to that child – and it forms one of the bedrock experiences that convinces me to the core that spiritual witnesses can be and sometimes are undeniably external to us.

As to the general concept of baby blessings, Margaret Young wrote a beautiful post on BCC almost three years ago that blew me away when I first read it. It included a section about baby blessings. It still is one of my favorite Bloggernacle posts of all time and should be required reading for every member of the Church. It is called “To the Pastor” – and the link is:

http://bycommonconsent.com/2007/05/03/to-the-pastor/

I guess the Jews did this when they took their babies to the temple. I just know that many other faith traditions have some sort of practice like this as well.

I always thought the other religions that did something like this, especially Catholic infant baptisms and christenings, or Jewish Circumcision, were done out of doctrine belief it was necessary.

Since we believe those are not necessary, child blessings are no different than a father’s blessing, right?

I guess Ray and justme are saying:

1. It is a wonderful event to celebrate the birth of a child in the community.

2. It is an ancient and revered practice

Don’t get me wrong…I’m not anti-baby – they are so cute that everyone loves to see it, but I don’t know much about the history or tradition of this being a sacrament meeting thing. It doesn’t seem to be doctrinal in any way, just a good tradition that doesn’t need to go away.

Moroni 8 reads:

8 Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.

9 And after this manner did the Holy Ghost manifest the word of God unto me; wherefore, my beloved son, I know that it is solemn mockery before God, that ye should baptize little children.

10 Behold I say unto you that this thing shall ye teach—repentance and baptism unto those who are accountable and capable of committing sin; yea, teach parents that they must repent and be baptized, and humble themselves as their little children, and they shall all be saved with their little children.

11 And their little children need no repentance, neither baptism. Behold, baptism is unto repentance to the fulfilling the commandments unto the remission of sins.

12 But little children are alive in Christ, even from the foundation of the world; if not so, God is a partial God, and also a changeable God, and a respecter to persons; for how many little children have died without baptism!

13 Wherefore, if little children could not be saved without baptism, these must have gone to an endless hell.

14 Behold I say unto you, that he that supposeth that little children need baptism is in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; for he hath neither faith, hope, nor charity; wherefore, should he be cut off while in the thought, he must go down to hell.

15 For awful is the wickedness to suppose that God saveth one child because of baptism, and the other must perish because he hath no baptism.

D&C 20:70 Every member of the church of Christ having children is to bring them unto the elders before the church, who are to lay their hands upon them in the name of Jesus Christ, and bless them in his name.

Good one. That scripture probably explains 90% of the reason why we do this tradition.

Thanks!

It isn’t a saving ordinance. It’s just a patriarchal-style blessing, and the cultural tradition in Mormonism developed to make it a public/communal acknowledgment of a new child.

BTW, I love the idea of mothers blessing their children too in a prayer. I remember discussing that idea somewhere a while ago, even the act of writing it down or recording it so they can hear it later. I love that idea (both fathers and mothers) recording their wishes and love for their child when one arrives.

My mom’s always been a real stickler on writing family baby blessings down word for word, as much as possible, as if it were predicting the future.

My wife is like that too. We have a book at home. I’ve realized sometimes I am pretty long-winded in blessings 😳

But I think it has been kinda cool for our kids to see those. Not so much that they are prophetic and are expected to come true, but more just a reminder of the experiences we’ve had as families, and the bonds that those experiences create. Without something to remind us of that…they are just forgotten.

I actually am more surprised more baby blessings aren’t recorded for that purpose. Because I can’t imagine babies are actually better off with a blessing than without…but it is a familial ritualistic celebration type event…as many have pointed out in this thread. Pictures and recorded messages of the blessing would seem to make it memorable, even if not prophetic.