Can an Anglican Take Believers Baptism In A Elim Church of Christened as a baby?

[Hazel W]

I am an Anglican in the high church tradition of cofe.I was Christened as a Baby and Confirmed as a teenager prely because a friend at church was doing it at the time and I wanted to do the same-however I hadn't even come to faith back then- I knew nothing about becoming a Born Again Christian( a term used in Pentecostal & Baptist churches when a person asks Jesus Christ after repentance of ones sins to come into your heart & life as your Saviour & Lord) so therefore could I go to a Evangelical branch of the church of England where they have a Baptistry pool to be re baptized ie ''Believers Baptism''?
One vicar I asked at a Evangelical/charismatic Anglican church said a firm NO-YOU CANNOT BE BAPTIZED AGAIN-YOU CAN ONLY DO IT ONCE.and that to be baptized again it would mean joining either a Baptist,Pentecostal or Charismatic church.

I do attend an Elim church quite a bit.As I have recently through going to this church accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour after repentance of my sins.
I would now like to do what God commands one to do in the bible-that is to take ''Believers Baptism'' by ''Full Immersion'' but to do this I would have to undergo this Baptism in the Elim church.The pastor there knows I was ''Christened'' as an infant & says that wasn't true baptism-that now I've come to Christ I need to be Biblically baptized in the proper way by having a Full Immersion baptism in a baptistery pool at the fron of the platform at church.

If I go ahead with been baptized in the Elim church by immersion does this mean I would no longer be a member of the church of England.
If after doing this baptism and I wanted in future to finish with the Elim Pentecostal church would I then need to be ''Christened'' again and also get re confirmed in the cofe church.

What if I were to get ''Believers Baptism'' by Immersion at the Elim pc church & then continue to attend the cofe-would I be in trouble if I were to tell my vicar what i'd done- when he plainly condemns getting baptized again when I had it done as a baby.
The Elim pc church told me that Infant Baptism isn't a proper valid Baptism though but the cofe say it is & that i'm getting myself so confused by attending Elim which is a different tradition to us.
My vicar says as an Anglican I should not be attending elim Pentecostal churches or any other church-only the cofe churches.Is he correct?

 

[ebia]

You are baptised. It is not possible to get bapitised twice. Therefore the answer is no.

To submit to it is a denial of a basic Christian truth. It won't undo your original baptism - nothing can undo that - but it's a flat denial of the amazing thing God did for you back then.

 

[vespasia]

Almost every single christian church has one baptism of belonging to the body of Christ. If you strayed badly then the CofE can offer the ministry of reconcilliation that offers forgiveness of sins and welcomes the prodigal back to the body of Christ.

IF you do not beleive that your baptism as an infant was valid then your concience may promt you to seek baptism by water but theologically and spiritually I consider this will make no difference to Christ accepting you as part of the body of Christ as he has already done that.

It may be your ongoing struggle and confussion that has led to your vicar advising against this particular church. I would suggest trying other anglican churches that cater for charismatic/evangelical spiritual worship needs as a good place to go and ask questions.

 

[tansy]

I became a believer as an adult and strongly felt that I should be rebaptized for a couple of reasons. However I coudn't be rebaptised in an Anglican church, but having asked my vicar, he supported my going to a different church to have it done. What I hadn't realised is that I could have retaken baptismal vows in the Anglican church in knowledge of what they meant, but without the water bit..which perhaps I may have done had I realised this.
However, I was really glad I did get rebaptised.. though, technically, I don't think one 'needs' to. It was more that I wanted to stand up and publically say that my life now belonged to Christ, with understanding, not as a child when I had to do it, regardless of even whether I believed God existed or not.
BTW I don't consider myself as a member of any particular denomination in that I'm tied into that denomination, only as a member who perhaps is on roll as it were.
First and foremost, I consider myself a member of the Body of Christ, whatever church I might attend.
But as someone else pointed out, I think you have to go by your conscience. If you get rebaptized unnecessarily, I don't think God will mind..which is the most important thing, after all, whatever God wants for you and from you.

 

[ebia]

I became a believer as an adult and strongly felt that I should be rebaptized for a couple of reasons. However I coudn't be rebaptised in an Anglican church, but having asked my vicar, he supported my going to a different church to have it done. What I hadn't realised is that I could have retaken baptismal vows in the Anglican church in knowledge of what they meant, but without the water bit..which perhaps I may have done had I realised this.
However, I was really glad I did get rebaptised.. though, technically, I don't think one 'needs' to. It was more that I wanted to stand up and publically say that my life now belonged to Christ, with understanding, not as a child when I had to do it, regardless of even whether I believed God existed or not.

(Re)committing one's life to Christ is a good thing - but that's not what baptism is.

And you didn't get rebaptised - that isn't possible. Your vicar obviously needs a refresher course in the theology of baptism.

 

[tansy]

(Re)committing one's life to Christ is a good thing - but that's not what baptism is.

And you didn't get rebaptised - that isn't possible. Your vicar obviously needs a refresher course in the theology of baptism.

Well, actually, I think he probably was pretty up on the theology...but it was perhaps a shame that he didn't think to say that I could have retaken my baptismal vows..that may have been a better solution
I certainly didn't think my salvation or anything like that depended on it...and in fact I would have preferred to have done something in my own church.
I had asked if I could get rebaptized in a Baptist church, but (maybe because they didn't know me) they said I'd have attend the church for so long and go on a course or something, and then they'd do it. It wasn't like I was a brand new Christian, I'd already been one for maybe 3 years or so.

And of course, this is part of the trouble..each denom or church seems to have it's own views and rules on this...and other issues.
It's not surprising people get bogged down and confused.
Nowadays, I try and look at whatever Scripture seems to say, other people say..oh, pray about things, of course...and also if it is going to adversely affect me or anyone else as far as I can tell.

 

[ebia]

And of course, this is part of the trouble..each denom or church seems to have it's own views and rules on this...and other issues.
It's not surprising people get bogged down and confused.

Yes and no. The bulk of historic churches - RCC, EO, Anglican, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Methodist,... all have remarkably similar views and rules. All of the historic reformers took infant baptism for granted. So called "believer's baptism" is a very modern, western, individualist notion.

 

[MichaelNZ]

The Nicene Creed is clear when it says "I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins".

 

[seekingsister]

I am renewing my baptismal vows in my CofE parish soon and it will include a symbolic immersion. I can't wait! Not all CofE do this but I Googled it and found one in Birmingham that does, maybe you can ask them for guidance.

The Church of England in Aston and Nechells: David Fletcher

 

[vespasia]

The parish of Aston have many adult none christians comming to faith so they offer a range of ways of being baptised available for new believers.

Other churches in the UK have adult baptismals, some have fonts that adapt with flowing water and some use portable batismals or arrange to use a neighbouring other denominational churches baptismal.

How your baptised is not carved in stone and you can renew the baptismal vows as part of the options open in the ministry of reconcilliation but what you cannot have a second sacremental baptism.