El padrino del Bautismo y su recuperación jurídico - pastoral

Abstract

The article tackles the role which baptismal sponsors should fulfil in present circumstances, where the figure has lost its Christian character to the point of becoming, in not a few cases, a mere social convention. The author develops from a historical and canonical pint of view the relevance of this figure in Christian tradition from the earliest centuries, both with regard to the baptism of adults and of children, although with greater impact in the latter, and the whole problem involved. Given that the child is baptised in the faith of the Church and must be educated in that same faith by parents and god-parents so that in adult life he/she may desire to live out the commitments received at baptism, the Church must supply all necessary means to guarantee this later formation. The author, in order to clarify these aspects, treats the conditions for suitability which can be expected of a catholic who wishes to undertake this ecclesial ministry in accordance with what is established in current legislation; he proposes some means of revitalising the role of sponsor in the present circumstances. Along with these principal ones he deals with other secondary issues, which are not lacking in interest: number of sponsors, choice of name for the child, the presence of non-catholic witnesses in the celebration, sponsors by proxy, change of sponsors after the celebration ... which concludes the study. Francisco Navarro Ruiz, Particular aspects of the celebration of Baptism. The author tackles several particular aspects of the celebration of baptism, basically referring to the canonical regulation of the baptism of children, to what is established about the time and place of celebration, with special reference to the importance of the parish and the proof and registration of the baptism. The whole question which is raised by the baptism of children, is framed by the real pastoral situation of the Spanish ecclesial community, characterised by an increasing decline in religious belief and practice; as a consequence there is an ever greater phenomenon of parents who were baptised as infants but who are now unbelievers and, in their great majority, non-practicing, but who continue to ask for baptism for their children, to which they have a right according to c.96 and, in principle, an obligation according to c.867,1: the fictio iuris, legitimate in principle, which permits us to baptise children in the faith of the Church, looses its raison d'etre when the parents cannot bring their child up in a faith which they themselves lack. This is a problem which must be tackled pastorally with all honesty. Attention is also given to the conflict with civil legislation regarding parental legal competence and the canonical regulation of baptism of children over seven years of age or in danger of death; there is also a conflict over the public nature of registered data and the civil registration of religious freedom. The article therefore looks at the computerisation of baptismal registers and the documentary proof of formal abandonment of the Church, because of the canonical consequences it has that affect the validity of some acts. All of this demands an adequate particular legislation from the Spanish Episcopal Conference.