Whether Children of Jews or Other Unbelievers Should Be Baptized
Against the Will of Their Parents?
Objection 1: It seems that children of Jews or other unbelievers
should be baptized against the will of their parents. For it is a
matter of greater urgency to rescue a man from the danger of eternal
death than from the danger of temporal death. But one ought to rescue
a child that is threatened by the danger of temporal death, even if
its parents through malice try to prevent its being rescued.
Therefore much more reason is there for rescuing the children of
unbelievers from the danger of eternal death, even against their
parents' will.
Obj. 2: The children of slaves are themselves slaves, and in the
power of their masters. But Jews and all other unbelievers are the
slaves of kings and rulers. Therefore without any injustice rulers
can have the children of Jews baptized, as well as those of other
slaves who are unbelievers.
Obj. 3: Further, every man belongs more to God, from Whom he has his
soul, than to his carnal father, from whom he has his body. Therefore
it is not unjust if the children of unbelievers are taken away from
their carnal parents, and consecrated to God by Baptism.
_On the contrary,_ It is written in the Decretals (Dist. xlv),
quoting the council of Toledo: "In regard to the Jews the holy synod
commands that henceforward none of them be forced to believe: for
such are not to be saved against their will, but willingly, that
their righteousness may be without flaw."
_I answer that,_ The children of unbelievers either have the use of
reason or they have not. If they have, then they already begin to
control their own actions, in things that are of Divine or natural
law. And therefore of their own accord, and against the will of their
parents, they can receive Baptism, just as they can contract
marriage. Consequently such can lawfully be advised and persuaded to
be baptized.
If, however, they have not yet the use of free-will, according to the
natural law they are under the care of their parents as long as they
cannot look after themselves. For which reason we say that even the
children of the ancients "were saved through the faith of their
parents." Wherefore it would be contrary to natural justice if such
children were baptized against their parents' will; just as it would
be if one having the use of reason were baptized against his will.
Moreover under the circumstances it would be dangerous to baptize the
children of unbelievers; for they would be liable to lapse into
unbelief, by reason of their natural affection for their parents.
Therefore it is not the custom of the Church to baptize the children
of unbelievers against their parents' will.
Reply Obj. 1: It is not right to rescue a man from death of the body
against the order of civil law: for instance, if a man be condemned
to death by the judge who has tried him, none should use force in
order to rescue him from death. Consequently, neither should anyone
infringe the order of the natural law, in virtue of which a child is
under the care of its father, in order to rescue it from the danger
of eternal death.
Reply Obj. 2: Jews are slaves of rulers by civil slavery, which does
not exclude the order of the natural and Divine law.
Reply Obj. 3: Man is ordained unto God through his reason, by which
he can know God. Wherefore a child, before it has the use of reason,
is ordained to God, by a natural order, through the reason of its
parents, under whose care it naturally lies, and it is according to
their ordering that things pertaining to God are to be done in
respect of the child.
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