RamistThomist
Puritanboard Clerk
We define sacraments as "signs," among other things.
Westminster Confession of Faith, chapter 27, verse 1.
While providing us with a nice summary of doctrine (and I largely agree with above), I also understand why credobapists are confused with paedos. The following quote from St Augustine will illustrate:
Cool. But this is meaningless to an infant. They probably aren't recalling anything relevant to mind. We are assuming a lot on the definition of sign and then applying to infants, which would strain baptist credulity understandably.
Now, I am hard-line infant paedo. Seriously. More so than most people. But if we consistently hold to the Augustinian definition of sign, shall we always run into these problems? I apologize for giving RBs good ammo.
Westminster Confession of Faith, chapter 27, verse 1.
Baptism is a sacrament of the New Testament, ordained by Jesus Christ, not only for the solemn admission of the party baptized into the visible Church, but also to be unto him a sign and seal of the covenant of grace,
While providing us with a nice summary of doctrine (and I largely agree with above), I also understand why credobapists are confused with paedos. The following quote from St Augustine will illustrate:
Augustine defined a sign as "a thing which of itself makes something come to mind, besides the impression that it presents to the senses" (On Christian Teaching, 2.1)
Cool. But this is meaningless to an infant. They probably aren't recalling anything relevant to mind. We are assuming a lot on the definition of sign and then applying to infants, which would strain baptist credulity understandably.
Now, I am hard-line infant paedo. Seriously. More so than most people. But if we consistently hold to the Augustinian definition of sign, shall we always run into these problems? I apologize for giving RBs good ammo.