Is it possible to be baptized a second time

Why is a person baptized?

Baptism is the sacrament of entering the Church and being born again. The Gospel says:

Anyone who is not born of water and the Spirit cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).

In the baptismal waters a person is reborn: he dies to a sinful life and is born to an eternal life. Before God, the person being baptized makes vows (the godparents act on behalf of the child) to renounce Satan—from a sinful life—and unite with Christ.

If someone treats the sacrament of entering the Church as a formal action, some kind of semi-magical ritual - he was baptized and without working on himself became clean, healthy, happy - he is deeply mistaken.

The Sacrament of Baptism is the first step into the Church. It is followed by continuous work on spiritual improvement, repentance, confession, and Communion. To paraphrase a well-known saying, if you called yourself a Christian, be one. And don’t expect an obligatory reward in this life. Christians receive their reward in Heaven. After all, what could be higher than the Kingdom of Heaven, the bliss of being with God?

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Priest Dionisy Svechnikov

Lately we have been receiving a lot of letters from people interested in the possibility of re-baptism. This desire is usually motivated by several reasons. People sincerely believe that re-baptism can get rid of damage, the evil eye, a generational curse, and will solve life and even financial problems. Sometimes the thirst for re-baptism is motivated by the desire to change the name. Many people imagine that if they receive a new name at baptism, which “only God will know,” this will save them from magical influence. Enemies will “cast spells in the old name” and therefore all their spells and hexes will “fly by.” But sometimes the reason for re-baptism is stated to be a very good, at first glance, goal. For example, some people who were baptized in childhood and leading a sinful life suddenly come to faith in God. It seems to them that re-baptism will wash away this “sinful growth” on the soul and cleanse it of all bad things. I think it’s time to understand in detail all these superstitions and consider them from the position of the canons and traditions of the Orthodox Church. This is what I will try to do in the article brought to the attention of readers.

I'll start in order. First, it is necessary to determine where people’s desire to be baptized again comes from. The motivation for rebaptism is overtly occult beliefs. Damage, evil eye, generational curse, crown of celibacy, love spell, etc. - this is occult terminology, widely used by all kinds of magicians, sorcerers, psychics, healers and other figures in the occult sciences. Therefore, it would be quite logical to say that the belief in the “cleansing power” of re-baptism was inspired precisely by these “compassionate comrades” who want to solve all the problems of their clients for a fee. I have repeatedly had the opportunity to talk with people who came to the temple with the desire to be baptized again. When I ask why they need this, as a rule, the answer is that the need for this action was indicated to them by a psychic (fortune teller, magician, sorcerer, etc.). I once saw an advertisement on one of the Russian TV channels, in which an occultist claimed that re-baptism is the most powerful remedy against damage and the evil eye. I think that these facts are quite enough to understand that the superstition about re-baptism is clearly of occult origin.

Having dealt with the source of superstition, it is worth assessing it from the position of church canons and traditions. According to the doctrine of the Orthodox Church, baptism is one of the seven church sacraments, in which the believer, by immersing the body three times in water with the invocation of the name of the Holy Trinity - the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, dies to a carnal, sinful life, and is reborn by the Holy Spirit for Eternal Life . Rebaptism in itself is impossible. Baptism is a spiritual birth, and it, like a physical one, can only be one. It is necessary for a person to be saved, for “Whoever is not born of water and the Spirit cannot enter the Kingdom of God” (John 3:5). Christ clearly says in the Gospel: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; and whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16). The Savior speaks of faith in God. This Gospel passage does not and cannot have any other meaning. After all, sending the apostles to preach, Christ teaches them: “Go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20). Thus, based on the words of the Savior Himself, a necessary condition for accepting baptism is faith in the Trinity, and not at all an occult belief in baptism as a solution to all problems. Baptism does not at all solve everyday and financial problems and is not a “tool” for removing damage.

So why do occultists send people for baptism? After all, they send not only baptized people for re-baptism, but also unbaptized people for first baptism. However, this does not change the meaning. It is no secret that to attract people, occultists widely use Orthodox paraphernalia - crosses, icons, incense, church candles, Orthodox prayers. Why do they need this? The answer is obvious. Not every person will go to a fortune teller or psychic if he tells him something like this: “I practice black magic, I am in direct contact with demons, and in order to get help from me, you need to serve the devil.” In order to attract a client, it is necessary to hide behind something sacred that does not arouse any suspicion in a person. And even pretend to be a saint! This is the key to success, because a person always reaches out to the holy, the divine. A person comes to a psychic, and his whole house is filled with Orthodox icons, lamps are hanging, incense is being burned, church candles are burning, and the minister of the black cult, hung with crosses and even episcopal panagias, is receiving clients with a blissful face. Sometimes you have to deal with people whom occultists send to the temple for candles, incense, and icons. It can be difficult to convince these people that they are grievously sinning by following the lead of fortune tellers and psychics. After all, they are sent to the temple of God, and not to a satanic temple. Unfortunately, few can be brought to their senses, because... For most of these people, visiting fortune tellers and psychics becomes commonplace and even the norm of life, and the opinion of the occultists themselves becomes an indisputable authority. These are the fruits of spiritual illiteracy. After all, turning to occultists is turning to the devil. Engagement in the occult is communication with demons and serving them. The Holy Scriptures are replete with moments that clearly speak of the sin of turning to occultists. Even in the Old Testament it was forbidden to contact such people or to practice magic and witchcraft on pain of death.

This is what the Scripture says: “Do not cast spells or guess” (Lev. 19:26), “Do not turn to those who call the dead, and do not go to magicians, and do not bring yourself to the point of defilement from them” (Lev. 19:31) , “You shall not leave sorcerers alive” (Ex. 22:18), “And if any soul turns to those who call the dead and to magicians to follow them after them, then I will turn My face against that soul and will destroy it from among its people.” (Lev. 20:6), “...there shall not be among you one who guides his son or daughter through fire, a soothsayer, a fortune-teller, a soothsayer, a sorcerer, a charmer, a conjurer of spirits, a magician, and one who inquires of the dead; for anyone who does this is an abomination to the Lord" (Deut. 18:11), "And you do not listen to your prophets and your fortune-tellers, and your dreamers, and your magicians, and your astrologers... for they prophesy lies to you" (Jeremiah 27 , 9-10). And here is what is said about their fate after death: “But the part of the fearful and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, is in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone” (Rev. 21:8), “Blessed are they who keep His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter into the city through the gates. And outside are dogs, and sorcerers, and fornicators, and murderers, and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices iniquity” (Rev. 22:15). Thus, occultism is a godless and abominable matter, and turning to occultists is an undoubted sin. It’s sad, but many people do not understand this at all, because they are spiritually illiterate. Therefore, they cannot discern deception veiled as a sacred thing.

But what exactly is the use of consecrated objects by occultists? For them, covering with Orthodox paraphernalia is a blasphemous act, for which, they believe, the devil will give special power. Church candles, incense, icons and other consecrated objects are used by occultists in magical rituals, and not at all for their intended purpose. Sometimes, to complete a magical ritual, a person is asked to take the enchanted candle to the temple and place it there. It is difficult to imagine a more blasphemous act. A person who follows the lead of occultists and carries out their instructions is an actual participant and performer of a magical action. But for him, this action is presented by occultists as some kind of good, divine revelation, unambiguous help from God. Needless to say, this is far from the case. But if some occultists limit themselves only to the desecration of consecrated objects, then others go further and send their clients to participate in church sacraments. As a rule, these are the sacraments of baptism, communion and unction. It is interesting that the church sacraments are presented as certain steps on the way to the full achievement of the final goal proposed by the occultist. The steps following the church sacraments are a continuation of the “work” of the occultist. But in fact, this is the desecration of a shrine, the desecration of a sacrament performed in the Church. This is the basis of the occult “doctrine of re-baptism.” But the goal achieved by repeated baptism can be anything. Starting from removing damage, the evil eye and generational curse, healing from illnesses, right up to solving all everyday and even financial problems. But if church sacraments can really help a person heal from spiritual and physical illnesses, then the actions of occultists cannot in any way lead to this, for nothing good can come from the evil one. “Treatment” by occultists only makes many people worse; those diseases that they tried to cure with the help of occult methods begin to progress; chronic diseases that have been dormant for decades appear in an acute form; completely new, sometimes incurable, diseases also appear.

As I already said, both baptized and unbaptized people are sent to be baptized. Sometimes, having learned about a person’s desire to be baptized again, it is possible to turn him away from committing such a grave sin. But in order to achieve their goal, some resort to deception and are baptized again. Sometimes occultists themselves instruct their clients not to say that they have already been baptized. There is a clear sinful action of both the occultists themselves and their visitors. In addition, a person who comes to baptism, even if he has not been taught to deceive the priest and has not yet been baptized, develops an incorrect, distorted opinion about the sacrament of baptism (as well as about other sacraments). Such a person, not without the participation of an occultist, imagines that baptism will certainly save him from all problems, heal him from illnesses, remove damage, the evil eye, bring good luck, and even instantly make him rich. It is absolutely clear to a churchgoer that this is far from the case, and baptism is not a cure for all diseases and does not lead to a solution to all the problems described. But the fact of the matter is that churchgoers almost never become clients of occultists. Unchurched people fall into their bait of “holiness”, drawing knowledge about church sacraments, canons and traditions not from the Law of God and the catechism, but from tabloid, occult newspapers and magazines and television programs like “The Battle of Psychics.”

Thus, having examined the “doctrine of re-baptism” from the position of the Orthodox faith, we come to the conclusion that this desire or action is sinful, for it is a voluntary acceptance of the devil’s suggestion, and from the position of church canons it is simply unacceptable. In addition, repeated baptism does not save a person from the above problems, does not solve his everyday and financial difficulties, but on the contrary, as an obviously sinful and blasphemous action, it only adds sorrows and worries.

From the occult “doctrine of re-baptism” also follows the opinion that a change of name guarantees a person the futility of the efforts of sorcerers and magicians who inflict damage on him, the evil eye, etc. You could even say that they are interconnected. I won’t find out what came first – “the chicken or the egg”, but I remember that people began turning to churches with a request to change their name much earlier than with a request for re-baptism. What is the essence of this occult belief about the benefits of changing your name? Occultists claim that a person’s name is used in magical rituals. This action is apparently similar to the commemoration of Christians by name during services. The priest, making a bloodless sacrifice, performing a prayer service or requiem service, remembers by name the living or deceased members of the Church, praying for their health or repose. It seems that a similar action is performed by an occultist during magical rituals. But, instead of calling on God in prayers, the devil is called upon here. These can be simple conspiracies using a person’s name, or magical rites and rituals that are much more complex in their structure, even human sacrifices.

According to ancient magical beliefs, with the help of names you can subjugate spirits or get rid of their influence. It is this formula that carries with it the reading of conspiracies that contain the names of fallen spirits. By reading the conspiracy, a person enters into direct communication with the demon and calls him by name. And if the conspiracy is read “on any person,” i.e. with the pronunciation of his name, then, according to the same magical belief, it is possible to establish control over a person or have a certain magical effect on him. In essence, a person or occultist, reading a spell or performing a certain magical ritual, asks the demon, whose name he calls upon, to influence the person in relation to whom the magical action is performed. This action underlies all magical rituals. It would be quite logical to assume that this is exactly the “technique” used by demons in relation to the Lord Jesus Christ, whom they called by name. This “trick” clearly had no effect, for the demons did not have any power over the Savior, but, on the contrary, asked not to torment them: “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure You by God, do not torment me” (Mark 5:7). From the Gospel account of the healing of the Gadarene demoniac, we know that the demons, at the command of the Savior, came out of the unfortunate man and entered the swine herd, which immediately rushed off the cliff into the sea: “And all the demons asked Him, saying: send us among the swine, so that we can enter them. Jesus immediately allowed them. And the unclean spirits came out and entered into the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep slope into the sea, and there were about two thousand of them; and were drowned in the sea" (Mark 5:12-13).

Thus, we can say with confidence that without special permission from God, demons cannot even enter pigs, let alone a person. Without God's permission, demons cannot enter or leave a person, or even cause him any harm. Therefore, knowing a name cannot give power over a person. Accordingly, the occult teaching about changing the name must be recognized as untenable. Let a person have at least ten names, but knowing them all does not give him any power over him, unless there is God’s permission. An Orthodox Christian who lives according to the commandments of God and is under the grace-filled protection of church sacraments is not afraid of any damage, evil eye, generational curses or other occult abominations. The Lord Himself protects him! And if you get carried away with such beliefs, then the Lord can indeed allow sorrow, illness and many problems. Therefore, an Orthodox Christian must have a negative attitude towards any occult teaching, for it is demonic. “What does light have in common with darkness? What agreement is there between Christ and Belial? (Cor. 6:14-15). An Orthodox Christian should not be subject to demonic teachings!

But I wonder why exactly do occultists send their clients to the temple? The answer is simple. According to the tradition of the Orthodox Church, a person is given a name on the eighth day of birth. To do this, the priest reads a special prayer for naming the name. Because this good tradition is now undeservedly forgotten, and many people simply do not know about its existence; this prayer is read immediately before baptism. In the Orthodox Church there is also a pious tradition of naming a child in honor of one of the holy saints of God. This saint is considered the heavenly patron of a person, to whom he will resort for prayer help throughout his life. In the sequence of morning prayers, which every Orthodox Christian reads when rising from sleep, there is a prayer for the invocation of the saint whose name you bear. It seems that every church-going Orthodox Christian prays to his saint with special zeal. Occultists who teach about the benefits of changing your name cannot but know about all this. That's why they send people to the temple. Giving a name is a common action of the priest during baptism. But naming occurs only once in a lifetime, just as baptism occurs once.

What happens when a person comes under the influence of the occult “teaching of changing one’s name”? In fact, a person neglects not only his name, which his parents gave him, but also his saint, after whom he is named. Instead of calling on his heavenly patron for help in difficult moments of his life, a person begins to run to fortune-tellers and psychics in search of a “magic wand” that will instantly get rid of all problems. But in fact, the “doctrine of changing the name” carries the same blasphemous function as the “doctrine of re-baptism.” But one cannot expect anything else from occultists acting at the instigation of the devil. It is a pity that many people fall under their corrupting influence. As I already said, all these are the fruits of spiritual illiteracy.

Another fruit of the spiritual illiteracy of some people is the desire to be re-baptized for a seemingly good purpose. At the beginning of the article, I already gave one example when some people who were baptized in childhood, but lived in sin for a long time and at a certain point came to faith in God, want to be baptized again in order to get rid of the slavery of sin and be cleansed of sinful filth. Well, the desire is very good and laudable. The font of baptism, indeed, washes away all the sins of a person who, having repented of his sinful life, expresses the desire to live in Christ. For him, baptism becomes a sacrament that cleanses from sinful filth and gives the opportunity for a new, spiritual life. And an already baptized Orthodox Christian, in order to be cleansed of his sins, must resort not to re-baptism (which is generally unacceptable under any circumstances), but to another saving church sacrament - the sacrament of repentance, confession. During confession, a person is forgiven of his sins; the Holy Spirit acts on him at this moment. And the priest, according to God’s promise, “Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven; and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven” (Matthew 18:18) reads a special prayer of permission over a person. Through confession, a sinner continues (or begins) his path to God.

I would like to remind the reader that re-baptism for an Orthodox Christian is impossible under any circumstances. This saving sacrament is performed once in a lifetime and is the birth of spiritual life in Christ. Well, let the Lord judge how each of us lives it. May God give us all the intelligence to understand His holy will and discern the demonic machinations, of which there are a great many in the modern world!

Is it possible to be baptized a second time? - the most common myths

Due to their sinfulness, people seek profit in everything, including the Church. Because of this, many myths have arisen related to the question “Is it possible to be baptized a second time?” Let's look at the most common ones.

Repeated baptism protects against corruption

People often turn to priests with a request to perform the sacrament of baptism on them a second time. What's the explanation? The grace of the Holy Spirit will descend on them, and no witchcraft will harm them.

The second option is that in the sacrament the person will be given a new name, unknown to those who want to spoil him. So it turns out that the ill-wisher will “cast a spell” on a person with an old name, and accordingly will not be able to harm the person who has been baptized again.

Isn't it nonsense? If you are a Christian, then a priori you will not turn to various psychics who talk about the benefits of re-baptism. If you live like a Christian and regularly take communion, then demonic tricks (damage, the evil eye - no matter what they are called) will not be able to harm you.

Is it possible for a child to be baptized a second time if the godparents fail to fulfill their responsibilities?

Sometimes parents, mostly mothers, come to the temple with a request to re-baptize their child, but with new recipients. What reason? The godparents allegedly fail to cope with their responsibilities: they moved to another city, do not visit the child, let alone spiritual education...

Is it possible for a person to be baptized a second time if he was “automatically” baptized as a child?

What should I do if my grandmother baptized me as a child, but I did not live as a Christian and did not believe in God for many years? And then you came to faith and decided to completely change? Is it possible for a person to be baptized a second time in such a situation? Many people recognize themselves in this example.

There is no point in re-baptism. A person is already in the Church, let him continue to establish his Christian life, visit church, take communion.

At a conscious age, only those people who themselves came to God and were not baptized in childhood begin the sacrament of baptism.

Some common questions about baptism

We can analyze the main situations when people would like to be baptized again. 1. Dysfunctional relationship with godfather/godmother, lack of communication with them. The person lacks communication with one or both godparents. Perhaps there was a quarrel and a break in the relationship. The desire to be baptized again in consciousness is not separated from the desire for the godfather or godmother to be nearby, to actually appear, to be my support and spiritual support. Very often there is a new, “more worthy” candidate for the role of one of the godparents in sight.

The role of godparents in the life of a believer is, of course, great, but it is not decisive. The duty of godparents is to convey basic spiritual principles to a growing Christian, teach him to understand sacred rites and correctly understand their meaning. If a person is no longer a small child, he can find many ways to learn what his godparents had to teach. The main thing is to understand that the sacrament of baptism occurs only once in a lifetime. It is a kind of birth, and one cannot be born twice. Therefore, all talk about second / re-baptism belittles the very meaning and very essence of this sacrament. Other circumstances.

2. May be associated with a name. No evidence or records have survived. The person is not sure that he was baptized at all, or is not sure what name he was given. For such cases, a special canon is also used: the formula for the sacrament: “Unless baptized (baptized).” in cases where it is not known for certain whether baptism took place, this formula is used.

This question arises especially often when it comes to adopted children. They grew up in an orphanage or in some kind of foster family. Also the formula “not yet baptized”, doubts: whether baptism was carried out according to the form, and finally, if the parents belong to two different religions.

The only condition for second baptism

Re-baptism is possible only in one situation: if the first baptism is declared invalid. Apostolic Canon 47 speaks of the responsibility of priests. It is considered a sin:

second baptism, if the first was true;
the priest's refusal to perform the sacrament if the first was not true (committed by schismatics, heretics).

The rule itself sounds like this:

A bishop or presbyter, if he who has been truly baptized, baptizes again, or if he does not baptize someone defiled by the wicked, let him be cast out, for he who mocks the cross and the death of the Lord, and who does not distinguish between priests and false priests.

Is it possible to baptize a person a second time? The priest answers the question:

Why does one want to be baptized a second time?

According to www.1rre.ru, baptism is God’s sacrament that is performed in church. When Jesus Christ was baptized in the waters of the Jordan, the Holy Spirit descended on him. So God gave him a new life and the opportunity to save his soul.

The same thing happens in our lives for all people who undergo baptism in the church. Parents, agreeing to baptize their child, hope that God will now protect him from all adversity.

However, in real life there are other reasons why people want to be re-baptized:

this will make it possible to get a new name, which means it will protect the person from the effects of magic. It is known that at baptism a person receives a second name, which is known only to God and godparents. You cannot harm a person unless you know his secret name received from the Lord;
the desire to change your godparents for some personal reasons;
a person is sure that baptism will help him get rid of a generational curse or damage;
Some people are confident that the rite of re-baptism will help them get rid of their sins. Their unrighteous life is too full of bad thoughts and actions that they regret.

For an adult, this step should be deliberate and conscious.

Baptism and an example about marriage

For greater clarity, let's look at the issue of marriage. A lot of people have sex before marriage, which in itself is a sin. But that’s not about that now. If someone decides to get married, he must leave all his other lovers and give his heart to one or the only one for life. A person cannot get married and live his old life, cheating on his husband or wife. This wedding will be a laughing stock for everyone and will cast a shadow on the very institution of marriage. Also, a person cannot simply move in with someone to start living together. This will not be considered a marriage. In their justification, people began to call it a “civil marriage”, saying that the stamp in the passport is a formality and so on... The same with baptism. You cannot simply go and be baptized without understanding what the Bible says about baptism, what it is, and what obligations a person who decides to be baptized takes upon himself.

Some people believe that they will betray some true faith when it comes to true baptism. Was the first baptism true? It is better for you to answer this question for yourself. The Bible does not teach infant baptism and there is not a single account of child baptism when it comes to infant baptism. We have seen that even in adulthood, baptism may not be true.

It is forbidden!

So, you cannot baptize a child again. Baptism is the spiritual birth of a person, and you can only be born once. Or rather, twice: once – physically, and the second time – spiritually.

Therefore, even the very thought of a second baptism is a sin. And this sin will not fall on the child at all, but on the father and mother who conceived and carried out such obscenity.

Of course, there are isolated cases when re-baptism does occur. For example, when a person decided to change his faith and moved from Orthodoxy to Protestantism. In this case, he is baptized again, in accordance with the Protestant understanding of this ritual. However, this point does not concern the topic of this article.

More information about whether it is possible to be baptized again will be answered by an Orthodox priest in this video.