A question to the priest why baptism is paid. Why should you pay for baptism if money is a sin? Why do they charge big money for baptizing children?
Money as such has never been considered a sin; greed is a sin, that is, an uncontrollable desire to have a lot of money. Orthodox priests do not "take money for baptism", but "make a demand for a sacrifice." Orthodox Christians who constantly live in the bosom of the church know and understand that the earthly Church of Christ (clergy, priests) are not yet in the Kingdom of Heaven and require food, clothing, and other certain material benefits that can be obtained only for money. Therefore, the scripture says:
“To eat from the sanctuary” or “to take a share from the altar” is to accept an offering from the laity.
Also, you can remember a part of the Gospel:
in which Christ did not condemn the rich for giving an offering to the Temple, and did not condemn the priests who established the “treasury”, but magnified the reward itself in the form that giving “out of abundance” is simple, but giving “out of scarcity "- this is the highest deed in the eyes of God.
The Apostles of Christ received in the same way ...
On the air of the permanent program “Blogpost of Archpriest Dimitri Smirnov,” the question is discussed - why people are baptized in the Church for money.
This is not a baptism fee.
This is a temple donation.
It is not always voluntary on the part of the priest. You have to force yourself. So not a desire to baptize, just horror! You are in the position of a person building a house that will be burned with you. It's pointless.
- Were there moments when you were happy for the baptized one?
But about the majority it is not clear why they came to be baptized. What is the use of them? And they regard baptism as ...
On the air of the permanent program “Blogpost of Archpriest Dimitri Smirnov,” the question is discussed - why people are baptized in the Church for money.
Why are churches often required to pay for baptism? Rejected by the apostle Peter Simon wanted to pay for baptism, for which he was rejected.
This is not a baptism fee.
This is a temple donation.
But it turns out that this donation is not always voluntary. A man comes up, the price list behind the drawer ...
It is not always voluntary on the part of the priest. You have to force yourself. So not a desire to baptize, just horror!
You are in the position of a person building a house that will be burned with you.
It's pointless.
- Were there moments when you were happy for the baptized one?
There are times when you are happy for the person you are baptizing. He then goes to church, begins to go to church, helps the Church, lives by this.
But about the majority it is not clear why they came to be baptized. What is the use of them?
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View Full Version: Baptism - why is it paid?
26.07.2009, 19:09
Why did baptism become paid, and where did all these extortion of "donations" come from ???
Ekaterina Stepa
26.07.2009, 19:41
Valery, I understand your indignation about this. But let's look at the situation from the other side and try to figure it out together.
There is no doubt that Baptism is a GIFT from God, and there can be no question of any price.
We all know that the only source of funding for the Church is from parishioners. It becomes more and more difficult to maintain the Church, since everything rises in price - electricity, communications, and so on, so on, so on, but you need not only pay bills, besides this there are a lot of needs - restoration, cash payments to the churches), one heating in winter how much it costs to maintain the required temperature, because there are icons, icon painting, which ...
Do I have to pay for the Baptism or buy in the church for the Baptism that you are offered, or should it be a gift? And I also wanted to write notes for peace and health, but it turned out that this is also a paid service. And most importantly, I was surprised that women and men should stand on opposite sides during the service - is that right? I am ready to donate money as much as I can, this is not the point, I am confused by the prices for each service.
Kanev Alexander
worker, carpenter
Dear Alexander, I do not quite understand the essence of your bewilderment. If Church Sacraments and Requisites are services for you, what surprises you that they are paid for? Where and when did someone provide you free services? I dare to think that you yourself receive material rewards for your work. Unless the so-called social services provided by the state to certain groups of the population may be free of charge, but these services are financed from budget funds, ...
The prosecutors are not only convinced that everything in the temple should be done free of charge, they even refer to such episodes of Holy Scripture as the expulsion of the merchants from the Jerusalem temple by the Savior, or the case when the Apostle Peter refused to baptize a person who offered money for baptism. Particular indignation is caused by the amount: it seems that they are taking too much for baptism.
Why don't they baptize for free
People who demand that everything be done in churches for free do not understand or do not want to understand that a temple is a material object that needs to be maintained, repaired, that from time to time it is necessary to acquire new vestments for priests, church utensils and books, oil must be bought and incense. All this costs money.
The priests understand that visiting the temple should not turn into a paid service, because then it will not be available to everyone. Not a single church takes money for confession, communion, especially for the very presence at a service (for comparison: for a conversation with ...
Baptism of a child: rules
Date: 03-05-2015
In our time, the Russian Orthodox Church is again gaining significant popularity among the ordinary population. The return to the sphere of the Church and the Faith can be attributed to fashion trends, but in most cases people come to this consciously. It is not surprising that more and more families decide to baptize their baby, even if they themselves are not exemplary parishioners.
But the sacrament of baptism is an old rite of the union of man and God, and not just a solemn ceremony. What you need to know before deciding to baptize a baby, and what obligations does this procedure impose on the parents of the baby? Answers to these and many other questions will be given in our article.
Baptizing a child: at what age is it better to do it?
In each family, the issue of baptizing a child is decided individually. In most cases, the baby is baptized on the fortieth day after birth (give or take a few days). From the point of view of religion, it is the fortieth day that is significant - on ...
- Hello! My name is Valery. Tell me, can a priest violate the secret of confession? And are there any exceptions?
- It is a sin. A priest has no right to violate a secret. Although, of course, there are exceptional cases. For example, if a priest becomes aware from a conversation that an anti-government conspiracy or terrorist attack is being prepared. If a murder or an abortion is being prepared, he can take some action to prevent a crime and save a person from sin, stop evil. But the secret should still not be violated.
- Father Artemy? Good day! My question is: is it okay to go to the cemetery during the Easter holidays?
- No, not worth it. The Church prescribes to rejoice at Easter and to endure their sorrow. Better to do this on the ninth day after Easter. There is a special day for this - called Radonitsa. It is then that you can go to the cemetery and honor the memory of the dead.
YOU CAN'T PAY FOR CANDLES IN CHURCHES
- Tamara is calling you. Father, ...
First, the expression "payment" of the Sacraments. There is no such concept in the Church itself. But there is something else - a donation for the needs of the temple, which means by no means abstract things, but the most concrete: the temple must first be built, then it must be maintained, repaired, restored, equipped, heated, illuminated, etc. It is necessary to take care of the surrounding area, the construction and maintenance of the parish buildings. The parish should be involved in the religious education of children, organizing schools, clubs, charitable activities and much more, which can not be counted. All this activity is carried out not only by priests, but also by lay people, who are full-time workers of the parish and are paid. Each parishioner knows all this and understands the main thing, and therefore tries to take an active part in the life of the Church, making his own contribution (including material) to the common cause, thus serving God and others. An example for us can be like the Old Testament ...
They say everyone has their own truth and this is so. It is one truth, but there are many interpreters of this truth. The problem with these interpreters is that they interpret the Bible based on what their teachers have taught them.
It is written: "And you abide in what you have been taught and what has been entrusted to you, knowing who you have been taught." (2 Tim.3: 14) It is very important to know who your teacher is.
The Internet made it possible, at least for me, to help people. Truth is capable of interpreting itself.
They ask me questions that I try to answer. One of them is about water baptism.
Is water baptism important or not in the Christian life?
Very important and here's why. Water baptism, apart from exceptions, is necessary in order for a person's sins to be forgiven. The promise to serve God with a clear conscience is dedication. Dedication cannot be without the fruit of repentance and forgiveness of sins.
We read attentively: "And he went all over the surrounding country of Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." (Luke 3: 3)
To understand this, read the article protode. Andrey Kuraev
WHERE DOES THE CHURCH HAVE MONEY?
He is there, by the way, says that “no one is forcing us to buy candles. The most important sacraments of our church life - confession and communion - are always performed without any "fees". If a person does not have the opportunity to make a proper sacrifice for christenings, weddings or burials, according to church rules, the priest is obliged to agree to completely free labor. "
But he also shows another side of this problem. After all, churches need to be built, restored, cleaned, decorated, protected, illuminated, the people who serve there need to eat and live on something, and their families too. Where will this considerable money come from? See what the apostle Paul writes about this:
7 Which warrior ever serves on his own? Who, having planted grapes, does not eat its fruit? Who, while herding the flock, does not eat the milk of the flock?
8 Am I saying this by human reasoning only? Doesn't he say the same thing ...
»The question is being discussed - why people are baptized for money in the Church.
- Why do churches often require payment for baptism? Rejected by the apostle Peter Simon wanted to pay for baptism, for which he was rejected.
This is not a baptism fee.
This is a temple donation.
- But it turns out that this donation is not always voluntary. A man comes up, the price list behind the drawer ...
It is not always voluntary on the part of the priest. You have to force yourself. So not a desire to baptize, just horror! You are in the position of a person building a house that will be burned with you. It's pointless.
- Were there moments when you were happy for the baptized one?
There are times when you are happy for the person you are baptizing. He then goes to church, begins to go to church, helps the Church, lives by this.
But about the majority it is not clear why they came to be baptized. What is the use of them? And they treat baptism as a paid service. They do not understand anything, and do not want to understand - and generally not from the spot. What have come? The craving of the soul is there, I fix it, but it is absolutely not meaningful. And they do not want to comprehend and do not want to spend time on it. And I have to baptize them, but I don't want to, everything in me resists.
- How to be in this situation?
I am now forcing my junior priests to baptize. I baptize only your children, churched families, here I am calm and baptize everyone. And so - I suffered for 20 years - now that's it.
Here is a man, I baptize his child, he now has the right to serve him. If some man-eater drags him into the forest and eats him, we can sing his bones. Well, should a person have some kind of gratitude for this? Here he gives five hundred rubles. What, went broke because of five hundred rubles? Let's bargain, perhaps, and bargain for three hundred.
There is no faith, no conscience, no honor. And here everything is free and with a bow! What are we, a Chinese restaurant?
- Maybe then you should refuse baptism?
I had such an experience. I refused. And then I felt that I did the wrong thing too. The person does not understand why he was refused. It seems to him that he came to church, and he was offended here. I came to church to baptize a child because this is such a "rite", the grandmother was a believer, and the great-grandmother was definitely a believer, this is a sufficient reason for the baptism of a child. And I don’t know how to change his consciousness.
There is no time to go to church, I have to work and in general Sunday is my only day off. Then football Holland-Finland ... vegetable gardens ... skis ... friends came ... I go to the Church, put a candle.
I read the Bible there and back three times ...
You start asking something, he hasn't read anything. The Bible cannot be distinguished from Dahl's dictionary.
- Have you read the Gospel?
- I have a prayer book.
And so constantly: you tell him about Thomas, he tells you about Eremu. The conversation can go on and on. What to do?
At least take money from him ...
Now this issue is being considered at the general church level.
- Yes, there will be a document. But let us decide that we will not baptize anyone until the Symbol of Faith makes sense. What will the person do? He will go to the village priests, give money, and the priest will baptize. He will not go into the subtleties, what, they say, these high minds have come up with, I myself will not really explain - what did they come up with?
Therefore, the fact that priests now take money for baptism is a blessing. A person who pays for baptism, even though the Church with its three hundred rubles will support.
For this money, the chorister will be paid for half the service.
One out of fifteen choristers.
Evgeniy, age: 33 / 15.07.2013
The other day we received a letter: "You say on your website what a good Church, but why then do priests drive expensive cars, and there is a lot of gold in churches?"
What is the answer to this?
We live in a time that can be called a virtual crowd. Previously, in order to captivate society, it was enough to go out to the square and make a convincing speech. Now - it is enough to write a post on the social network, which will be distributed among thousands of readers. This is how prejudices are born.
The church is rich, although the country is poor. The priests drive expensive cars. The church charges for all the money. Here are just a few of the relationships with the Church that have become solidified on social media and across communities.
We have collected the main questions about the Church and the topic of money and tried to tell how everything really is.
Why does the Church need money?
The activity of the Church, like that of any spiritual community, takes place in the world - in the society that has developed around. There is money in the world with which people, companies and the state pay among themselves. Sometimes there are free services, but this only means that the state pays for people in this case.
Nothing is free, and nothing can legally exist in the world without money. The exception is subsistence farming - the ideal way of life, when a person or community feeds, clothe and heals themselves, but even in this case money is needed: pay, for example, a tax on the land that the community or house occupies. In fact, even the most "natural" communities use inexpensive tractors, household tools, and purchased clothes on their farm. Medicines and some products are also taken from stores.
Why the Church doesn't pay taxes
The church is exempt from income taxes. If you looked at the financial situation of most of the temples, you would understand that having a tax, they would not make ends meet.
But let's imagine: they would mix. Income tax is the cash register in every temple. For every cash register you need not a simple grandmother and a kind parishioner, but an employee. Reporting and so on But the main thing: the introduction of the tax would deprive the church of the opportunity to do the most important thing that we actually expect from the Church: if necessary, give candles or something else for free - after all, everything is now on the balance sheet of the accounting department ...
Church and money: the bottom line
All of the above does not negate the fact that in the Church, as in any brotherhood, business or profession - the same medicine or the police - there may be people who do not bear duty or due responsibility within themselves. Then there is a doctor who cheats, or a policeman who does not protect, but thinks about profit. And then we talk about them with sadness (or even irritation), but deep down we understand that this is not damage to medicine or the police as a phenomenon in general, but the mistakes of specific people ...
How do you look at it?
Man is flawed by nature and the Church is not Paradise on earth. Paradise was once on earth, but after the fall, it remained only in heaven, and those who come to the Church or serve in it strive for that, heavenly, Paradise. They strive to the best of their ability. Not condemning anyone, but looking only at yourself: grieving that you yourself cannot live as you should, and rejoicing - that there is Christ, who will reach out His hand to everyone who reaches out to Him with all their souls, and sins will be forgiven, and the soul will be cleansed, and then - by the Grace of the Holy Spirit - Eternal life will come and the soul will find Peace and joy in ceaseless existence with God ... And against this background, absolutely everything that happens on the earth around - and human weaknesses, omissions, and shortcomings - they all lose any value!
Glory and Thanksgiving to the Lord for everything!
When people begin to take an interest in baptism, then at some point the question arises - why is it paid in the church? Should you take money for baptism? When I was about twenty years old, I decided to be baptized. I remember that everything was good in my life, but it seemed to me that something was missing. I did not understand all these questions of faith, but it was all not very interesting to me. I just wanted to be baptized. That was. I thought it would be right. When I came to one of the churches, I saw the following sign on the door: "Baptism 250 rubles." To be honest, it then both alarmed me and saved me. And here's the thing.
What is the essence and meaning of baptism?
This story happened to me at the very beginning of the 2000s. After I decided not to pay 250 rubles for baptism, I called my friend, who at that time had been understanding issues of faith for many years. I told him my story and asked if he had a priest who, by an acquaintance, would be able to baptize me for free? My friend laughed hard then. It’s funny for me myself. And it's not about the price of the issue. The fact is that at that time I did not understand the meaning of baptism at all!
Does baptism have to be paid?
We're talking about whether baptism should be free or paid. Should church ministers take money for baptism? And once again - if a person does not decide to repent of all sins and does not begin to live like that, then baptism has no meaning. Since baptism is a new birth. This is spiritual birth.
“For the wages of sin is death. But the blessed gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord ”(Romans 6:23).
The eternal life that comes with true baptism is a selfless gift from God. A gift for which no one has the right to take money. Jesus Christ has already paid for every person on this earth. Paid with my own life. But as you already understood from this short article, the main thing is not even the price of the issue. The main thing is to understand the essence and meaning of baptism itself. Otherwise, it will be a useless ceremony that will bring you absolutely no spiritual meaning.
By the way, my baptism story ended well. A friend suggested that I open my Bible and start studying about baptism. How to really be a Christian. And after we looked at the main topics, I was baptized. Only it was no longer the frivolous baptism that I wanted to receive at the beginning. It was a baptism based on the Bible. And by the way, I didn't have to pay money for baptism if someone is interested in it.
If you want to understand the issue of baptism and this topic is important to you, then write to us through.
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