My wife and I were talking recently about The the upcoming Baptism of our granddaughter. During the conversation she told me when she was baptized at 8 years old in the Denver Stake in 1971 rather then having her father Baptise her she was baptized by one of the Priests. Now this had nothing to do with her Father's worthiness it was just how things were done at the time also she said she has to wait until a specific baptismal night of the month my question is this how common was this did anyone else experience this and when did it change and why the change?

Baptism is part of a priest's "Calling". Therefore in some wards it its the practice to allow the priests to "fulfill" their "callings"

That may have been more common then but the last few decades, most often, when the father is "worthy" (worthless?), he dunks his kids, if he wants to.

A certain night of the week was/ is common sometimes to save water or maximize attendance/ show. It is commonly done on Sundays nowadays, or, when the family is adamant, on the kid's birthday... to save them a few "sinless days".



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/11/2017 09:10PM by moremany.

When I was baptized in 1957, my dad was inactive in the church. He was a member but hadn't gone for a long time. I don't think I ever knew why but by the time I was 14,(1964) he "got religion" as he liked to say and was very active the rest of his life.

So when I got baptized,(my birthday is in January and I wasn't dunked until May, I think) my mom and I (don't remember if other family members were there or not) went to the Salt Lake Tabernacle and I was baptized by a young member of the military. He was visiting town, and I think our bishop at the time had something to do with it. The soldier may have been a relative of his. Don't know who confirmed me and not sure I have any written record of it.

It is a good way to ha e some pimply, masturbating kid do the baptism instead of your loving father.

My father was smarter than one might think. When I was baptism aged, he smoked and drank coffee. They wouldn't let him baptise me, so he just hung on casually for months, his message, "I don't baptise him, ain't nobody gonna baptise him." More than a year went by. Finally, when I was 9 1/2, the branch president invited him to baptise me. That, to me, is fair play in Mormonism.

I remember when my son became of age for the priesthood. The SP did like my outspoken attitude, so even though I was worthy he assigned someone else, a total stranger to do it. That, I think was my first step out of the church.

When I was little and lived in Hawaii, baptisms typically happened on Saturday mornings on Clister's beach. We'd hold the opening exercises in the chapel, then take a roughly 2-minute walk down a well-beaten path to the beach. Confirmation happened the next day in Sacrament Meeting.

In the three different wards I belonged to in Utah, unless there was a reason to do it at some other time, baptisms were held on Saturdays either late in the afternoon or early in the evening. They were typically done on the first Saturday of the month. These would have been children-of-record baptisms. When we were in the mission field, I don't remember if there was any designated day or time for baptisms.

I baptized my younger sister in the late 80's when I was a high school aged priest. My father was worthy. I think it is a part of the indoctrination program. It is the exercising of the priesthood and cementing the belief and practice in young men.

I also think it is seen as a privilege and it is doled out as a reward and a tool to elevate someones status in the church. I don't remember this happening much. I would think that a father would selfishly retain this right for his own enjoyment or gratification. In my case, my sister was the youngest of 6 children and maybe my father had 'been there and done that' and was willing to use the opportunity to cement the doctrine into his son.

This was in CA. I would suspect things could be different even in neighboring stakes.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2017 10:25AM by redpill.

Shorty after I turned 16, I got a phone call from my bishop asking me to baptize a girl in our ward. Her father wasn't a member, so I assume the bishop just needed someone to do it.

At the time, I assumed that it was the first of many baptisms I would perform in my life. About a year later, I baptized a friend from high school. That was my last baptism--except for the many people I "baptized" in the temple.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2017 11:07AM by CrispingPin.

I was asked to baptize a neighbor's 8 year old daughter (father inactive) when I was a priest. I declined.