Debaptism is all the rage-ideas?

[Chimera]

April 14th's Time online (http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1891230,00.html)had an article about the growing popularity of "debaptism", a movement begun by the National Secular Society (http://www.secularism.org.uk/) to help people protest being baptized before the age of consent.

Some friends and I like the idea and want to host a Debaptism Party as an atheist or skeptics event. Any fun ideas for a fun debaptism theme party? Perhaps submerging the head in beer or chocolate milk? Readings from Einstein and Sagan?

[Wolrab]

Sounds like a fun party theme. Be prepared to be labeled a Satanist or some other equally ridiculous term. Maybe you could warn Phred Phelps and he can protest, that would be a hoot.
What about cootie shots? I had many of them through grade school and several of my friends are dead of cancer (an obvious link). There should be an awareness campaign on the dangers of getting pretend vaccinations to ward off girl germs!

[Robster, FCD]

Get some holy water and perform homeopathic successions. The more dilute, the better. This should be done at a restaurant that serves pasta and good beer. The successioner should be dressed as a pirate for it to mean anything at all, of course.

[Chimera]

Get some holy water and perform homeopathic successions. The more dilute, the better. This should be done at a restaurant that serves pasta and good beer. The successioner should be dressed as a pirate for it to mean anything at all, of course.

Pirates!! Great idea. I am anticipating some Pastafarians.

[shawmutt]

Wouldn't a debaptism be an anti-theist event? Atheists don't care.

[madurobob]

Sounds like a fun party theme. Be prepared to be labeled a Satanist or some other equally ridiculous term. Maybe you could warn Phred Phelps and he can protest, that would be a hoot.
What about cootie shots? I had many of them through grade school and several of my friends are dead of cancer (an obvious link). There should be an awareness campaign on the dangers of getting pretend vaccinations to ward off girl germs!

I like the idea of getting an inoculation against woo, rather than a de-baptism. "de-baptism" suggests the baptism had some meaning in the first place.

Of course, be careful with the preparation of the inoculations, you don't want to give anyone Downs Syndrome... ;)

I prefer my inoculations to be corn in a liquid form, aged in oak barrels.

[AngelicAtheist333]

Wow! That sounds like so much fun! I hope you guys have a blast. Maybe I should try and throw a 'debaptism' party for my town? Like, a gathering of the few atheists in my area. :D

[thaiboxerken]

I don't see the harm in baptizing a child, in and of itself. It's the subsequent religious indoctrination that causes the harm. Personally, I think they should target circumcision first, as that is a physical mutilation of the genitals.

[Dunstan]

Some friends and I like the idea and want to host a Debaptism Party as an atheist or skeptics event. Any fun ideas for a fun debaptism theme party? Perhaps submerging the head in beer or chocolate milk? Readings from Einstein and Sagan?

Hey, hey -- wasting beer is a worse crime than baptism!

[Beerina]

Wouldn't a debaptism be an anti-theist event? Atheists don't care.

Ya. However, I'm still interested in a de-slicing-off-part-of-my-penis-tism. :mad:

[Robster, FCD]

Theres already a circumcision thread. Why does it have to spill over to here?

[JoeTheJuggler]

April 14th's Time online (http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1891230,00.html)had an article about the growing popularity of "debaptism", a movement begun by the National Secular Society (http://www.secularism.org.uk/) to help people protest being baptized before the age of consent.

Some friends and I like the idea and want to host a Debaptism Party as an atheist or skeptics event. Any fun ideas for a fun debaptism theme party? Perhaps submerging the head in beer or chocolate milk? Readings from Einstein and Sagan?

I think the traditional method is to have a ritual toweling off.

I once juggled at one--but the debaptized was also a juggler.

[CelticRose]

Wouldn't a debaptism be an anti-theist event? Atheists don't care.
I thought this was ridiculous at first too -- until I read the article.

It seems that churches are using baptismal records to overstate their membership. They're using those numbers as a legislative tool and to get funding. As a Christian who is against organized religion, I'm very disturbed by this, and I think most atheists and agnostics would be too.

I've been baptised into both the Church of Christ and the Southern Baptist church. I no longer belong to either of these organizations, yet they can use me to get funding. I don't like that at all.

I think, rather than having debaptisms, which are legally useless, there should be legislation requiring religious organizations to only count active members when reporting their membership. Anything else is outright fraud. There should also be periodic audits to enforce this legislation.

[slingblade]

I guess if that sort of protest somehow helps you, then you might consider it, and bugger what anyone else thinks of it or you.

I wasn't baptized before the age of consent. I was in my 20s. I feel no need to "debaptize" myself, and most of the time (literally 99.9% of the time) I don't even think about it. Because it's a non-issue.