"Infant Baptism" by Sean McGowan. A Simple Review of a Short Book

 


I was a Church of Christ minister for several years. I would do my duties and accomplish my responsibilities with the Air Force full time, and then when off-duty I would lead my little congregation. It's called "bi-vocational ministry". But while I was a Church of Christ minister, I began to realize aspects about baptism that went against what we taught and held to, everything from it's purpose, to the amount of water, to who is actually to receive the Christian rite. So I was delighted when Sean McGowan, Pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Tallahassee, Florida, put out his new, little 62-page softback, "Infant Baptism: An Introductory Sprinkling for Parishioners". Easy to read, simple to grasp, and empty of pretense or pugnaciousness.

McGowan stays on task. In other words, he doesn't wade out into the flowing waters to cover every topic related to baptism, but swims around in one of the major streams that feeds the subject: Family in God's covenant designs. He works with the Old and New Testaments to show how the current of Scripture is consistent regarding God's covenant relationships, so that it becomes clear that "the teaching of the New Testament only confirms the prior status of children in the church, not sets forth a fundamentally radical transformation in the status of children in the church's community" (18). And the way the author leads his readers, is friendly and thoughtful. A very comfortable and considerate work.

"Infant Baptism" is primarily for those who are "truly seeking a better understanding" and others who already embrace infant baptism but are trying to figure out how to "articulate why they believe the practice should continue" (3-4). Pastors, Bible teachers, moms, dads, disciples of various traditions and tribes will find this a beneficial work. I highly recommend the book.

My thanks to the author for reaching out to me, telling me about the book, and sending me a copy, which I used for this review. He simply asked if I'd be willing to read and review it, and made no demands on me. Therefore, since no hostages were taken, and no promises of riches were given, my analysis is freely made and freely given.

You can find the book here: Infant Baptism


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