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The latter wouldn’t be valid, as baptism also involves an intentional act. Merely touching holy water doesn’t baptize you. In fact, you don’t even need holy wat

The latter wouldn’t be valid, as baptism also involves an intentional act. Merely touching holy water doesn’t baptize you. In fact, you don’t even need holy water for baptism, strictly speaking. Any Christian can validly baptize any non-Christian by merely pouring any water over someone’s head and stating that they baptize this person in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. (Whether it is a licit baptism is another question.) As for the former, that could very well be an example of the absurdities that Pharisaical thinking can lead to. On the one hand, there is the prudential application of the law. On the other, there is the semantic manipulation of the law even to the point where its observance is rendered comically vacuous and nonexistent.

Y_Y 1y ago
So I could adversarially baptise people with a water cannon like they use for riots? What about cloud-seeding?
- lo_zamoyski 1y ago
  Adversarially? That doesn't sound especially compatible with the sacrament. Sacraments are generally freely received. In any case, you can't baptize an adult against his will. In extreme situations, when a person is in, say, a coma, there can be a presumption of consent, but as I understand it, if the person in question was totally hardened against the very possibility of baptism, then the presumption would prove false and no baptism would have occurred.
  - Y_Y 1y ago
    Ok, then maybe I'll restrict my wanton baptising to children and babies. It's a pity the LDS church got there first on baptising the dead. Maybe there's some scope for baptising the unborn though.
    - lo_zamoyski 1y ago
      FWIW, the LDS isn't really Christian. The theological differences are just too vast. Indeed, AFAIK, while the Catholic Church recognizes the baptism of many Protestant sects, it does not recognize the validity of LDS baptism. So a convert to Catholicism from the LDS must be baptized as part of his conversion. W.r.t. your first question [0]. [0] https://www.catholic.com/tract/infant-baptism https://www.catholic.com/tract/infant-baptism
extraduder_ire 1y ago
I've heard some claim that it's impossible to dilute holy water, and the resulting mix is still holy water. Following this logic, the entire ocean has been multiple flavours of holy water at once for centuries. Failing that, the subset which is has become homogenous throughout.

Y_Y 1y ago

So I could adversarially baptise people with a water cannon like they use for riots? What about cloud-seeding?

lo_zamoyski 1y ago
Adversarially? That doesn't sound especially compatible with the sacrament. Sacraments are generally freely received. In any case, you can't baptize an adult against his will. In extreme situations, when a person is in, say, a coma, there can be a presumption of consent, but as I understand it, if the person in question was totally hardened against the very possibility of baptism, then the presumption would prove false and no baptism would have occurred.
- Y_Y 1y ago
  Ok, then maybe I'll restrict my wanton baptising to children and babies. It's a pity the LDS church got there first on baptising the dead. Maybe there's some scope for baptising the unborn though.
  - lo_zamoyski 1y ago
    FWIW, the LDS isn't really Christian. The theological differences are just too vast. Indeed, AFAIK, while the Catholic Church recognizes the baptism of many Protestant sects, it does not recognize the validity of LDS baptism. So a convert to Catholicism from the LDS must be baptized as part of his conversion. W.r.t. your first question [0]. [0] https://www.catholic.com/tract/infant-baptism https://www.catholic.com/tract/infant-baptism

extraduder_ire 1y ago

I've heard some claim that it's impossible to dilute holy water, and the resulting mix is still holy water. Following this logic, the entire ocean has been multiple flavours of holy water at once for centuries. Failing that, the subset which is has become homogenous throughout.