Belgian Catholics ask to be ‘de-baptized’
October 17, 2024
» Continue to this story on Katholisch
CWN Editor's Note: More than 500 Belgian Catholics have written to the apostolic nuncio, asking to be “de-baptized.”
The 524 people who signed an open letter to the papal nuncio said that they acting in protest, responding to the visit to their country by Pope Francis and his public statement that abortion is murder.
In Belgium as in Germany, Catholics are subject to a tax that is collected by the government for the Church. However unlike Germany, which allows people to change or drop their religious affiliation, Belgium requires that the individual’s name must not be listed on the church’s baptismal register. Since the sacrament of Baptism cannot be reversed, Catholic parishes do not delete names, but add a note on the baptismal register indicating that the person applied for “formal withdrawal from the Church.”
The above note supplements, highlights, or corrects details in the original source (link above). About CWN news coverage.
For all current news, visit our News home page.
All comments are moderated. To lighten our editing burden, only current donors are allowed to Sound Off. If you are a current donor, log in to see the comment form; otherwise please support our work, and Sound Off!
