Child blessing of Jesus
The blessing of children is a biblical narrative: the synoptics unanimously report that children were brought to Jesus "so that he might touch them" . The specific intentions associated with this are not mentioned in the reports mentioned. The disciples of Jesus stand in the way of this desire, which, however, is severely criticized by Jesus. In this context the well-known Jesus saying is used: “Let the children come to me and do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to them. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it ” . The disciples then give up their resistance. Jesus hugs the children, lays his hands on them and blesses them ( Mt 19.13–15 EU ; Mk 10.13–16 EU ; Lk 18.15–17 EU ).
Theological interpretation
Against the resistance of his disciples, Jesus reveals himself to be the friend of the children and gives them the kingdom of God as their property. Hence, this story is first of all the basis for the appreciation of children in Christianity . Because the text is one of the few passages in the New Testament on the position of children in the congregation, it played a certain role in the history of the discussion about infant baptism . There are basically two positions:
1. Churches that reject infant baptism emphasize that the phrase “... for such belongs to the kingdom of God” is uttered about unbaptized children. For some critics of infant baptism it is also significant that Jesus does not baptize the children or does not initiate their baptism , but "only" lays his hands on the children and blesses them.
2. For churches that practice infant baptism, the blessing of children is proof that children already have all the qualities needed to come to Jesus. That is why they can also be baptized, especially since the devotion and blessing of the Messiah have a different quality than the blessing of the church. For them, the baptism of children is based on the mandate of the risen Christ, whereas neither in the case of the child blessing of Jesus nor anywhere else is there a commission for the special blessing of children.
Because the church is commanded to bless people in general, child blessing is practiced by almost all churches. In particular, churches that do not practice infant baptism often have their own rite of child blessing .
reception
The theme of the blessing of children found u. a. musical recording in Johannes Freders chorale: Oh dear Herre Jesu Christ , ( EG 203) as well as in Cornelius Becker let the children come . In the visual arts, Rembrandt's painting Let the Children Come to Me caused quite a stir.
literature
- Edmund Schlink : The Doctrine of Baptism . In: Leiturgia. Handbook of evangelical worship. Volume V: The Baptism Service. Johannes Stauda Verlag, Kassel 1969, ISBN 3-7982-0032-7 , p. 755 ff.
- Ferdinand Hahn : Blessing and baptism of children in the oldest Christianity. In: Hubert Frankemölle , Karl Kertelge (Hrsg.): From early Christianity to Jesus (FS Joachim Gnilka). Herder, Freiburg a. a. 1989, pp. 497-509.