Should Orthodox Churches Re-baptize Individuals and Re-ordain Ministers Coming from Mainline Denominations?
What constitutes Christian baptism and ordination? This question has arisen in a new way in our day as the once orthodox, mainline denominations have turned away from the true convictions of the historic, Christian Church. To put the matter bluntly, if orthodox ministries, missions, denominations, and churches do not recognize the baptism and ordination of persons received into cultic groups such as the Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Unitarians, and Christian Science Church, we might well ask whether we should now accept once-orthodox groups that have jettisoned their beliefs and practices for new-fangled teachings that deny both Scriptural and Church authority. To be sure, the Church has had various reasons to ask this question throughout its history. Ulrich Zwingli addressed the issue of ‘re-baptism’ in response to the arguments of Anabaptists in the 16 th century. The Anabaptists called for adult baptism and did not recognise the baptism of infants as baptism. (Thus, they