Frank A. James III describes this classic volume as "an apology for the Calvinist conviction that the children of Christian parents properly belong to the church and therefore ought to be admitted to its visible membership through the sacrament of baptism." "Schenck's passion and insight inspire us to discard our empty view of baptism with its sentimental, sleepy, and perfunctory notions of children," writes James in the introduction. "Instead, he would have us praise God for the wonderful grace extended to our covenant children." Schenck seeks to protect and preserve parents' responsibility to nurture their children spiritually. The Presbyterian Doctrine of Children in the Covenant was first published in 1940. Lewis Bevens Schenck (1989-1985) was a professor at Davidson College for forty years. Book jacket.

contents1. A Pastoral Overview of Infant Baptism2. Matthew 28: 18-20 and the Institution of Baptism3. Unto You and Your Children4. The Oikos Formula5. Baptism and Circumcision as Signs and Seals6. The Mode of Baptism7. The Newness of the New Covenant8. Infant Baptism in the New Covenant9. Covenant Transition10. Covenant Theology and Baptism11. Infant Baptism in the Reformed Confessions12. Infant Baptism in History: An Unfinished Tragi-Comedy13. The Polemics of Anabaptism: Antipaedobaptism from the Reformation Period Onward14. Baptism and Children: Their Place in the Old and New Testaments15. In Jesus' Name, Amen

Presents the richness of a covenantal approach to understanding the Bible. Treats the OT covenants from a successive standpoint.

This is a print on demand book and is therefore non- returnable. Paul Jewett, author of the creative and highly provocative book Man As Male and Female, here turns his critical attention to the practice of infant baptism. Jewett does not accept the traditional "covenant" argument for baptizing infants, and this book explains why he believes this argument fails. Infant baptism is not a subject which can be isolated. For, as Jewett would have his readers understand, one's view on this issue is integrally related to one's view of the sacraments in general and thereby to the whole doctrine of the church and salvation. Thus it is understandable that what appears to be a minor theological question has had such divisive effects on the church. A discussion of the historical source of infant baptism begins Jewett's critique and introduces such issues as the distinction between infants and children, the silence of certain early church fathers on the subject, infant communion, and catechetical instruction. The second and major portion of this book examines the theological issue, focusing specifically on the covenant argument, which suggests that baptism replaces circumcision as the sign of the covenant and thereby is given to infants. This argument, Jewett claims, fails to take into account the historical character of revelation, and contains certain contradictions. Jewett concludes with a creative defense of believer baptism, one which is theologically responsible and which recognizes the profound truths of covenant theology.

The issue of baptism has troubled Protestants for centuries. Should infants be baptized before their faith is conscious, or does God command the baptism of babies whose parents have been baptized? Popular New Testament scholar Scot McKnight makes a biblical case for infant baptism, exploring its history, meaning, and practice and showing that infant baptism is the most historic Christian way of forming children into the faith. He explains that the church's practice of infant baptism developed straight from the Bible and argues that it must begin with the family and then extend to the church. Baptism is not just an individual profession of faith: it takes a family and a church community to nurture a child into faith over time. McKnight explains infant baptism for readers coming from a tradition that baptizes adults only, and he counters criticisms that fail to consider the role of families in the formation of faith. The book includes a foreword by Todd Hunter and an afterword by Gerald McDermott.