The Rite of De-Baptism

What does the image of a hair dryer have to do with atheism? The creators of "Debaptized" have adopted it because they intend to dry away the waters of baptism for all.

In recent years many Atheists have become more outspoken in the Western World. Famous Atheists such as Richard Dawkins loudly proclaim their beliefs and challenge theists. Since the Pope is touring through merry England, the nation's religious landscape has been under close scrutiny. One atheist group has had considerable success reaching out to British citizens, the creators of "Debaptized."

This group intentionally mocks the Christian ritual of Baptism in creating a counter-ritual: Debaptism. Once a person chooses to be debaptized through this group, they send a Certificate of Debaptism "suitable for framing." They maintain a website that has made over 100,000 requested British debaptisms.

They are unapologetically irreverent of baptism and religion in general. They describe baptism as :

"the ritual cleansing of sins. Typically administered to infants shortly after birth (without their consent) to remove Original Sin, of which they are guilty before even breathing."

And their understanding on the Christian concept of Original Sin:

"Original Sin is an hereditary sin. It is a sin of which all are guilty by having had ancestors who committed a particular sin. Despite no have actually committed the transgression yourself, you are nonetheless still required to be punished for it. Having to pay for crimes you do not commit is a human right violation."

And finally here is what they have to say about the concept of the soul in Christianity:

"A soul is a thing that, despite being both invisible and undetectable, is considered more important than a living person's happiness, well being and very life. This morally bankrupt viewpoint leads to the devaluing of human life and the reliance on an imaginary afterlife to give meaning to people's lives."

They believe that the symbolism behind debaptism is as significant as baptism itself because "debaptism can provide a new symbolism and ritual to ease you away from this morally empty worldview."

To these atheists, the whole religious hoopla is so utterly without reason, ultimately meaningless and potentially dangerous that they feel creating a fictitious rite to wean people off the need to believe in superstition is well worth the effort.

The whole point of the group and the popular website is to get people thinking about their beliefs and offers counterpoints to those beliefs, a very noble cause. The religious will see this whole activity as anathema to all they hold dear, but don't we need counterpoints every now and then? Don't we need our beliefs challenged in order to save us from complacency or worse?

There is real value in their campaign as well as their ideas. However, like religious zealots, dedicated atheists must refrain from going too far in pushing their beliefs on others. Still, the fact that the rite of debaptism exists is an especially poignant and clever way to create much-needed pressure to traditional beliefs.