Child Dedication

Definition and Meaning

The Korean term for child dedication (heonasik) means "the rite of offering a child." Parents bring their young child before the congregation, confess that they are entrusting the child to God, and vow to raise the child in the faith. The pastor and the church then bless the child and the family and pray for them. No outward sign such as water is used, and most denominations do not regard the rite as a sacrament (a holy rite that the church holds to have been instituted by Christ). The same rite is also called a "dedication service" or a "baby blessing."

Biblical and Historical Background

Churches that practice child dedication cite several biblical passages in support of it:

• Hannah dedicating to the Lord her son Samuel, whom she had received in answer to prayer (1 Samuel 1)
• Mary and Joseph bringing the infant Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (Luke 2:22–24), on which occasion Simeon and Anna received the child
• Jesus taking little children in his arms and blessing them (Mark 10:13–16)

Child dedication is generally understood to have developed chiefly within traditions that do not practice infant baptism. These traditions baptize only those who have personally professed faith, so another rite was needed to bless young children within the church community before they are baptized. The rite is widely practiced in Baptist and many other evangelical churches.

Practice in Korean Churches

In Korea, child dedication is practiced mainly by Baptist churches, such as those of the Korea Baptist Convention. The order generally proceeds as follows:

• During a regular worship service, the parents come forward holding the child.
• The pastor asks the questions of the vows, and the parents respond.
• The pastor lays hands on the child or holds the child and offers a prayer of blessing.
• Depending on the church, a dedication certificate may be presented, or the congregation may join in celebrating.

Some churches hold a joint dedication for several families around Children's Sunday. A child who has been dedicated is baptized by immersion after growing up and personally professing faith.

Understandings differ by denomination:

• Baptists: Baptism is held to follow an individual's profession of faith. Accordingly, infants are dedicated rather than baptized.
• Presbyterians, Methodists, Holiness churches, and Anglicans: Infant baptism is administered to the children of believers. Presbyterians in particular, following covenant theology, understand infant baptism as a sign of the covenant and therefore do not regard child dedication as a substitute for it. Even within these denominations, however, some local churches include a prayer of blessing for infants separate from infant baptism.
• Pentecostal churches: Depending on the church, some administer infant baptism and others practice child dedication.

These differences are bound up with the infant baptism debate.