Question:
Can a non-catholic baptize a dying person if the dying person expresses a wish to become catholic?
Answer:
According to Church law (Canon Law), in danger of death, anyone, including a non-Catholic person, can administer the sacrament of baptism, providing the following conditions are met:
- the person is in imminent danger of death,
- the person expressed the desire to be baptized, or his/her next of kin can testify that he/she has previously expressed such desire, or the dying person is an infant and its parents expressed such desire
- the person administering the baptism uses the prescribed Trinitarian formula: “【N.】, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”
- while water is used three times to either poured over, or sprinkle on the person, or the person is immersed in water three times
- the person administering the baptism must intend to do what the Church wills at baptism, even though he/she may not understand the faith.
I spoke with a number of retired nurses in Toronto. Apparently, in Canada, and I believe in many Western countries, in the past, all nurses…
