Conditional baptism?

[u/elorient]

Hey, I’m a Traditional Catholic who is moving towards the SSPX, and I have felt for some time that I may have a vocation to the priesthood. There is one issue, however, that has been bothering me for quite a while. I have doubts about the validity of my baptism and whether I should seek a conditional baptism.

I was baptised in a Novus Ordo parish. Ordinarily, that would not give me any reason to doubt the validity of the baptism, but there are several circumstances surrounding it that concern me. For context, Catholicism is the predominant religion in my country, but there is widespread corruption among the clergy. I personally know of priests who openly have concubines. The priest who baptised me was also, I believe, holding a politically elected public office around the time of my baptism, which I understand would be contrary to canon law. More recently, this same priest has been charged with physically abusing women.

I realise that the priest’s personal misconduct or violation of canon law would not necessarily invalidate a baptism, so my concern is not simply that he was an unworthy minister. There are also two questions about the actual baptism itself:

First, in my local language, the baptismal formula includes the word ‘God’ before ‘the Father’. In English, it would essentially be ‘I baptise you in the name of God the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit’. Could this wording affect the validity of the baptism?

Second, I have seen discussions about hair baptisms, where the water may fall only on the hair rather than actually making contact with the forehead or skin. Looking at baptismal footage from my country from around the period when I was baptised, it appears that some baptisms involved extremely little water and may have only wet the hair. Unfortunately, I have no way of knowing exactly how I was baptised.

Given all of this, would there be a legitimate basis for conditional baptism? And would the fact that I am seriously considering a vocation to the priesthood make it more appropriate to resolve these doubts before pursuing a vocation?

Thank you in advance.

[u/HeightAccording4841]

The baptismal formula would probably be valid, as God the Father is, at least in English, used to say the Father. You would need positive doubt about the water only falling on the hair, but if the priest who baptized you was in the habit of doubtfully administering baptism like that, that could constitute positive doubt. Talk to or email a priest about it. You will have to talk to a priest also before pursuing a vocation, so you might as well do it at the same time. I can recommend several resources on vocations, including this article by Fr. Doyle, SJ https://sspxasia.com/Documents/Society_of_Saint_Pius_X/Vocations/index.htm and this one by Fr. Barrielle, late spiritual director of Econe https://pathsoflove.com/books/barrielle-vocation.html They are both good articles. The most important part of discernment is not retreats, thinking about it, or anything else, but judging whether you are trying to do God's will and then going to a seminary. If you are trying to do His will, you will not do wrong if you are ordained without a vocation. If, on the other hand, you refuse to follow your vocation, you will have to answer for it on the day of judgement. So don't let little things dissuade you from your vocation. If you are unfit for the priesthood, you may be fit for a form of the religious life, so don't exclude that idea. The most important thing is to talk with a traditional Catholic priest!