Controversy About Proxy Baptism

When a researcher dedicating his life to the practice of proxy baptism was looking at a Mormon genealogy website and discovered that some Mormons decided to perform a proxy baptism on someone who was still alive, and someone who is also a Noble Peace Prize winner, author, and Holocaust survivor with the name of Elie Wiesel. His father and grandfather were also selected for this ritual. By Monday, the records had changed. A spokesman for the Mormon Church told reporters that the names were entered into a genealogical database and that the process of selecting someone for proxy baptism is a completely different process. As for someone alive being on that site, he says that the name had been mistakenly entered.

            There has been much debate about proxy baptism of Jews and Jewish leaders are outraged. Many Jews were forced to convert to Christianity against their will and murdered or kicked out of countries if they did not. There is definitely a good reason why this would make them upset.

            An agreement in 1995 was made between Mormon and Jewish leaders to stop this proxy baptism, but research shows they have failed to keep up with this statement.

            Wiesel did not directly comment about this situation, but in the past he has said this about the practice of proxy baptism: 'Let them change their religion.' Which in turn really means nobody has the right to involve other people’s families in their religion.