Shabbers, something else your DH needs to consider is that a priest has *no* obligation to baptize the child of non-practicing parent(s). Baptism is not magic. I believe this was what the other posters were referring to when they said the priest would have more of an issue with your non-Mass attending DH than a girl child named Athena.
I'm Orthodox, and my priest recently mentioned this very thing. He said he is quite often contacted via phone and email by people he's never heard of, and who aren't members of *any* Orthodox parish, who want him to baptize their kids or grandparents looking to get their grandkids baptized. If you won't attend church on a regular basis for at least a month before the baptism (and of course, after the baptism), he won't even discuss baptizing your kids. Period. There's really no point in baptizing kids if you're not going to raise them in the faith. Baptizing them just to call them Catholic or Orthodox or whatever is essentially useless without the living out of the faith.
Your DH says he wants the kids raised Catholic, but getting them baptized, confirmed, sending them to Catholic schools will give them *some* exposure to Catholicism, but without regular Mass attendance, prayers at home, etc., *outside* of school, they wouldn't really be truly raised in the faith. They wouldn't have a full understanding of the faith. What happens at school has to be reinforced at home, otherwise, there's a much less greater chance it will "stick."
I'm a good example: I was raised Catholic, with CCD classes and Mass attendance every Sunday, and Catholic school from eighth grade through high school. The religious ed I had was pretty dismal. My parents never bothered with religious ed at home once I was in grammar school. Same with my brother. And you think they wouldn't be surprised that I'm now Orthodox and my brother is Baptist. Yet they are.
Just another perspective.
I'm Orthodox, and my priest recently mentioned this very thing. He said he is quite often contacted via phone and email by people he's never heard of, and who aren't members of *any* Orthodox parish, who want him to baptize their kids or grandparents looking to get their grandkids baptized. If you won't attend church on a regular basis for at least a month before the baptism (and of course, after the baptism), he won't even discuss baptizing your kids. Period. There's really no point in baptizing kids if you're not going to raise them in the faith. Baptizing them just to call them Catholic or Orthodox or whatever is essentially useless without the living out of the faith.
Your DH says he wants the kids raised Catholic, but getting them baptized, confirmed, sending them to Catholic schools will give them *some* exposure to Catholicism, but without regular Mass attendance, prayers at home, etc., *outside* of school, they wouldn't really be truly raised in the faith. They wouldn't have a full understanding of the faith. What happens at school has to be reinforced at home, otherwise, there's a much less greater chance it will "stick."
I'm a good example: I was raised Catholic, with CCD classes and Mass attendance every Sunday, and Catholic school from eighth grade through high school. The religious ed I had was pretty dismal. My parents never bothered with religious ed at home once I was in grammar school. Same with my brother. And you think they wouldn't be surprised that I'm now Orthodox and my brother is Baptist. Yet they are.
Just another perspective.
