Unbaptised children

[Erica Kylander-Clark]

I recently discovered a branch of my family in which all of the children are designated as unbaptised in the Household surveys. Does anyone have an explanation as to why the parents may have made this decision? The parents were baptised. (dates 1880s-1890s)
Thank you

[Mikael Persson]

Most likely the parents came to belong to another church/congregation and therefore thought that their children shouldn't be baptized in the Swedish Church.
(Some of the so-called 'free churches' (='frikyrkor') have understood that a person has to be taught, and he has to learn/understand, before he can be baptized. -- Compare Matthew 28:19, 20.)
 
Regards
Mikael

[Erica Kylander-Clark]

Thank you for your help! The family lived in Östervallskog, Värmland. Any suggestions as to how to go about finding out which church they may have belonged to?
 
Erica

[Irma Ridbäck]

They could have belonged to Baptistsamfundet, The Baptists. In some parts of Sweden the vicar asked the police to help him to bring the children by force to the church, in order to have them baptised. The parents were not allowed to join. My husband's grandmother was baptised this way at the age of seven. It happened in the parish of Ljustorp (in Västernorrland) in 1889.  
There could be same notice in the records of 'Kyrkostämman' in Östervallskog parish archives.  
These records are probably in the provincial archives of Uppsala (Landsarkivet).
 
Sincerely
Irma