Although I am of the mind that it is normative for covenant children to be born again and brought forth as the fruit of the new creation by the intelligible Word that is accompanied by even minimal understanding, whenever the Word raises sinners unto life it is always accompanied by the operative work of the Spirit who is free to work apart from the comprehended Word in the experience of infants. (John 3:8; James 1:18; 1 Peter 1:23) Surely, it is plain vanilla Reformed doctrine that God can regenerate covenant children in the womb or even at the font (even if it is not normative), but those who have been united to Christ in this way shall surely come to receive and embrace the teachings of Scripture, in particular the person and work of Christ, all in God’s appointed time. We can expect this to occur early in the regenerate child’s experience.

In Chapter 14 of the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF), saving faith is distinguished from believing. This distinction, which has implications with respect to infants and those who might suffer from cognitive impairment, is made plain when the standards teach it is by the grace of faith that the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls. (WCF 14.1) Moreover, in WCF 14 we read:

By this faith, a Christian believes to be true whatsoever is revealed in the word…

WCF 14.2

WCF 14.1 does not teach that by the grace of faith a Christian is enabled to have faith. Nor do the standards teach in WCF 14.2 that by this faith the Christian has faith. Rather, the Confession recognizes that the gift of faith is not the same thing as exercising faith in the act of believing. Similarly, the grace of repentance in the Westminster standards is distinguished from the acts of repentance.

Repentance unto life is an evangelical grace, the doctrine whereof is to be preached by every minister of the Gospel, as well as that of faith in Christ. By it [i.e., the gift of repentance], a sinner, out of the sight and sense not only of the danger, but also of the filthiness and odiousness of his sins… hates his sins, as to turn from them all unto God, purposing and endeavoring to walk with Him in all the ways of His commandments.

WCF 15.1.2

It is by the the gift of repentance that sinners are enabled to turn from their sin in specific acts of repentance. This is analogous to acts of believing flowing out of the one time gift of faith.

Given this unavoidable nuance, we can understand that when an adult Christian is sleeping, suffers from severe cognizant impairment, or becomes unconscious by slipping into a coma, the saint is not without the implanted gifts of faith and repentance even if he can no longer exercise those gifts in believing or turning in faith. However, unlike with infants who also can have dormant gifts of faith and repentance, such adults have volitionally received and rested in Christ alone. Infants have not.

By parsing (a) gifts of faith and repentance alongside of (b) the resultant acts of believing and repenting, we can now better consider justifying faith in elect infants. 

We just saw that it is by the grace of repentance and faith that sinners are enabled to repent and believe. Moreover, like the grace of repentance, the gift of faith is also a necessary and immediate result of regeneration. Which is to say, no regenerate person (even an infant) is without a new and irrevocable nature that possesses the newborn capacity (or propensity) to respond to the gospel in turning and trusting. Added to this, the standards correctly teach that “elect infants, dying in infancy, are regenerated, and saved by Christ, through the Spirit, who works when, and where and how he pleases…” In such cases, the outward call that effects the inward call unto regeneration is bypassed, which God is free to do.

Putting This Together:

We are safe to infer that if God can regenerate elect infants who die in infancy, he is free to regenerate elect infants who don’t. (Whether that is normative for elect covenant children is not my concern quite yet.) It is also safe to infer that all regenerate infants are granted the seed of repentance and faith (even without the cognitive ability to willfully turn and trust), lest there can be new creations in Christ, indwelled by the Holy Spirit, who do not have the grace of new life that is accompanied by the propensity to repent and believe the gospel. Notwithstanding and, also, per the Westminster standards, effectual calling (as a matter of definition) entails knowledge of Christ and his work, whereby sinners become effectually and cognizantly persuaded of the need to embrace the Savior.

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