The word "baptism" or "christening" is sometimes used to describe the inauguration of certain objects for use.
Baptism of objects
Baptism
Baptism | Baptism of objects
The word "baptism" is sometimes used to describe the inauguration of certain objects for use Yes, is sometimes used to describe the inauguration of certain objects for use. Yes, it is sometimes used to describe the inauguration of certain objects for use. Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context.
who was the leader of the soviet union when sputnik was launched
user
Nikita Khrushchev
assistant
when was this satellite launched?
user
4 October 1957
assistant
which place was it launched from?
user
Site No.1/5, at the 5th Tyuratam range, in Kazakh SSR
assistant
which was the organization behind this launch?
user
Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context.
assistant
where was the leader mentioned above born?
user
Kalinovka village in what is now Russia's Kursk Oblast
assistant
was he against any religion?
user
Yes. He was anti-religious
assistant
in what way did he push this belief forward?
user
He banned all services held outside of church walls, renewed enforcement of the 1929 legislation banning pilgrimages, and recorded the personal identities of all adults requesting church baptisms, weddings, or funerals
assistant
of the three practices finally mentioned, elaborate on the first one.
user
It is a Christian rite of admission and adoption, almost invariably with the use of water, into Christianity
assistant
where does the name of this practice come from?
user
Through Latin from the neuter Greek concept noun "baptisma", which is a neologism in the New Testament derived from the masculine Greek noun "baptismos"
assistant
which place did this practice start from?
user
Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context.
assistant
is this practice applicable to objects?
user
Anabaptists denied the validity of infant baptism, which was the normal practice when their movement started and practiced believer's baptism instead. Several groups related to Anabaptism, notably the Baptists and Dunkards, soon practiced baptism by immersion as following the Biblical example.
History of baptism | Introduction
The Apostolic Tradition, sometimes attributed to Hippolytus of Rome (died 235), describes how to perform the ceremony of baptism; it states that children were baptised first, and if any of them could not answer for themselves, their parents or someone else from their family was to answer for them. From at least the 3rd century onward Christians baptised infants as standard practice, although some preferred to postpone baptism until late in life, so as to ensure forgiveness for all their preceding sins.
Infant baptism | Antiquity
The word "baptism" or "christening" is sometimes used to describe the inauguration of certain objects for use.
Baptism | Baptism of objects
This, taken in connexion with the known customs of later ages, make it more than probable that the usual method of administration was by affusion only." Taking into account the positive archaeological evidence of post-Constantinian times, Roger concludes: "All the evidence of archaeology goes to prove that the essential part of baptism was considered in the early Church to be the pouring of water over the candidate's head by the bishop, or the guiding his head under a descending stream, followed by the laying on of hands"; he adds: "There remains the question, whether this was preceded by a self-immersion".
Baptism in early Christianity | Studies before 1950
Several early Church Fathers seem to have taught that infant baptism is proper; Origen states that the practice of baptising infants is of apostolic origin. The Didache, the earliest appearance of non-biblical baptismal instruction, speaks only of adult baptism.
Infant baptism | Early Christian practice
A recent Bible encyclopedia speaks of the "consensus of scholarly opinion" that the baptismal practice of John the Baptist and the apostles was by immersion. A standard Bible dictionary says that baptism was normally by immersion. Among other sources, Old says that immersion (though not the only form), was normally used, Grimes says "There is little doubt that early Christian baptism was adult baptism by immersion.", Howard Marshall says that immersion was the general rule, but affusion and even sprinkling were also practiced, since "archaeological evidence supports the view that in some areas Christian baptism was administered by affusion". His presentation of this view has been described by Porter and Cross as "a compelling argument".
Immersion baptism | Archaeological evidence
Christians consider Jesus to have instituted the sacrament of baptism. Though some form of immersion was likely the most common method of baptism in the early church, many of the writings from the ancient church appeared to view this mode of baptism as inconsequential. The Didache 7.1–3 (AD 60–150) allowed for affusion practices in situations where immersion was not practical. Likewise, Tertullian (AD 196–212) allowed for varying approaches to baptism even if those practices did not conform to biblical or traditional mandates (cf. De corona militis 3; De baptismo 17). Finally, Cyprian (ca. AD 256) explicitly stated that the amount of water was inconsequential and defended immersion, affusion, and aspersion practices (Epistle 75.12).
Baptism | History
A practice similar to baptism is known to have been practiced by the Jewish Essenes between the 2nd century BC and the 1st century AD. The Jewish Encyclopedia compares Christian baptism to ancient Jewish purification and initiation rites involving immersion in water, and states that "Baptism was practised in ancient (Hasidic or Essene) Judaism".
Anachronisms in the Book of Mormon | Baptism
For the first 300 years of the church, the common requirement for baptism was a profession of faith following a conversion to Christianity. Advocates of believers' baptism argue that this implies infants would not be baptized since they could not profess faith for themselves. Beginning with Augustine, the Catholic Church solidified the practice of infant baptism and there is little mention of competing practices until the 1500s. Augustine held the view that baptism was a requirement for the washing away of sins. He was faced with the issue of whether an unconscious or unwilling individual on their deathbed should be baptized; he felt it was better to err on the side of caution and baptize such a person.
Believer's baptism | Reform
He mentions a 4th-century baptistery sufficiently large for immersion, Rice says that archaeological evidence demonstrates some early baptismal fonts large enough for adult immersion were later made smaller or replaced, to accommodate affusion baptism of infants, leading to mistakes in the dating of art works by 20th-century studies. In his contribution to the 1986 11th International Archaeology Congress on "What do the texts teach us on the equipment and furnishings needed for baptism in southern Gaul and northern Italy?" Jean-Charles Picard concluded that the texts speak only of immersion and that the area has no archaeological images of baptism by pouring water on the head.
Baptism in early Christianity | Studies in the second half of the 20th century
before the time of Constantine) direct archaeological evidence is limited to pictures of baptism in the catacombs of Rome. Rogers concluded that "the direct evidence from archaeology alone may not be conclusive to show that in pre-Constantinian times baptism by affusion only was practiced generally or indeed in any one single case; but it does show that there was nothing repugnant in it to the general mind, that no stress was laid on total immersion, that the most important moments were held to be those when water was poured over the catchumen, and when the minister laid his hand on his head.
Baptism in early Christianity | Studies before 1950
In "The Archaeology of Baptism" (1876) Wolfrid Cote, quoting Prudentius, who in his "Psychomachia" spoke of the "bathed chests" of the baptized, and the views of two earlier Italian archaeologists, stated that "the primitive mode appears to have been this: The administrator and candidate both standing in the water the former placed his right hand on the head of the candidate, and, pronouncing the baptismal words, gently bowed him forward, till he was completely immersed in the water". He included in his book a woodcut of a fresco in the Catacomb of San Callisto (a photographic reproduction appears in this article), and reported that one archaeologist interpreted it as a youth being baptized by affusion, while for another the youth standing in the water was "immersed in a cloud of water".
Baptism in early Christianity | Studies before 1950
Whether the earliest Christians practiced infant baptism, and thus whether modern Christians should do so, has remained a subject of debate between Christian scholars at least since the earliest clear reference to the practice by Tertullian in the early third century. Some claim that Biblical baptism can be interpreted and thus relative, others support the Biblical literal baptism as a public and personal testimony, without intermediaries, in the case of infants that cannot talk for themselves yet.
History of baptism | Infant Baptism
The Dictionary of the Bible (2004) says "Archaeological evidence from the early centuries shows that baptism was sometimes administered by submersion or immersion... but also by affusion from a vessel when water was poured on the candidate's head...". In one form of early Christian baptism, the candidate stood in water and water was poured over the upper body. Baptism of the sick or dying usually used means other than even partial immersion and was still considered valid. Internet-available illustrations of ancient Christian representations of baptism from as early as the 2nd century include those in CF Rogers, "Baptism and Christian Archeology", the chapter "The Didache and the Catacombs" of Philip Schaff's "The Oldest Church Manual Called the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles", and Wolfrid Cote's "The Archaeology of Baptism".
Baptism in early Christianity | Mode of baptism
The Oxford Dictionary of the Bible (2004) says "Archaeological evidence from the early centuries shows that baptism was sometimes administered by submersion or immersion… but also by affusion from a vessel when water was poured on the candidate's head…" The Cambridge History of Christianity (2006) also concludes from the archaeological evidence that pouring water three times over the head was a frequent arrangement.
Immersion baptism | Archaeological evidence
The Roman Catholic Church teaches that baptism is a necessity. In the 5th century, St. Augustine concluded that infants who die without baptism were consigned to hell. By the 13th century, theologians referred to the "limbo of infants" as a place where unbaptized babies were deprived of the vision of God, but did not suffer because they did not know of that which they were deprived, and moreover enjoyed perfect natural happiness. The 1983 Code of Canon Law (1183 §2) specifies that ""Children whose parents had intended to have them baptized but who died before baptism, may be allowed church funeral rites by the local ordinary"".
Criticism of Christianity | Limbo
John the Baptist adopted baptism as the central sacrament in his messianic movement, seen as a forerunner of Christianity. Baptism has been part of Christianity from the start, as shown by the many mentions in the Acts of the Apostles and the Pauline epistles. Christians consider Jesus to have instituted the sacrament of baptism. How explicit Jesus' intentions were and whether he envisioned a continuing, organized Church is a matter of dispute among scholars. There is a scholarly consensus that the earliest Christian baptism was normally by immersion, or at least that this is probable. Some interpret this as meaning total immersion or submersion beneath the water.
History of baptism | Early Christianity
In the Middle Ages, the church taught that children were born with original sin and that only baptism could remove it. Baptism was, therefore, essential to salvation. It was feared that children who died without baptism faced eternal damnation or limbo. A priest would perform an infant baptism soon after birth on any day of the week, but in cases of emergency, a midwife could baptise a child at birth. The traditional baptism service was long and repetitive. It was also spoken in Latin. The priest only spoke English when exhorting the godparents. Cranmer did not believe that baptism was absolutely necessary for salvation.
Book of Common Prayer (1549) | Baptism
Until the Middle Ages, most baptisms were performed with the candidates naked—as is evidenced by most of the early portrayals of baptism (some of which are shown in this article), and the early Church Fathers and other Christian writers. Deaconesses helped female candidates for reasons of modesty. Typical of these is Cyril of Jerusalem who wrote "On the Mysteries of Baptism" in the 4th century (c. 350 AD): The symbolism is threefold:
Baptism | Apparel
Baptism by immersion as performed by one of the church's workers is required for full participation. Some in the church claim it is a direct continuation of the 1st-century Christian church. Others in the church believe that a restoration of some sort may have occurred in the late 19th century.
Two by Twos | Introduction
Mandaeans revere John the Baptist and practice frequent baptism (masbuta) as a ritual of purification, not of initiation. They are possibly the earliest people to practice baptism. Mandaeans undergo baptism on Sundays ("Habshaba"), wearing a white sacral robe (Rasta) and consists of a triple full immersion in water, a triple "signing" of the forehead with water and a triple drinking of water. The priest (Rabbi) then removes a ring made of myrtle worn by the baptized and places it on his/her forehead. This is then followed by a handshake (kushta-"hand of truth") with the priest. Living water is a requirement for baptism, therefore can only take place in rivers.
Baptism | Mandaean baptism
Specifically, "Methodist theologians argued that since God never abrogated a covenant made and sealed with proper intentionality, rebaptism was never an option, unless the original baptism had been defective by not having been made in the name of the Trinity." In some cases it can be difficult to decide if the original baptism was in fact valid; if there is doubt, conditional baptism is administered, with a formula on the lines of "If you are not yet baptized, I baptize you..." In the still recent past, it was common practice in the Roman Catholic Church to baptize conditionally almost every convert from Protestantism because of a perceived difficulty in judging about the validity in any concrete case.
Baptism | Recognition by other denominations
In the early 16th century, the Anabaptist movement began demanding that baptismal candidates be able to make a confession of faith that is freely chosen, thus rejecting the baptism of infants. This and other doctrinal differences led both Catholics and Protestants to persecute the Anabaptists, executing them by fire, sword, or drowning. Anabaptist groups spread across Europe and later to Russia and the Americas. In 1641, the Baptist movements began adopting immersion. Some of them may have insisted on credobaptism by affusion a few decades earlier. The book "Martyrs Mirror" documents the history of credobaptists through 1660. Another argument posed by some advocates of believer's baptism focuses on the fact that most churches that practice infant baptism were heavily intertwined with the state in medieval and Reformation-era Europe.
Believer's baptism | Reform
Mandaeans revere John the Baptizer and practice frequent baptism (masbuta) as a ritual of purification, not of initiation. They are possibly the earliest people to practice baptism. Mandaeans undergo baptism on Sundays ("Habshaba"), wearing a white sacral robe (Rasta) and consists of a triple full immersion in water, a triple "signing" of the forehead with water and a triple drinking of water. The priest (Rabbi) then removes a ring made of myrtle worn by the baptized and places it on his/her forehead. This is then followed by a handshake (kushta-"hand of truth") with the priest. Living water is a requirement for baptism, therefore can only take place in rivers.
Immersion baptism | Mandaean baptism
There is a scholarly consensus that the earliest Christian baptism was by immersion. Thomas Schreiner likewise states that "Most scholars agree that immersion was practiced in the NT", identifying submersion as the form of immersion practiced. Heyler says most New Testament scholars generally agree that Christian baptism in the New Testament era was by immersion. Everett Ferguson similarly speaks of "general scholarly agreement" that the baptism commanded by Jesus was immersion in water by dipping, in the form of a "full bath". He describes medieval depictions of Jesus standing in water while John poured water over him as a "strange fantasy" deriving from later church practice.
Baptism in early Christianity | Apostolic Age
It was consequently known as "baptism of the sick". Receiving this baptism was regarded as a bar to Holy Orders, but this sprang from the person's having put off baptism until the last moment—a practice that in the fourth century became common, with people enrolling as catechumens but not being baptized for years or decades. While the practice was decried at the time, the intent of the criticism was not to encourage baptism by immersion, but to refrain from delaying baptism.
Affusion | History of affusion
Cyprian stated that 'God's mercy and grace should not be refused to anyone born', and the Synod, recalling that 'all human beings' are 'equal', whatever be 'their size or age', declared it lawful to baptize children 'by the second or third day after their birth'". In the 17th and 18th centuries, many infants were baptised on the day of their birth as in the cases of Francoise-Athenais, Marquise de Montespan, Jeanne Du Barry and Marie Anne de Cupis de Camargo. Infant baptism is seen as showing very clearly that salvation is an unmerited favour from God, not the fruit of human effort.
Infant baptism | Roman Catholic Church
Defenders of infant baptism have attempted to trace the practice to the New Testament era, but generally acknowledge that no unambiguous evidence exists that the practice existed prior to the 2nd century. During the Reformation, the relationship of the church to the state was a contentious issue, and infant baptism was seen as a way to ensure that society remained religiously homogeneous. As a result, groups that rejected infant baptism were seen as subversive and were often persecuted. Even in theological circles where some response to God's call is considered necessary for the convert (such as belief, confession, repentance, and prayer), a believer's baptism is sometimes categorized as a work instead of a response of faith, though not always (see Baptism in the Christian churches and churches of Christ).
Believer's baptism | Theological objections
The majority appear to have taught and practiced baptism by pouring, while a minority practiced baptism by immersion. The writings of Menno Simons seem at times to promote immersion as the proper mode, but his practice was by pouring. Bernhard Rothmann argued for immersion in his "Bekentnisse", and Pilgram Marpeck copied this idea into his "Vermanung", but weakened the position by accepting pouring or sprinkling as an alternate mode. The mode of baptism was debated by the Hutterites and the Polish Brethren around the turn of the 17th century, and the arguments for immersion by Polish leader Christoph Ostorodt were incorporated into the "Racovian Confession of Faith" in 1604.
Theology of Anabaptism | Baptism
Advocates of believer's baptism argue that the New Testament does not describe instances of infant baptism, and that during the New Testament era, the early church required converts to have conscious, deliberate faith in Jesus Christ. Defenders of infant baptism counter that the book of Acts records instances of the baptism of entire households. The assumption is that these household baptisms involved infants that are incapable of personal belief. Defenders of infant baptism have claimed that baptism replaces the Jewish practice of circumcision, citing Colossians 2:11–13 as New Testament support, and is therefore appropriate for infants. Advocates of believer's baptism counter that the Jerusalem council in Acts 15 was called to clarify circumcision long after the practice of baptism was established.
Believer's baptism | Scripture
Several ecclesiastical histories seem to omit any discussion of infant baptism. Eusebius of Caesarea (c.260–340 AD) gives ample discussion of baptisms, but makes no reference to the baptism of infants. Instead, Eusebius discusses the various positions, particularly during the time of Cyprian, wherein it was discussed whether those who were baptized by heretics needed to be re-baptized. This might be argued to be irrelevant if the individuals involved in heresy were baptized as infants, but the question was really whether a sacrament was valid if administered by a heretic, and so the question was whether a person baptized by a heretic should be rebaptized.
Believer's baptism | In the church
Mandaeans revere John the Baptist and practice frequent full immersion baptism (masbuta) as a ritual of purification, not of initiation. Mandaeans abhor circumcision and are possibly the earliest people to practice baptism. Early religious concepts and terminologies recur in the Dead Sea Scrolls, and "Yardena" (Jordan) has been the name of every baptismal water in Mandaeism. The Mandaic language is a dialect of southeastern Aramaic and is closely related to the language of the Babylonian Talmud. They formally refer to themselves as "Nasurai" (Nasoraeans). According to Mandaean sources such as the Haran Gawaita, the "Nasurai" inhabited the areas around Jerusalem and the River Jordan in the 1st century CE.
History of baptism | Mandaeans
Likewise, the church history of Socrates Scholasticus (305–438 AD) mentions a handful of examples of baptisms, none of which describe the baptizing of infants. However, by this time the practice of baptizing infants was common, as can be seen in the anti-Pelagian writings of Augustine. Similarly, the church history written by Evagrius Scholasticus (431–594 AD) also provides descriptions of baptisms, none of which communicate the baptism of infants.
Believer's baptism | In the church
To answer this question, he examines the negative evidence of ancient baptismal fonts, especially those found in archaeological sites, providing on pp. 347–49 a Synoptic Table of Fonts, with date, shape, diameter and depth, showing that some of them could not have been intended for full immersion. In his "Churches Separated from Rome" (1907), Louis Duchesne responded to accusations by Eastern Orthodox that the Roman Catholic was corrupted because of "the Filioque, baptism by affusion, unleavened bread, &c.", by pointing to the absence of any ancient representation of baptism that showed the neophyte actually being immersed totally.
Baptism in early Christianity | Studies before 1950
McGary's view became the prevailing one in the early 20th century, but the approach advocated by Lipscomb never totally disappeared. As such, the general practice among churches of Christ is to require rebaptism by immersion of converts, even those who were previously baptized by immersion in other churches. More recently, the rise of the International Churches of Christ has caused some to reexamine the issue.
Baptism | Churches of Christ
Infant baptism was widely practised at least by the third century, but it is disputed whether it was in the first centuries of Christianity. Some believe that the Church in the apostolic period practised infant baptism, arguing that the mention of the baptism of households in the Acts of the Apostles would have included children within the household. Others believe that infants were excluded from the baptism of households, citing verses of the Bible that describe the baptized households as believing, which infants are incapable of doing. In the second century, Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons, may have referred to it.
Christianity in the ante-Nicene period | Infant baptism
There are the remains of a piscina (Figure 21) for the washing of hands and vessels, possibly wall mounted, with a drain leading outside, or perhaps the waste water drained into a vessel. The church would have had wooden furnishings, now gone. Infant baptism had become standard by the eleventh century. Baptism was probably performed with much ceremony. The performance of baptism was evidence of a parochial church. A church decree from a synod in Dublin in 1186 ordered that an immovable baptismal font of stone be placed in the church in such a place as would allow a pascal procession to conveniently pass around.
St Doulagh's Church | Ceremonies in the church
The normal form of baptism for the first centuries—until at least the twelfth century—was immersion. However, when a person could not be immersed, baptism by aspersion or affusion was performed. There are records of people receiving baptism in prison, awaiting martyrdom, where immersion would be difficult or impossible, but the most common use was for a person who was ill and could not be removed from the bed; it therefore received the name "baptism of the sick." Because of its rarity, doubts arose about its validity, as is shown by St. Cyprian's affirming it in the face of questioning. At the time, baptism by aspersion, as by affusion, was regarded as a bar to Holy Orders; this appears to spring from the baptized person having put off baptism until he was in danger of death.
Aspersion | Early Christianity
The third century evidence is clearer, with both Origen (calling infant baptism "according to the usage of the Church") and Cyprian advocating the practice. Tertullian acknowledges the practice (and that sponsors would speak on behalf of the children), but, holding an unusual view of marriage, argues against it, on the grounds that baptism should be postponed until after marriage. Interpretation of the baptismal practices of the early church is important to groups such as Baptists, Anabaptists, and the Churches of Christ who believe that infant baptism was a development that occurred during the late second to early third centuries. The early Christian writings mentioned above, which date from the second and third century indicate that Christians as early as the second century did maintain such a practice.
Christianity in the ante-Nicene period | Infant baptism
The Roman Ritual declares that a child is not to be baptized while still enclosed (clausus) in its mother's womb; it supposes that the baptismal water cannot reach the body of the child. When, however, this seems possible, even with the aid of an instrument, Benedict XIV declares that midwives should be instructed to confer conditional baptism. The Ritual further says that when the water can flow upon the head of the infant the sacrament is to be administered absolutely; but if it can be poured only on some other part of the body, baptism is indeed to be conferred, but it must be conditionally repeated in case the child survives its birth.
Emergency baptism | Infants, babies, and fetuses
Early Anabaptists were given that name because they re-baptized persons who they felt had not been properly baptized, having received infant baptism, sprinkling. The traditional form of Anabaptist baptism was pouring or sprinkling, the form commonly used in the West in the early 16th century when they emerged. Since the 18th century immersion and submersion became more widespread. Today all forms of baptism can be found among Anabaptist. Baptism memorializes the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. It is considered a covenantal act, signifying entrance into the New Covenant of Christ.
Baptism | Anabaptist
The question frequently arose whether the children of Jews and other heretics and non-believers should be baptized against the will of their parents. Two schools of thought were generally followed: Therefore, even if children were being reared in error, the Church had no authority to intervene. This was the position taken by Aquinas. From Summa Theologica II-II Q. 10 Art. 12: The question was again addressed by Aquinas in Summa Theologica III Q. 68 Art. 10:
Thought of Thomas Aquinas | Forced baptism of children of Jews and heretics
John Chrysostom (c. 347–407) mockingly attributes to the Marcionites of the late 4th century a similar practice: if one of their followers who was being prepared for baptism died before receiving baptism, the dead person's corpse was addressed with the question whether he wished to be baptized, whereupon another answered affirmatively and was baptized for the dead person.
Baptism for the dead | Early Christianity
In the close of his comprehensive 2009 study, "Baptism in the Early Church", Everett Ferguson devoted four pages (457–60) to summarizing his position on the mode of baptism, expressed also in his "The Church of Christ" of 1996, that the normal early-Christian mode of baptism was by full immersion. He observed that "those who approach the study of baptism from the standpoint of archaeology tend to find greater probability that affusion, or perfusion was a normal practice; those who come from the literary evidence see a greater likelihood of immersion, or submersion, being the normal practice"; but he intended his own comprehensive survey to give coherence to the evidence (p.
Baptism in early Christianity | 21st-century studies
Unlike many of the 16th-century Anabaptists, Rothmann held immersion to be the proper mode of baptism. According to historian Darren T. Williamson, "He based his position primarily on three arguments: first, he argued along grammatical lines, not Greek grammar but Dutch/German. He contended that the meaning of the Dutch translation of baptism must be taken literally. Fortunately, the Dutch words "doepen" and "dumpelen" meant literally to immerse or 'dunk in water'. It is important to note that although Rothmann was technically correct on this point of grammar, it was also as commonly understood that there was a long standing theological exception as practiced by the church, namely sprinkling.
Bernhard Rothmann | Baptism
In these last two cases, the rubric of the Ritual supposes that the infant has partly emerged from the womb. For if the fetus was entirely enclosed, baptism is to be repeated conditionally in all cases. In case of the death of the mother, the fetus is to be immediately extracted and baptized, should there be any life in it. Infants have been taken alive from the womb well after the mother's death. After the Cæsarean incision has been performed, the fetus may be conditionally baptized before extraction if possible; if the sacrament is administered after its removal from the womb the baptism is to be absolute, provided it is certain that life remains.
Emergency baptism | Infants, babies, and fetuses
Scholars "generally agree that the early church baptized by immersion", but sometimes used other forms. Howard Marshall says that immersion was the general rule, but affusion and even sprinkling were also practised. His presentation of this view has been described by Porter and Cross as "a compelling argument". Laurie Guy says immersion was probably the norm, but that at various times and places full immersion, partial immersion and affusion were probably in use. It is disputed where immersion was necessarily total. Tischler and the "Encyclopedia of Catholicism" say that the immersion was total. The same encyclopedia of Roman Catholicism notes that the preference of the Early Church was total immersion in a stream or the sea or, if these were not available, in a fountain or bath-sized tank, and "Eerdman's Handbook to the History of Christianity" says that baptism was normally by immersion, without specifying whether total or partial.
Baptism in early Christianity | Mode of baptism
The Catholic Encyclopedia notes: "As the acceptance of Christianity involved belief in a body of doctrine and the observance of the Divine law ("teach, make disciples, scholars of them"; "teaching them to observe all things whatever I have commanded you", Matthew 28:20 [see Great Commission]), it is clear that some sort of preliminary instruction must have been given to the converts." See also Council of Jerusalem. Justin Martyr, in his "First Apology", cites instruction as occurring prior to baptism: The "persuasion" would be carried out by the preaching of an evangelist; but since belief must precede baptism, the person concerned should be prepared spiritually to receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit through baptism.
Catechesis | Historic Christian practice
50 of these occurred in the week before 1 July when civil registration was made mandatory. Most of those baptised were over the age of one, mostly children with the oldest age recorded being 26. One view is the prevalence of baptisms in this year is that non-conformists wished to ensure their children and young adults were recorded before the introduction of civil registration.
Naseby | 1837 baptisms
John the Baptist, who is considered a forerunner to Christianity, used baptism as the central sacrament of his messianic movement. Christians consider Jesus to have instituted the sacrament of baptism. The earliest Christian baptisms were probably normally by immersion, though other modes, such as pouring, were used. By the third and fourth centuries, baptism involved catechetical instruction as well as chrismation, exorcisms, laying on of hands, and recitation of a creed. In the West, Affusion became the normal mode of baptism between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries, though immersion was still practiced into the sixteenth. In the sixteenth century, Martin Luther retained baptism as a sacrament, but Swiss reformer Huldrych Zwingli considered baptism and the Lord's supper to be symbolic.
History of baptism | Introduction
The Apostles' Creed, whose present form is similar to the baptismal creed used in Rome in the third and fourth centuries, actually developed from questions addressed to those seeking baptism. The Catholic Church still today uses an interrogative form of it in the Rite of Baptism (for both children and adults). In the official English translation (ICEL, 1974) the minister of baptism asks: To each question, the catechumen, or, in the case of an infant, the parents and sponsor(s) (godparent(s)) in his or her place, answers "I do." Then the celebrant says: And all respond: Amen.
Apostles' Creed | Rite of Baptism
It is not entirely clear what mode of baptism Hubmaier practiced, but it seems as though he continued practicing affusion as he had himself been baptized and that the mode of immersion among Anabaptists was a somewhat later development.
Balthasar Hubmaier | On Baptism
They could not, in good conscience have their babies baptized in their own churches, partly because the old Baptism Form had been replaced with, in their view, other heretical practices and liturgy, and partly because if the old Form was still used they could not answer "Yes" to the question whether they "believed the doctrine taught in their church was the truth of God's Word". After careful consideration, consultation with his consistory and others, and through anxious prayer, De Cock did baptize these children. This infuriated the clergy from the other congregations, who in turn notified the authorities. It was, in fact, this issue that De Cock's colleagues brought in protest against him at Classis.
Hendrik de Cock | History
In the West, this method of baptism began to be replaced by affusion baptism from around the 8th century, but it continues in use in Eastern Christianity.
Baptism | Mode and manner
This may be due to the practical difficulties of totally immersing an infant underwater. However, Eastern Orthodox and some Roman Catholics practice infant immersion. Amish, Old Order Mennonites, and Conservative Mennonites still practice baptism by pouring.
Affusion | Introduction
869 §1. If there is a doubt whether a person has been baptized or whether baptism was conferred validly and the doubt remains after a serious investigation, baptism is to be conferred conditionally.§2. Those baptized in a non-Catholic ecclesial community must not be baptized conditionally unless, after an examination of the matter and the form of the words used in the conferral of baptism and a consideration of the intention of the baptized adult and the minister of the baptism, a serious reason exists to doubt the validity of the baptism.§3. If in the cases mentioned in §§1 and 2 the conferral or validity of the baptism remains doubtful, baptism is not to be conferred until after the doctrine of the sacrament of baptism is explained to the person to be baptized, if an adult, and the reasons of the doubtful validity of the baptism are explained to the person or, in the case of an infant, to the parents.In cases where a valid baptism is performed subsequent to an invalid attempt, it is held that only one baptism actually occurred, namely the valid one.
Rebaptism | In the Catholic Church
However, inscriptions dating back to the 2nd century which refer to young children as "children of God" may indicate that Christians customarily baptised infants too. The earliest reference to infant baptism was by Irenaeus (c. 130–202) in his work "Against Heresies". Due to its reference to Eleutherus as the current bishop of Rome, the work is usually dated . Irenaeus speaks of children being "born again to God." This reference has been described as "obscure." Three passages by Origen (185–c. 254) mention infant baptism as traditional and customary. While Tertullian writing c. 198–203 advises the postponement of baptism of little children and the unmarried, he mentions that it was customary to baptise infants, with sponsors speaking on their behalf.
Infant baptism | Antiquity
They were taught the creed and the Lord's Prayer, examined therein, and exorcized prior to baptism. The days of scrutiny varied at different periods from three to seven. From about the beginning of the 12th century, when it became usual to baptize infants soon after their birth instead of at stated times (Easter and Pentecost), the ceremony of scrutiny was incorporated with that of the actual baptism. Currently, there are three moments for the scrutinies to occur: the 3rd, 4th, and 5th Sundays of Lent. These are done in public in front of the entire congregation, and the candidates are dismissed before the Prayer of the Faithful.
Scrutiny | Introduction
Alois Stenzel's 1958 study of baptism with a focus on liturgy argued that both immersion and affusion were practised by the early Church, since some baptismal pools which have been uncovered were too shallow for baptism and pictorial evidence favoured affusion. "Baptism in the Early Church" by George Rice (1981), in "Bible and Spade", cited Cote with favour and claimed that archaeology "overwhelmingly testifies to immersion as the normal mode of baptism in the Christian church during the first ten to fourteen centuries". Rice cites in particular imagery in the Catacomb of San Ponziano and a crypt in the catacomb of Santa Lucina, as well as a 9th- or 10th-century fresco in the basilica of San Clemente he also states that "pictures of Jesus standing in water while John "pours" water over His head are of a much later date than those depicting immersion and they demonstrate the change in the mode of baptism that came into the church".
Baptism in early Christianity | Studies in the second half of the 20th century
As a result, there was no uniform or consistent mode of baptism in the ancient church prior to the fourth century. By the third and fourth centuries, baptism involved catechetical instruction as well as chrismation, exorcisms, laying on of hands, and recitation of a creed.
Baptism | History
Scholars disagree on the date when infant baptism was first practiced. Some believe that 1st-century Christians did not practice it, noting the lack of any explicit evidence of paedobaptism. Others, noting the lack of any explicit evidence of exclusion of paedobaptism, believe that they did, understanding biblical references to individuals "and [her] household" being baptised (, , ) as well as "the promise to you and your children" () as including young children. The earliest extra-biblical directions for baptism, which occur in the Didache (c. 100), are taken to be about baptism of adults, since they require fasting by the person to be baptised.
Infant baptism | Antiquity
In the Whitsitt controversy of 1896–99, William H. Whitsitt, a professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, suggested that, contrary to earlier thought, English Baptists did not begin to baptize by immersion until 1641, when some Anabaptists, as they were then called, began to practice immersion. This overturned the idea of immersion as the practice of the earliest Baptists as some of the Landmarkists contended.
Southern Baptist Convention | Whitsitt controversy
If after extraction it is doubtful whether it be still alive, it is to be baptized under the condition: "If thou art alive". According to Catholic teaching, the fetus is animated by a human soul from the very beginning of its conception. In cases of delivery where the issue is a mass that is not certainly animated by human life, it is to be baptized conditionally: "If thou art a man."
Emergency baptism | Infants, babies, and fetuses
Scholars generally agree that the early church baptized by immersion. It also used other forms. Immersion was probably the norm, but at various times and places immersion, whether full or partial, and also affusion were probably in use. Baptism of the sick or dying was usually by means other than even partial immersion and was still considered valid. Some writers speak of early Christians baptizing by total immersion (i.e., submerging the person being baptized), or say only that total immersion was preferred. Others speak of early Christians as baptizing either by submersion or by immersion. In one form of early Christian baptism, the candidate stood in water and water was poured over the upper body, and the Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church says that at least from the 2nd century baptism was administered by a method "whereby part of the candidate's body was submerged in the baptismal water which was poured over the remainder".
Immersion baptism | Early Christianity
William Sanford La Sor, Lothar Heiser, Jean-Charles Picard, Malka Ben Pechat, and Everett Ferguson agree that early Christian baptism was normally by total immersion. Sanford La Sor (1987) considers it likely that the archaeological evidence favours total immersion. Lothar Heiser (1986), likewise understands the literary and pictorial evidence to indicate total immersion. Jean-Charles Picard (1989), reaches the same conclusion, and so does Malka Ben Pechat (1989). The study by Everett Ferguson (2009) supports the view of La Sor, Heiser, Picard, and Pechat. Frank K. Flinn also says that the immersion was total, saying that the preference of the Early Church was total immersion in a stream or the sea or, if these were not available, in a fountain or bath-sized tank, Commenting on early church practice, other reference works speak of immersion without specifying whether it was total or partial.
Immersion baptism | Archaeological evidence
Early Christian beliefs regarding baptism probably predate the New Testament writings. It seems certain that numerous Jewish sects and certainly Jesus's disciples practised baptism. John the Baptist had baptized many people, before baptisms took place in the name of Jesus Christ. Paul likened baptism to being buried with Christ in his death.
Christianity in the 1st century | Baptism
Baptism was not considered the end of spiritual endeavour but the reaching of maturity through the laying on of the apostles hands (known as "sealing"), after acceptance to full communion and the renewal of baptismal vows, was considered necessary to the full development of every person whether woman or man, lay or clergy. Classes were held for younger people and new members, a catechism was written, and regular contacts with the ministers having the care of the family or person was instituted and encouraged. Infant baptism was practised on the grounds that it was the only gate to eternal life, and it seemed wrong to deny this to anyone.
Catholic Apostolic Church | Spiritual development
Both East and West considered washing with water and the Trinitarian baptismal formula necessary for administering the rite. Scholasticism referred to these two elements as the matter and the form of the sacrament, employing terms taken from the then prevailing Aristotelian philosophy. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, while teaching the necessity of both elements, nowhere uses these philosophical terms when speaking of any of the sacraments.
History of baptism | Middle Ages
Baptism in Churches of Christ is performed only by full bodily immersion, based on the Koine Greek verb "baptizo" which means to dip, immerse, submerge or plunge. Submersion is seen as more closely conforming to the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus than other modes of baptism. Churches of Christ argue that historically immersion was the mode used in the 1st century, and that pouring and sprinkling later emerged as secondary modes when immersion was not possible. Over time these secondary modes came to replace immersion. Only those mentally capable of belief and repentance are baptized (i.e., infant baptism is not practiced because the New Testament has no precedent for it).
Baptism | Churches of Christ
Laurie Guy says immersion was probably the norm, but that at various times and places full immersion, partial immersion and affusion were probably in use. Tischler says that total immersion seems to have been most commonly used. Stander and Louw argue that immersion was the prevailing practice of the Early Church. Grenz says that the New Testament does not state specifically what action the baptizer did to the person baptized, when both were in the water, but adds: "Nevertheless, we conclude that of the three modes immersion carries the strongest case – exegetically, historically, and theologically. Therefore, under normal circumstances it ought to be the preferred, even the sole, practice of the church." Most scholars agree that immersion was the practice of the New Testament church.
Immersion baptism | Archaeological evidence
"The Church entrusts these infants to the mercy of God." The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued on 20 October 1980 an instruction on infant baptism, whose purpose was "to recall the principal points of doctrine in this field which justify the Church's constant practice down the centuries and demonstrate its permanent value in spite of the difficulties raised today". The document then indicated some general guidelines for pastoral action.
Infant baptism | Roman Catholic Church
Baptism (from the Greek noun βάπτισμα "baptisma") is a Christian rite of admission and adoption, almost invariably with the use of water, into Christianity. It may be performed by sprinkling or pouring water on the head, or by immersing in water either partially or completely. The synoptic gospels recount that John the Baptist baptised Jesus. Baptism is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. Baptism according to the Trinitiarian formula, which is done in most mainstream Christian denominations, is seen as being a basis for Christian ecumenism, the concept of unity amongst Christians. Baptism is also called christening, although some reserve the word "christening" for the baptism of infants.
Baptism | Introduction
The first version of it was written . The second, with insertions and additions, was written . This work, rediscovered in the 19th century, provides a unique look at Christianity in the Apostolic Age and is the first explicit reference to baptism by pouring, although the New Testament does not exclude the possibility of this practice." Its instructions on baptism are as follows: Commentaries typically understand that the Didache indicates a preference for baptizing by immersion. in "living water" (i.e., running water, seen as symbolic of life). Furthermore, in cases of insufficient water it permits pouring (affusion), which it differentiates from immersion, using the Greek word "ekcheō", ("pour", in the English translation) and not "baptizō" ("baptize", in the English translation), while at the same time considering the action done by pouring to be a baptism, giving no hint that this form made the baptism any less valid, and showing that immersion was not the only baptismal practice then acceptable.
Baptism in early Christianity | Apostolic Age
Only in French-speaking countries has there been a development of ceremonies, quite distinct from the sacrament of Confirmation, for young Catholics to profess their faith publicly, in line with their age.
Infant baptism | Confirmation
People can be cleansed from all personal sins through Baptism. This sacramental act of cleansing admits one as a full member of the church and is only conferred once in a person's lifetime. The Catholic Church considers baptism so important "parents are obliged to see that their infants are baptised within the first few weeks" and, "if the infant is in danger of death, it is to be baptised without any delay." It declares: "The practice of infant Baptism is an immemorial tradition of the Church. There is explicit testimony to this practice from the second century on, and it is quite possible that, from the beginning of the apostolic preaching, when whole 'households' received baptism, infants may also have been baptized." At the Council of Trent, on 15 November 1551, the necessity of a second conversion after baptism was delineated:
Catholic theology | Baptism and second conversion
Against Pelagius, Augustine insisted that baptism was necessary for salvation even for virtuous people and for children. The baptismal rite was significantly simplified during the sixth, seventh, and eighth centuries as fewer and fewer of those baptized were converts from paganism. The rite became much less important and was conducted very quickly. Prebaptismal catechesis was abandoned, and baptism was usually conducted shortly after birth.
History of baptism | Early Middle Ages
Baptism has been part of Christianity from the start, as shown by the many mentions in the Acts of the Apostles and the Pauline epistles.
Baptism in early Christianity | Introduction
Second, the Scriptural explanations of baptism in such passages as Rom 6:3-4 (baptism = burial), Col 2:11-13 (baptism = burial), and 1 Pet 3:21 (baptism = washing of the body, or bath) graphically describe an immersion. Third, he cited a few ancient authorities, Tertullian, Origen, Gratian's "Decretum", and "Beatus Rhenanus" (by which he meant collections of ancient texts edited by Rhenanus, a contemporary of Rothmann), who at least to some degree supported directly or indirectly adult baptism and immersion."
Bernhard Rothmann | Baptism
Two nouns derived from the verb "baptizo" (βαπτίζω) appear in the New Testament: the masculine noun "baptismos" (βαπτισμός) and the neuter noun "baptisma" (βάπτισμα):
Baptism | Derived nouns
In fact, in the same chapter 8 of the "Acts of the Apostles", the preposition εἰς appears 11 times, but only once is it commonly translated as "into"; in the other verses in which it appears it is best translated as "to". The same ambiguity pertains to the preposition ἐκ.
Immersion baptism | Grammatical criticism
The theology of baptism attained precision in the 3rd and 4th centuries. While instruction was at first given after baptism, believers were given increasingly specific instructions before being baptized, especially in the face of heresies in the 4th century. By the 4th and 5th centuries, a series of rites spread over several weeks led up to the actual baptism at Easter: catechumens attended several meetings of intensive catechetical instruction, often by the bishop himself, and often accompanied by special prayers, exorcisms, and other rites. Catechumens recited the Creed on Holy Saturday to show that they had completed their catechetical instruction.
Baptism in early Christianity | Theology
St. John Chrysostom mentions the custom in his day of all Christians washing their hands before entering the church for worship. This practice was first legislated in the Rule of St. Benedict in the 6th century, but has earlier antecedents.
Lavabo | Ablutions before Christian prayer and worship
The Ecumenical Council of Florence (1442) spoke of baptism as necessary even for children and required that they be baptised soon after birth. This had earlier been affirmed at the local Council of Carthage (417). The Council of Florence also stated that those who die in original sin alone go to hell, but with pains unequal to those suffered by those who had committed actual mortal sins. John Wycliffe's attack on the necessity of infant baptism was condemned by another general council, the Council of Constance. The Council of Trent in 1547 explicitly stated that baptism (or desire for baptism) was the means by which one is transferred "from that state wherein man is born a child of the first Adam, to the state of grace, and of the adoption of the sons of God, through the second Adam, Jesus Christ, our Saviour.
Limbo | Modern era
The early Christian Church reflected the contemporary attitudes of Judaism towards nudity. The Old Testament is not positive towards nudity. In , Isaiah walks nude as a sign of shame. The first recorded liturgy of baptism, written down by Saint Hippolytus of Rome in his "Apostolic Tradition", required men, women and children to remove all clothing, including all foreign objects such as jewellery and hair fastenings. , however argues that complete nudity for baptism candidates (especially women) would not be the norm. He notes that at certain times and in certain places candidates may have been totally naked at the point of baptism, but the Jewish taboo of female nakedness would have mitigated widespread practice of naked baptism.
Nudity in religion | Christianity
Among those who take this view are Thomas Schreiner, Everett Ferguson, Di Berardino, Tischler, and Lang Others understand immersion as not necessarily implying submersion beneath the water. Kirsten Marie Hartvigsen distinguishes between immersion and submersion and considers both as possible early-Christian forms of baptism, as does Christian Strecker. Laurie Guy says: "The church most likely practiced full immersion, partial immersion and affusion at various times and places in the early centuries, with sprinkling being practiced rarely (and probably only for medical reasons) during that time period." Robin M. Jensen describes the early Christian baptismal ritual as having for basis "immersion in water (or a thorough soaking by pouring)", and describes the primitive, first-century ritual as having encompassed both "application of water (whether by immersion or by some other means) and an imposition of hands", adding that "'Baptism' originally conveyed the sense of water's application (if not also immersion) in its very definition".
History of baptism | Early Christianity
In 895, the provincial Council of Tribur commented on the traditional teaching that the triple immersion in baptism was an imitation of Christ for the three days he spent in the tomb, and the rising from the water an imitation of the resurrection of Jesus. The linking of the baptismal immersion in and rising from the water with the burial and resurrection of Jesus arguably goes back to Saint Paul, and the linking of the triple immersion with the three days in the tomb is found in Cyril of Jerusalem (c. 313–86) and Gregory of Nyssa (c. 335 – after 394).
History of baptism | Middle Ages
Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist in the River Jordan. Jesus was almost certainly naked when he was baptised. The early Christian liturgy of baptism required those being baptised to be completely naked.
Christian naturism | Baptism
In areas where those who practice believer's baptism are the physical or cultural majority, the ritual may function as a rite of passage by which the child is granted the status of an adult.Most denominations who practice believer's baptism also specify the mode of baptism, generally preferring "immersion" (in which the baptisand is lowered completely beneath the surface of a body of water) over "affusion" (in which water or holy water is sprinkled or poured over the baptisand). In the case of physical disability or inability to be totally submerged under water, as with the elderly, bedridden, and nearly dead, the pouring of water upon the baptismal candidate is acceptable to some despite the usual contention of credobaptists that unless there is immersion, the act cannot, by definition, be a baptism.
Believer's baptism | Practice
Spilsbury's presentation of believer's baptism by immersion of necessity engaged covenantal theology. He approved covenant theology and built his doctrine of the church on the "infallible certainty" of the eternal covenant of grace; he argued, however, that the spirituality of the New Covenant in Christ eliminated the possibility of an infant's participation in it. The issue of the salvation of infants dying in infancy he treated as an area of mystery. He argued that one's answer to that question does not affect the revealed qualifications for those who may legitimately receive New Covenant ordinances. Though the visible perpetuity of the Old Covenant included the circumcision of male infants, the exclusion of infants from the sign of the new does not mean that the new is less encouraging in its privileges than the old.
John Spilsbury (Baptist minister) | Believer's baptism
Latin Church Catholics generally baptize by affusion (pouring); Eastern Catholics usually by submersion, or at least partial immersion. However, submersion is gaining in popularity within the Latin Catholic Church. In newer church sanctuaries, the baptismal font may be designed to expressly allow for baptism by immersion. Anglicans baptize by immersion or affusion.
Baptism | Christian traditions
"Baptism of Dolls": the custom of 'dolly dunking' was once a common practice in parts of the United Kingdom, particularly in Cornwall where it has been revived in recent years.
Baptism | Dolls
Cote listed 67 still existing Italian baptisteries dating from the 4th to the 14th centuries, all of which he understood to have been used for total immersion. He made no mention of any pre-Constantine evidence. In 1903 Clement F Rogers published "Baptism and Christian Archaeology". This was a study of the archaeological evidence, both the positive evidence that paintings and carvings on sarcophagi etc. provide about how baptism actually was conferred, and the negative evidence given by the structure of baptismal fonts on how it could not have been conferred. He used literary sources plentifully but merely for illustration. For the first three centuries (i.e.
Baptism in early Christianity | Studies before 1950
In the West, baptism by aspersion and affusion slowly became the common practice in later centuries. In aspersion, an aspergilium may be used to place the water on the skin. The Roman Catholic Church regards baptism by aspersion as valid only if the water actually flows on the person's skin and is thus equivalent to pouring ("affusion"). If there is doubt about this, conditional baptism is administered.
Aspersion | Later developments
The practice entered the baptismal liturgy proper only as the catechumenate, rendered vestigial by the growth of routine infant baptism, was absorbed into the rite of baptism. Both exsufflation and insufflation are well established by the time of Augustine and in later centuries are found widely. By the Western high Middle Ages of the 12th century, sufflation was geographically widespread, and had been applied not only to sufflating catechumens and baptizands, but also to exorcism of readmitted heretics; to admission of adult converts to the catechumenate; to renunciation of the devil on the part of catechumens; to consecration and/or exorcism of the baptismal font and water; to consecration or exorcism of ashes; and to the consecration of the chrism or holy oil.
Insufflation | Distribution, geographical and functional
Acts of the Apostles, written , states that about 3,000 people in Jerusalem were baptized in one day on Pentecost. It further relates baptisms of men and women in Samaria, of an Ethiopian eunuch, of Saul of Tarsus, of the household of Cornelius, of Lydia's household, of the Philippi jailer's household, of many Corinthians and of certain Corinthians baptized by Paul personally. In Acts, the prerequisites of baptism are faith and repentance, but in certain cases (like Cornelius' household) the reception of the Spirit also precedes baptism. Also in Acts, some twelve men who had undergone John's baptism, a "baptism of repentance" that John administered, "telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus", were baptized "in the name of the Lord Jesus", whereupon they received the Holy Spirit.
Baptism in early Christianity | Acts
The second part (chapters 7 to 10) begins with an instruction on baptism, the sacramental rite that admits someone into the Christian Church. Baptism is to be conferred "in the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" with triple immersion in “living water” (that is, flowing water, probably in a stream). If that is not practical, in cold or even warm water is acceptable. If the water is insufficient for immersion, it may be poured three times on the head (affusion). The baptized and the baptizer, and, if possible, anyone else attending the ritual should fast for one or two days beforehand.
Didache | Baptism
John Calvin (1509–1564) wrote that "it is evident that the term baptise means to immerse, and that this was the form used by the primitive Church", but in the same context ("Institutes of the Christian Religion" IV, xv, 19), using the same verb "immerse", but indicating that it does not necessarily mean immersing "wholly", he also wrote: "Whether the person who is baptised be wholly immersed, and whether thrice or once, or whether water be only poured or sprinkled upon him, is of no importance; Churches ought to be left at liberty in this respect, to act according to the difference of countries." Modern, professional lexicography defines βαπτίζω as dip, plunge or immerse, while giving examples of its use for merely partial immersion.
Immersion baptism | Lexical criticism
Credobaptists counter with verses such as John 4:53, Acts 16:34 and Acts 18:8 in which entire households are said to have "believed". As such, the paedobaptist assumption is that household baptisms mentioned in the Bible involved infants, presumably incapable of personal belief.
Infant baptism | Household baptisms
Spilsbury said that all participation in the positive provisions of the old covenant was only a shadow of the spiritual reality of the new. An infant's exclusion from the positive ordinance of baptism forbids to him, or her, no spiritual blessing. The new covenant assumes the effectual working of the Spirit to create a believing community justified by faith in Christ and employs new positive ordinances as the symbols of its character.
John Spilsbury (Baptist minister) | Believer's baptism
Di Berardino describes the baptism of the New Testament era as generally requiring total immersion, Tischler says that total immersion seems to have been most commonly used, and Lang says "Baptism in the Bible was by immersion, that is, the person went fully under the waters". Sookey says it is "almost certain" that immersion was used. The "Global Dictionary of Theology" says that it is probable that immersion was the early church's normal mode of baptism, but that it was not seen as an important issue. The "Didache" or "Teaching of the Twelve Apostles", an anonymous book of 16 short chapters, is probably the earliest known written instructions, outside of the Bible, for administering baptism.
Baptism in early Christianity | Apostolic Age