baptism

• background

  • the word means dip/dunk
  • rituals w water as a symbol of cleansing exist in many religions
  • the roots in chrisitanity go back to jesus. after leaving his home he went to the desert to see his cousin john, a wandering holy man. he taught people needed to be cleansed from their sins by baptism to prepare for the coming of the messiah (prophesised king who'd get rid of the romans, feed the hungry and perform miracles)
  • j was baptised by john, which exposed his special relationship w god & started his public ministry "thou art my beloved son, in whom i am well pleased"
• jesus again

  • jesus' disciples baptised people when they became followers of j, so it became not only a ritual of cleansing but a way of introducing someone into their group.
  • johns gospel, j tells a potential convert "i say to you, unless one is born of water and the spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of god. that which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit" seeming to suggest j saw baptism as physical and spiritual
  • also "go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit"
• meaning

  • christian practices are mainly based on the previous bible passages, there's three contrastin viewpoints about the importance of baptism in church
  • orthodox christians, roman catholics and some parts of CoEngland: an irreversible spiritual change to a soul
  • protestants: a symbol of public commitment to christian faith
  • quakers (and some other denominations) dont practise baptism: you should show your membership to the church by living a christian life, not through a ritual
• catholic tradition


  • orthodox church, CC and CoE share a broadly catholic understanding
  • baptism is a mystery (orthodox chuch) or a sacrament (CC CoE)
  • the act of using water in a cleansing ritual, through god's grace, makes a profound and irreversible change to the person's spiritual existence
  • element of mystery and symbolism reflecting its history as a mystical initiation into another spiritual existence
  • for example, roman catholics believe all humans are born w original sin because it was passed on seminally to adam's descendants (everyone)
• catholic tradition p2


  • even new born babies who have done literally nothing could be considered sinful
  • the only way to be freed from original sin is to link with jesus whose death overcame the consequence of OS
  • they do this by reenancting death and resurrection and joining the spiritual community of the church, through a baptism service
• infant baptism (catholic)

  • roman catholics typically practise paedobaptism through a formal ritual, linking the child with christ. their soul is cleansed of original sin.

  key bits

  • the person performing the baptism, usually a priest, makes the sign of the cross on baby's forehead to symbolise they belong to christ
  • parents + godparents reject sin on behalf of baby, declarating faith in the trinity, accepting terms of membership to the church
  • priest asks god to make holy the water via holy spirit so the infant will be 'born of water and the spirit'
  • an irreversible change to the soul
• paedobaptism (catholic) cont


  • baby immersed 3x in the water, or has water poured over their head as the priest says "i baptise you in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit" to symbolise both washing away sin and death (going under water) and ressurection (coming out the water)
  • baby is annointed with perfumed oil consecrated by the bishop to symbolise the gift of the holy spirit and given a candle to symbolise that they have died to sin and risen to new life with christ
  • baby may be dressed in new white clothes as a sign of new life free from sin
• catholic baptism- emergencies and after


  • the roman catholic church teaches that baptism should be followed by catechesis (teaching of the catechism) as baby develops
  • when theyre old enough to understand the meaning behind baptism and living as a christian they take on responsibility for the baptism's promises via confirmation
  • in an emergency a baptism can be performed with any water by anyone and the person says "i baptise thee..." and wets the babies head a little
• baptist baptism


  • baptists are protestant so see baptism different to catholics
  • 16th century martin luther does some anticlericalism, hes excommunicated and starts a new church which the baptists grew from
  • dont believe in sacraments, symbols are unnecessary and sola scriptura. just copy jesus to live a godly life
  • jesus said in matthew 28:19 "make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit" that was an ordinance so must be taken seriously
  • so baptists follow jesus by not baptising babies as he was an adult when john baptised him
• baptist baptism cont


  • no original sin, so its not necessary to wash it away early
  • instead baptism is a ceremony of membership and commitment, as on eprepares to start their adult ministry
  • a public confirmation of trust in god and admittance to the church, thus its called believers' baptism or credobaptism
  • teens/adults join bible study groups to learn about christian faith as baptism is only meaningful if the person understands the commitment and one experienced member of the church acts as their sponsor
• baptist baptism steps/tutorial


  • a sponsor presents the candidate to the church
  • they make a speech called a testimony which outlines their belief
  • they enter the baptismal pool and confirm they turn from sin and accept jdawg as their saviour
  • the minister or guy performing the baptism says "i baptise you..." and pushes them backwards into the water then pulls them out again
  • people might cheer, adn the newly baptised christian gets out the pool, dries off and joins the congregation for the rest of the church service
• baptist baptism after


  • once baptised, theyre a full member of the church with rights and responsibilities
  • continue studying the bible and share in worship but are expected to share the work and ministry of the church community
  • may help with chores in the church, work with young people or do evangelism
  • have a say when the congregation is making decision sand when a new minister is being appointed
• arguments for pedobaptism


  • its a sacrament, somehting god does to the soul. the person baptised doesnt have to do anything because the key effects dont depend on their action, but gods grace so a baby can be baptised
  • its a mystery so humans cant understand what god does/his grace anyways. if you had to wait until you understood baptism no one would ever be baptised.
  • RC believe all humans have original sin so they need to be baptised to be freed and are able to rise and live forever with god after they die. so just in case the baby dies, we gotta get it early
• arguments for pedobaptism again


  • its the start of christian life, it gives the parents and godparents the responsibility to raise a little christian baby so the church ensures new members of the church will be ready for confirmation and the commitment that comes with being an adult member of the church
  • the early church praised it, the book of acts tells the story of the early church spreading and includes accounts of households being baptised.
  • luke 18:15-16 is used as justification, if jesus was happy to BLESS infants then the church should welcome them in the same way
• arguments against pedobaptism


  • j told the doscoples to make more disciples via baptism, a baby cannot be a disciple!! because theyre too baby, so just wait until theyre an adult ready to commit
  • j was babptised as an adult, christians should follow his footsteps, build a relationship with god before theyre baptised
  • baptists dont believe in original sin, children occasionally sinful because they dont know any better only when theyre adult enough can they commit to a christian way of life and wash away those sins.
  • infant mortality is nowhere near as big an issue as it used to be lol
• arguments against pedobaptism 2

  • baby recieves gods grace in all aspects of life. theyre part of the christian community through its bond w its parents. new babies are welcomed into the church which shares the responsibility of raising them as christians so baptism isnt the start of christian life
  • jesus didnt explicitly baptise any infants even in the book of acts and blessed the children in luke 18
  • also the start of christian life thing is flawed because plenty of people are baptised and then never confirm/ never join the church in any way