Baptism in early Christianity
Encyclopedia
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.
and tradition have some similarity to baptism, and the two have been linked In the Jewish Bible
and other Jewish texts, immersion in water for ritual purification was established for restoration to a condition of "ritual purity" in specific circumstances. For example, Jews who (according to the Law of Moses
) became ritually defiled by contact with a corpse had to use the mikvah
before being allowed to participate in the Holy Temple. Immersion is required for converts to Judaism as part of their conversion. Immersion in the mikvah represents a change in status in regards to purification, restoration, and qualification for full religious participation in the life of the community, ensuring that the cleansed person will not impose uncleanness on property or its owners ( and Babylonian Talmud, Tractate
Chagigah
, p. 12). This change of status by the mikvah could be obtained repeatedly, while Christian baptism, like circumcision
, is, in the general view of Christians, unique and not repeatable. (Seventh-day Adventists, however, see baptism as repeatable if a believer comes to a new knowledge of Christianity, as in . They teach that it is also possible for a person who has fallen away
from following Christ to make a new commitment via rebaptism
.)
John the Baptist
adopted baptismal immersion as the central sacrament in his messianic movement.
was a 1st-century mission preacher on the banks of the River Jordan. According to Christian theology
, he was selected by God to proclaim the first coming of the Christ. He baptized Jews for repentance in the River Jordan.
At the start of his ministry, Jesus was baptized
by John the Baptist. Many of the earliest followers of Jesus were other people who, like him, were baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist.
Critical scholars broadly agree that the baptism of Jesus is one of the most authentic, or historically likely, events in the life of the historical Jesus
. Jesus and his earliest disciples accepted the validity of John's baptism, though Jesus himself detached the notion of repentance from baptism and promoted purity ethic in tension with rituals. Early Christianity
practiced a baptism of repentance which conferred the remission of sins. Christian baptism has its origin in the baptism of Jesus, in both a direct and historical sense.
John's baptism signified repentance in preparation for submission to Christ, and potentially made one a disciple of John. As Jesus had nothing to repent of, and was greater than John, his baptism seems contradictory to the Christian belief in the sinless Divine nature of Jesus Christ. However, Matthew, writing to a Jewish audience, records the protest of John on this account and informs that Jesus did so in order to "fulfill all righteousness." This has been understood by Christian commentators as teaching that as the incarnate Son of God
was obedient to parents
, and had submitted to circumcision
- that being the commanded initiatory ordinance of the Mosaic dispensation - it was also necessary that he should submit to John's baptism. And that this was also due to Jesus spiritually representing the high priest
, whom the law
required was to be ceremonially initiated into his office by washing and anointing.
In the gospel of Mark, the baptism by John is the setting for the theophany
, the revelation of Jesus' divine identity as the Son of God
, which is also seen in the Matthew account. Luke emphasizes the subservience of John to Jesus while both are still in the womb. The Gospel of John omits the episode.
Early explanations for Jesus' baptism that have remained popular include Ignatius of Antioch
's assertion that Jesus was baptized to purify the waters of baptism and Justin Martyr
's explanation that Jesus was baptized in his role as the ideal example for everyone.
states that Jesus at an early stage led a mission of baptism that drew crowds. , considered by many scholars to be a later editorial insertion, denies that Jesus himself baptized and states that he did so only through his disciples.
Some prominent scholars conclude that Jesus did not baptize. Gerd Theissen
and Annette Merz assert that Jesus did not baptize, detached the notion of repentance from baptism, recognized John's baptism, and put forward a purity ethic in tension with baptism. The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions also states that Jesus did not baptize as part of his ministry.
E. P. Sanders
omits John's account of Jesus' baptizing mission from his portrait of Jesus as a historical figure.
Robert W. Funk
considers the account of Jesus' baptism ministry in John to have internal difficulties: that, for instance, it reports Jesus coming to Judea even though he is already in Jerusalem and thus in Judea. actually speaks of Jesus and his disciples coming, not "εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν" (into Judea), but "εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν γῆν" (into the Judean countryside), which some interpret as contrasted with Jerusalem, the scene of the encounter with Nicodemus described immediately before. According to the Jesus Seminar, the passage about Jesus "coming to Judea" (as they interpret "εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν γῆν") to lead a mission of baptism probably preserves no historical information (a "black" rating).
On the other hand, the Cambridge Companion to Jesus takes a different view. According to this source, Jesus accepted and made his own John the Baptist's message of repentance, forgiveness and baptism; taking over from John, when the latter was imprisoned, he called for repentance and for baptism as a first step in accepting the imminent kingdom of God; and the central place of baptism in his message is confirmed by the passage in John about Jesus baptizing. After John's execution, Jesus ceased baptizing, through he may have occasionally returned to the practice; accordingly, while baptism played an important part in Jesus' ministry before John's death and again among his followers after his resurrection, it had no such prominence in between.
New Testament scholar Raymond E. Brown
, a specialist in the Johannine writings, considers that the parenthetic editorial remark of that Jesus baptized only through his disciples was intended to clarify or correct the twice repeated statement in the preceding verses that Jesus did baptize, and that the reason for its insertion may have been that the author considered the baptism that the disciples administered to be a continuation of the Baptist's work, not baptism in the Holy Spirit.
Other New Testament scholars also accept the historical value of this passage in John. This is the view expressed by Joel B. Green
, Scot McKnight
, I. Howard Marshall
. Another states that there is "no a priori reason to reject the report of Jesus and his disciples' conducting a ministry of baptism for a time", and mentions that report as one of the items in John's account "that are likely to be historical and ought to be given due weight".
In his book on the relationship between John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth, Daniel S. Dapaah says that John's account "may be a snippet of historical tradition", and comments that the silence of the Synoptic Gospels does not mean that the information in John was invented, and that Mark's account also suggests that Jesus worked with John at first, before moving to Galilee. Frederick J. Cwiekowski agrees that the account in John "gives the impression" that Jesus baptized.
The Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible
says that "though he [Christ] himself baptized not so many as his disciples; 'For he suffered them for an example, preferring one another.'
The Gospel of John remarks, in , that, though Jesus drew many people to his baptism, they still did not accept his testimony, and the Jesus Seminar
concludes, on the basis of Josephus's accounts, that John the Baptist likely had a larger presence in the public mind than Jesus.
includes several references to baptism as an important practice among early Christians and, while giving no actual account of its institution by Jesus, portrays him as giving instructions, after his resurrection
, for his followers to perform the rite (see Great Commission
). It also gives interpretations by the Apostle Paul and in the First Epistle of Peter
of the significance of baptism.
Baptism signifies
:
s and represents the believer's union with Christ, a union by which the believer shares in Christ's death and resurrection; cleanses of sin; incorporates into the Body of Christ
and makes one "drink of the Spirit." See Ex opere operato
.
The conception of a sacramental principle, widespread not only in the Greco-Roman world, but even in pre-Columbian America and in preliterate societies, took on a unique significance, and to Paul's influence is attributed an interpretation given to the Christian rite in terms of the Greco-Roman mysteries
. but little weight can be attached to the counterparts of baptism in mystery religions as an explanation of the Christian practice.
Matthew begins with the "generation" of Jesus as Son of David, followed by the visit of the gentile Magi
, and the flight into Egypt
to escapeHerod
, after whose death the holy family
returns into the land of Israel
, then moves to Nazareth
, and then includes a detailed version of the preaching of John the Baptist, followed by the baptism of Jesus. John protests to Jesus that he needs to be baptized by Jesus, but Jesus tells him to let it be so now, saying that it is fitting for the two of them ("for us") to thus "fulfill all righteousness." When Jesus is baptized, he goes up immediately out of the water, the heavens open and John sees the Spirit of God descend upon him like a dove, alighting on him, and he hears a voice from heaven say, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."
Later, at the request of the mother of James and John, who prompted her to present their request to him to declare that they are to sit one at his right hand and the other at his left, Jesus speaks of the "cup" he is to drink, and he tells them that they too will drink of his cup, but in Matthew's gospel Jesus does not explicitly state that the baptism with which he must be baptized is also the "cup" that he must drink.
The Gospel of Matthew also includes the most famous version of the Great Commission. Here, the resurrected Jesus appears to the apostles and commissions them to make disciples of all nations, to baptize, and teach. This commission reflects the program adopted by the infant Christian movement.
. At Jesus' baptism, he hears God's voice proclaiming him to be his Son, and he sees the spirit like a dove descend on him
During Jesus' ministry, when James and John ask Jesus for seats of honor in the coming kingdom, Jesus likens his fate to the cup that he will drink and to the baptism with which he must be baptized, the very cup and baptism in store for John and James (that is, martyrdom).
The traditional ending of Mark is thought to have been compiled early in the 2nd century, and initially appended to the gospel by the middle of that century. It says that those who believe and are baptized will be saved, "but he who does not believe will be condemned." Mark's gospel does not explicitly state that baptized persons who believe will be saved from the "wrath to come," the wrath to which John the Baptist refers in Matthew's gospel, but readers can infer
that being "condemned" includes the "wrath to come".
This gospel begins with a statement that it contains reliable information obtained directly from the original eyewitnesses and servants of the word. It introduces the conception of John the Baptist, the annunciation of Gabriel
to Mary
the virgin, the birth of the Baptist who will be called the prophet
of the Most High, and then the birth of Jesus, in the days of Herod, king
of Judea, and of Caesar Augustus
, emperor
of the Roman Empire. There follows the account of Jesus in the Temple among the teachers; and then the calling and preaching of the prophet John the Baptist in the days of Tiberius Caesar, emperor, of Herod and Philip, tetrarchs
, of Annas and Caiaphas, high priests
; and then by far the briefest account in the canonical Gospels of the baptism of Jesus.
The baptism of John is different from the baptism of the one who is to come after him. Jesus declares later that he has another baptism to be baptized with, and that he is under constraint (he isstraitened) until it is accomplished. (The petition of the mother of James and John, the personal request of James and John, and Jesus' declaration to them that they will be baptized as he will be baptized, and will drink the cup that he will drink, is not in Luke's gospel.)
In the Gospel of Luke, the risen Jesus appears to the disciples and the eleven apostles gathered together with them in Jerusalem and gives them the Great Commission without explicitly speaking of baptism, but readers can infer that "the forgiveness of sins" here includes "baptism" according to the preaching of the apostles at the time of Luke's gospel.
, 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 Corinth
ians and of certain Corinthians baptized by Paul personally.
In Acts, the prerequisites of baptism are faith and repentance. Acts associates baptism with receiving the Spirit, but the exact connection is not always the same.
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.
, and speak of baptism "in the name of Jesus" or "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ", but whether this was a formula that was used has been questioned.
mentions John the Baptist's baptizing activity, in particular his baptism of Jesus,, and his statement that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. It also mentions baptizing activity by Jesus, specifying that the baptizing was not done by Jesus himself but by his disciples.
Some references to water in John's Gospel have been interpreted as referring to baptism, in particular, the phrase "born of water and the Spirit" and the account of blood and water coming out of the side of Jesus when pierced after crucifixion
were established. Protestants in particular value the church of the Apostolic Age as a witness to Jesus' true message, which they believe was subsequently corrupted during the Great Apostasy
. Along with fasting, the practice of baptism may have entered Christian practice under the influence of former followers of John's.
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. 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. 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. Barclay observes the Didache shows that baptism in the early church was by total immersion, if possible, Barton describes the immersion of the Didache as "ideally by total immersion",, and Welch says it was by "complete immersion".
James V. Brownson notes that the Didache does not specify either immersion or pouring when using running water, and Sinclair B. Ferguson argues that really the only mode that the Didache mentions is affusion. Martin and Davids say the Didache envisages "some form of immersion", and the Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church refers its readers to its entry on immersion, which it distinguishes from submersion and affusion.
, Christians are to baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Baptism has been in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit since at least the end of the 1st century. In Acts , Christians baptize "in the name of Jesus" though whether that meant a spoken formula has been questioned.
s (Constantine
was not baptized until he was dying); but as baptisms of the children of Christians, using an adaptation of the rite intended for adults, became more common than baptisms of adult converts, the number of catechumens decreased.
As baptism was believed to forgive sins, the issue of sins committed after baptism arose. Some insisted that apostasy, even under threat of death, and other grievous sins cut one off forever from the Church. As indicated in the writings of SaintCyprian
, others favoured readmitting the "lapsi
" easily. The rule that prevailed was that they were readmitted only after undergoing a period of penance that demonstrated sincere repentance.
What is now generally called the Nicene Creed
, longer than the text adopted by the First Council of Nicaea
of 325, and known also as the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed because of its adoption in that form by the First Council of Constantinople
in 381, was probably the baptismal creed then in use in Constantinople, the venue of the 381 Council.
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 C.F 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.
, 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" (p. 31). 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". Cote described this painting as of great antiquity, probably of the 4th or 5th century, while remarking that it is impossible to ascertain the precise age of the pictures in the catacombs of Rome (pp. 34–35). The other paintings that Cote described are of much later periods, while the mosaic in the Baptistery of San Giovanni in Fonte, in Ravenna (erected in the 4th century), which shows John baptizing Jesus by pouring water on his head from a cup, Cote explained as the product of later restoring (pp. 177–178). The font in this baptistery Cote described as ten feet in diameter and three and a half feet deep. 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 (pp. 160–161). He made no mention of any pre-Constantine evidence.
In 1903 Clement F. Rogers published "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. 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. 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." (pp. 257–258) 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" (p. 304). To answer this question, he examines the negative evidence of ancient baptismal fonts, especially those found in archaeological sites, providing on pp. 347–349 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." (p. 49), by pointing to the absence of any ancient representation of baptism that showed the neophyte actually being immersed totally.
An article "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 (p. 126), as well as a 9th- or 10th-century fresco in the basilica of San Clemente (p. 127); 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". 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.
In 1987, on the basis of archaeology and parallels with Jewish practice, Sanford La Sor
considered it likely that total immersion was also Christian practice.
In the same year, Lothar Heiser, in his study of baptism in the Orthodox Church, concluded on the basis of the literary and pictorial evidence in that field that "the water customarily reached the hips of the baptizand; after calling on the triune God, the priest bent the baptizand under so as to dip him in water over the head; in the cases of pouring in the Didache and in sickbed baptism the baptized did not stand in the font"; but acknowledges that in present Greek practice the priest places the infant being baptized as far down in the water as possible and scoops water over the head so as to cover the child fully with water.
In 1995, Renate Pillinger concluded from the evidence provided by images and buildings and by some literary sources that it was usual for the baptizand to stand in water no more than hip-deep and for the baptizer to pour water over him.
With regard to the shallow baptismal fonts that archaeologists had discovered, Malka Ben Pechat expressed in 1999 the view that full immersion was possible even in small fonts with a mere 60 centimetres (less than 2 feet) of water, while the fonts that were even shallower were intended for the baptism of infants.
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. 857). Ferguson dismissed Rogers' 1903 study as dated with regard to both the depictions of baptism and his survey of the baptismal fonts.
Like Rice, whom he did not mention, Ferguson said that the size of the baptismal fonts was progressively reduced in connection with the prevalence of infant baptism, although there are a few cases where larger fonts are later than the smaller ones (p. 849). Ferguson also stated: "The predominant number of baptismal fonts permitted immersion, and many were so large as to defy any reason for their existence other than immersion" (p. 834).
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
has been part of Christianity from the start
Early Christianity
Early Christianity is generally considered as Christianity before 325. The New Testament's Book of Acts and Epistle to the Galatians records that the first Christian community was centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included James, Peter and John....
, as shown by the many mentions in the Acts of the Apostles
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles , usually referred to simply as Acts, is the fifth book of the New Testament; Acts outlines the history of the Apostolic Age...
and the Pauline epistles
Pauline epistles
The Pauline epistles, Epistles of Paul, or Letters of Paul, are the thirteen New Testament books which have the name Paul as the first word, hence claiming authorship by Paul the Apostle. Among these letters are some of the earliest extant Christian documents...
. Christians consider Jesus
Ministry of Jesus
In the Christian gospels, the Ministry of Jesus begins with his Baptism in the countryside of Judea, near the River Jordan and ends in Jerusalem, following the Last Supper with his disciples. The Gospel of Luke states that Jesus was "about 30 years of age" at the start of his ministry...
to have instituted the sacrament of baptism. How explicit Jesus' intentions were and whether he envisioned a continuing, organized Church
Christian Church
The Christian Church is the assembly or association of followers of Jesus Christ. The Greek term ἐκκλησία that in its appearances in the New Testament is usually translated as "church" basically means "assembly"...
is a matter of dispute among scholars.
Background in Jewish ritual
Although the term "baptism" is not today used to describe the Jewish rituals (in contrast to New Testament times, when the Greek word baptismos did indicate Jewish ablutions or rites of purification), the purification rites (or mikvah—ritual immersion) in Jewish lawsHalakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
and tradition have some similarity to baptism, and the two have been linked In the Jewish Bible
Tanakh
The Tanakh is a name used in Judaism for the canon of the Hebrew Bible. The Tanakh is also known as the Masoretic Text or the Miqra. The name is an acronym formed from the initial Hebrew letters of the Masoretic Text's three traditional subdivisions: The Torah , Nevi'im and Ketuvim —hence...
and other Jewish texts, immersion in water for ritual purification was established for restoration to a condition of "ritual purity" in specific circumstances. For example, Jews who (according to the Law of Moses
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
) became ritually defiled by contact with a corpse had to use the mikvah
Mikvah
Mikveh is a bath used for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism...
before being allowed to participate in the Holy Temple. Immersion is required for converts to Judaism as part of their conversion. Immersion in the mikvah represents a change in status in regards to purification, restoration, and qualification for full religious participation in the life of the community, ensuring that the cleansed person will not impose uncleanness on property or its owners ( and Babylonian Talmud, Tractate
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
Chagigah
Hagigah
Tractate Hagigah deals with the Three Pilgrimage Festivals and the pilgrimage offering that men were supposed to bring in Jerusalem. At the middle of the second chapter, the Talmud discusses topics of ritual purity.The tractate contain three chapters, spanning 27 pages in the Vilna edition,...
, p. 12). This change of status by the mikvah could be obtained repeatedly, while Christian baptism, like circumcision
Circumcision controversy in early Christianity
There is evidence of a controversy over religious male circumcision in Early Christianity. A Council of Jerusalem, possibly held in approximately 50 AD, decreed that male circumcision was not a requirement for Gentile converts. This became known as the "Apostolic Decree" and may be one of the...
, is, in the general view of Christians, unique and not repeatable. (Seventh-day Adventists, however, see baptism as repeatable if a believer comes to a new knowledge of Christianity, as in . They teach that it is also possible for a person who has fallen away
Backslide
Backsliding is a term used within Christianity to describe a process by which an individual who has converted to Christianity reverts to pre-conversion habits and/or lapses or falls into sin, when a person turns from God to pursue their own desire...
from following Christ to make a new commitment via rebaptism
Rebaptism
Rebaptism is associated with:* Anabaptism, from Greek ἀνα- and βαπτίζω * Rebaptism in Mormonism* Insistence on believer's baptism as in Baptist traditions* Some Pentecostal churches....
.)
John the Baptist
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
adopted baptismal immersion as the central sacrament in his messianic movement.
Baptism of Jesus
John the BaptistJohn the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
was a 1st-century mission preacher on the banks of the River Jordan. According to Christian theology
Christian theology
- Divisions of Christian theology :There are many methods of categorizing different approaches to Christian theology. For a historical analysis, see the main article on the History of Christian theology.- Sub-disciplines :...
, he was selected by God to proclaim the first coming of the Christ. He baptized Jews for repentance in the River Jordan.
At the start of his ministry, Jesus was baptized
Baptism of Jesus
The baptism of Jesus marks the beginning of Jesus Christ's public ministry. This event is recorded in the Canonical Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. In John 1:29-33 rather than a direct narrative, the Baptist bears witness to the episode...
by John the Baptist. Many of the earliest followers of Jesus were other people who, like him, were baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist.
Critical scholars broadly agree that the baptism of Jesus is one of the most authentic, or historically likely, events in the life of the historical Jesus
Historical Jesus
The term historical Jesus refers to scholarly reconstructions of the 1st-century figure Jesus of Nazareth. These reconstructions are based upon historical methods including critical analysis of gospel texts as the primary source for his biography, along with consideration of the historical and...
. Jesus and his earliest disciples accepted the validity of John's baptism, though Jesus himself detached the notion of repentance from baptism and promoted purity ethic in tension with rituals. Early Christianity
Early Christianity
Early Christianity is generally considered as Christianity before 325. The New Testament's Book of Acts and Epistle to the Galatians records that the first Christian community was centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included James, Peter and John....
practiced a baptism of repentance which conferred the remission of sins. Christian baptism has its origin in the baptism of Jesus, in both a direct and historical sense.
John's baptism signified repentance in preparation for submission to Christ, and potentially made one a disciple of John. As Jesus had nothing to repent of, and was greater than John, his baptism seems contradictory to the Christian belief in the sinless Divine nature of Jesus Christ. However, Matthew, writing to a Jewish audience, records the protest of John on this account and informs that Jesus did so in order to "fulfill all righteousness." This has been understood by Christian commentators as teaching that as the incarnate Son of God
Son of God
"Son of God" is a phrase which according to most Christian denominations, Trinitarian in belief, refers to the relationship between Jesus and God, specifically as "God the Son"...
was obedient to parents
Honor your father and your mother
The commandment Honor your father and your mother is the fifth of the Ten Commandments in the Hebrew Bible. The commandment is generally regarded in Protestant and Jewish sources as the fifth in both the list in Exodus 20:1-21, and in Deuteronomy 5:1-23, though in Catholic counting this is the...
, and had submitted to circumcision
Circumcision of Christ
The Feast of the Circumcision of Christ is a Christian celebration of the circumcision of Jesus in accordance with Jewish tradition, eight days after his birth, the occasion on which the child was formally given his name.The circumcision of Jesus has traditionally been seen, as explained in the...
- that being the commanded initiatory ordinance of the Mosaic dispensation - it was also necessary that he should submit to John's baptism. And that this was also due to Jesus spiritually representing the high priest
Kohen Gadol
The High Priest was the chief religious official of Israelite religion and of classical Judaism from the rise of the Israelite nation until the destruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem...
, whom the law
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
required was to be ceremonially initiated into his office by washing and anointing.
In the gospel of Mark, the baptism by John is the setting for the theophany
Theophany
Theophany, from the Ancient Greek , meaning "appearance of God"), refers to the appearance of a deity to a human or other being, or to a divine disclosure....
, the revelation of Jesus' divine identity as the Son of God
Son of God
"Son of God" is a phrase which according to most Christian denominations, Trinitarian in belief, refers to the relationship between Jesus and God, specifically as "God the Son"...
, which is also seen in the Matthew account. Luke emphasizes the subservience of John to Jesus while both are still in the womb. The Gospel of John omits the episode.
Early explanations for Jesus' baptism that have remained popular include Ignatius of Antioch
Ignatius of Antioch
Ignatius of Antioch was among the Apostolic Fathers, was the third Bishop of Antioch, and was a student of John the Apostle. En route to his martyrdom in Rome, Ignatius wrote a series of letters which have been preserved as an example of very early Christian theology...
's assertion that Jesus was baptized to purify the waters of baptism and Justin Martyr
Justin Martyr
Justin Martyr, also known as just Saint Justin , was an early Christian apologist. Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and a dialogue survive. He is considered a saint by the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church....
's explanation that Jesus was baptized in his role as the ideal example for everyone.
Baptism by Jesus
The Gospel of JohnGospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
states that Jesus at an early stage led a mission of baptism that drew crowds. , considered by many scholars to be a later editorial insertion, denies that Jesus himself baptized and states that he did so only through his disciples.
Some prominent scholars conclude that Jesus did not baptize. Gerd Theissen
Gerd Theissen
Gerd Theißen is a German Protestant theologian and New Testament scholar. He is Professor of New Testament Theology at the University of Heidelberg.-Education and career:...
and Annette Merz assert that Jesus did not baptize, detached the notion of repentance from baptism, recognized John's baptism, and put forward a purity ethic in tension with baptism. The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions also states that Jesus did not baptize as part of his ministry.
E. P. Sanders
E. P. Sanders
Ed Parish Sanders is a New Testament scholar, and is one of the principal proponents of the New Perspective on Paul. He has been Arts and Sciences Professor of Religion at Duke University, North Carolina, since 1990. He retired in 2005....
omits John's account of Jesus' baptizing mission from his portrait of Jesus as a historical figure.
Robert W. Funk
Robert W. Funk
Robert W. Funk , an American biblical scholar, was co-founder of the controversial Jesus Seminar and the nonprofit Westar Institute in Santa Rosa, California....
considers the account of Jesus' baptism ministry in John to have internal difficulties: that, for instance, it reports Jesus coming to Judea even though he is already in Jerusalem and thus in Judea. actually speaks of Jesus and his disciples coming, not "εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν" (into Judea), but "εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν γῆν" (into the Judean countryside), which some interpret as contrasted with Jerusalem, the scene of the encounter with Nicodemus described immediately before. According to the Jesus Seminar, the passage about Jesus "coming to Judea" (as they interpret "εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν γῆν") to lead a mission of baptism probably preserves no historical information (a "black" rating).
On the other hand, the Cambridge Companion to Jesus takes a different view. According to this source, Jesus accepted and made his own John the Baptist's message of repentance, forgiveness and baptism; taking over from John, when the latter was imprisoned, he called for repentance and for baptism as a first step in accepting the imminent kingdom of God; and the central place of baptism in his message is confirmed by the passage in John about Jesus baptizing. After John's execution, Jesus ceased baptizing, through he may have occasionally returned to the practice; accordingly, while baptism played an important part in Jesus' ministry before John's death and again among his followers after his resurrection, it had no such prominence in between.
New Testament scholar Raymond E. Brown
Raymond E. Brown
The Reverend Raymond Edward Brown, S.S. , was an American Roman Catholic priest, a member of the Sulpician Fathers and a major Biblical scholar of his era...
, a specialist in the Johannine writings, considers that the parenthetic editorial remark of that Jesus baptized only through his disciples was intended to clarify or correct the twice repeated statement in the preceding verses that Jesus did baptize, and that the reason for its insertion may have been that the author considered the baptism that the disciples administered to be a continuation of the Baptist's work, not baptism in the Holy Spirit.
Other New Testament scholars also accept the historical value of this passage in John. This is the view expressed by Joel B. Green
Joel B. Green
Joel B. Green, Ph.D. is Associate Dean for the Center for Advanced Theological Studies and Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, United States, and the author of numerous books, most of which are related to the New Testament.He is an...
, Scot McKnight
Scot McKnight
Scot McKnight is a New Testament scholar who has written widely on the historical Jesus, Christian spirituality, and the Emerging Church. He is the Karl A. Olsson Professor in Religious Studies at North Park University. Prior to joining the NPU faculty in 1994, he was a professor at Trinity...
, I. Howard Marshall
I. Howard Marshall
Ian Howard Marshall is Professor Emeritus of New Testament Exegesis and honorary research professor at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, specifically in the department of Divinity and Religious Studies...
. Another states that there is "no a priori reason to reject the report of Jesus and his disciples' conducting a ministry of baptism for a time", and mentions that report as one of the items in John's account "that are likely to be historical and ought to be given due weight".
In his book on the relationship between John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth, Daniel S. Dapaah says that John's account "may be a snippet of historical tradition", and comments that the silence of the Synoptic Gospels does not mean that the information in John was invented, and that Mark's account also suggests that Jesus worked with John at first, before moving to Galilee. Frederick J. Cwiekowski agrees that the account in John "gives the impression" that Jesus baptized.
The Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible
Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible
The Joseph Smith Translation , also called the Inspired Version , was a revision of the Bible by Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Smith considered this work to be "a branch of his calling" as a prophet. Smith was murdered before he ever deemed it complete, though most of...
says that "though he [Christ] himself baptized not so many as his disciples; 'For he suffered them for an example, preferring one another.'
The Gospel of John remarks, in , that, though Jesus drew many people to his baptism, they still did not accept his testimony, and the Jesus Seminar
Jesus Seminar
The Jesus Seminar is a group of about 150 critical scholars and laymen founded in 1985 by Robert Funk under the auspices of the Westar Institute....
concludes, on the basis of Josephus's accounts, that John the Baptist likely had a larger presence in the public mind than Jesus.
New Testament
The New TestamentNew Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
includes several references to baptism as an important practice among early Christians and, while giving no actual account of its institution by Jesus, portrays him as giving instructions, after his resurrection
Resurrection of Jesus
The Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus states that Jesus returned to bodily life on the third day following his death by crucifixion. It is a key element of Christian faith and theology and part of the Nicene Creed: "On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures"...
, for his followers to perform the rite (see Great Commission
Great Commission
The Great Commission, in Christian tradition, is the instruction of the resurrected Jesus Christ to his disciples, that they spread his teachings to all the nations of the world. It has become a tenet in Christian theology emphasizing missionary work, evangelism, and baptism...
). It also gives interpretations by the Apostle Paul and in the First Epistle of Peter
First Epistle of Peter
The First Epistle of Peter, usually referred to simply as First Peter and often written 1 Peter, is a book of the New Testament. The author claims to be Saint Peter the apostle, and the epistle was traditionally held to have been written during his time as bishop of Rome or Bishop of Antioch,...
of the significance of baptism.
- "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God" John 3:5 RSV
- "Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her by the washing of water with the word, that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish." Ephesians 5:25-27 RSV
- "God's patience waited in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you" 1 Peter 3:20-21 RSV
Baptism signifies
Sign (semiotics)
A sign is understood as a discrete unit of meaning in semiotics. It is defined as "something that stands for something, to someone in some capacity" It includes words, images, gestures, scents, tastes, textures, sounds – essentially all of the ways in which information can be...
:
- deathMortification (theology)Mortification refers in Christian theology to the subjective experience of Sanctification, the objective work of God between justification and glorification. Literally it means the 'putting to death' of sin in a believer's life. Reformed theologian J.I...
of the old self,, - cleansingRitual purificationRitual purification is a feature of many religions. The aim of these rituals is to remove specifically defined uncleanliness prior to a particular type of activity, and especially prior to the worship of a deity...
from the guiltGuiltGuilt is the state of being responsible for the commission of an offense. It is also a cognitive or an emotional experience that occurs when a person realizes or believes—accurately or not—that he or she has violated a moral standard, and bears significant responsibility for that...
and corruptionOriginal sinOriginal sin is, according to a Christian theological doctrine, humanity's state of sin resulting from the Fall of Man. This condition has been characterized in many ways, ranging from something as insignificant as a slight deficiency, or a tendency toward sin yet without collective guilt, referred...
of humansinSinIn religion, sin is the violation or deviation of an eternal divine law or standard. The term sin may also refer to the state of having committed such a violation. Christians believe the moral code of conduct is decreed by God In religion, sin (also called peccancy) is the violation or deviation...
, - salvationSalvationWithin religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
(being saved) from the wrath of GodDivine retributionDivine retribution is supernatural punishment of a person, a group of people, or all humanity by a deity in response to some human action.Many cultures have a story about how a deity exacted punishment on previous inhabitants of their land, causing their doom.An example of divine retribution is the...
to come, - adoptionAdoptionAdoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
as "sons of GodDivine filiationDivine filiation is a Christian concept of becoming a "child of God". The concept implicates a share in the life and role of Jesus Christ. Divine filiation refers to the relationship between Jesus and God, specifically as the second person of the Trinity, "God the Son"...
", - identification (solidaritySolidaritySolidarity is a Polish trade union federation that emerged on August 31, 1980 at the Gdańsk Shipyard under the leadership of Lech Wałęsa. It was the first non-communist party-controlled trade union in a Warsaw Pact country. Solidarity reached 9.5 million members before its September 1981 congress...
) with Jesus Christ himself.
Paul's epistles
The Apostle Paul wrote several influential letters in the AD 50s, later accepted as canonical. For Paul, baptismeffectCausality
Causality is the relationship between an event and a second event , where the second event is understood as a consequence of the first....
s and represents the believer's union with Christ, a union by which the believer shares in Christ's death and resurrection; cleanses of sin; incorporates into the Body of Christ
Body of Christ
In Christian theology, the term Body of Christ has two separate connotations: it may refer to Jesus's statement about the Eucharist at the Last Supper that "This is my body" in , or the explicit usage of the term by the Apostle Paul in to refer to the Christian Church.Although in general usage the...
and makes one "drink of the Spirit." See Ex opere operato
Ex opere operato
Ex opere operato is a Latin phrase meaning "from the work done" referring to the efficacy of the Sacraments deriving from the action of the Sacrament as opposed to the merits or holiness of the priest or minister....
.
The conception of a sacramental principle, widespread not only in the Greco-Roman world, but even in pre-Columbian America and in preliterate societies, took on a unique significance, and to Paul's influence is attributed an interpretation given to the Christian rite in terms of the Greco-Roman mysteries
Greco-Roman mysteries
Mystery religions, sacred Mysteries or simply mysteries, were religious cults of the Greco-Roman world, participation in which was reserved to initiates....
. but little weight can be attached to the counterparts of baptism in mystery religions as an explanation of the Christian practice.
Gospel of Matthew
;Matthew begins with the "generation" of Jesus as Son of David, followed by the visit of the gentile Magi
Magi
Magi is a term, used since at least the 4th century BC, to denote a follower of Zoroaster, or rather, a follower of what the Hellenistic world associated Zoroaster with, which...
, and the flight into Egypt
Flight into Egypt
The flight into Egypt is a biblical event described in the Gospel of Matthew , in which Joseph fled to Egypt with his wife Mary and infant son Jesus after a visit by Magi because they learn that King Herod intends to kill the infants of that area...
to escapeHerod
Herod the Great
Herod , also known as Herod the Great , was a Roman client king of Judea. His epithet of "the Great" is widely disputed as he is described as "a madman who murdered his own family and a great many rabbis." He is also known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and elsewhere, including his...
, after whose death the holy family
Holy Family
The Holy Family consists of the Child Jesus, the Virgin Mary, and Saint Joseph.The Feast of the Holy Family is a liturgical celebration in the Roman Catholic Church in honor of Jesus of Nazareth, his mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and his foster father, Saint Joseph, as a family...
returns into the land of Israel
Land of Israel
The Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
, then moves to Nazareth
Nazareth
Nazareth is the largest city in the North District of Israel. Known as "the Arab capital of Israel," the population is made up predominantly of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel...
, and then includes a detailed version of the preaching of John the Baptist, followed by the baptism of Jesus. John protests to Jesus that he needs to be baptized by Jesus, but Jesus tells him to let it be so now, saying that it is fitting for the two of them ("for us") to thus "fulfill all righteousness." When Jesus is baptized, he goes up immediately out of the water, the heavens open and John sees the Spirit of God descend upon him like a dove, alighting on him, and he hears a voice from heaven say, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."
Later, at the request of the mother of James and John, who prompted her to present their request to him to declare that they are to sit one at his right hand and the other at his left, Jesus speaks of the "cup" he is to drink, and he tells them that they too will drink of his cup, but in Matthew's gospel Jesus does not explicitly state that the baptism with which he must be baptized is also the "cup" that he must drink.
The Gospel of Matthew also includes the most famous version of the Great Commission. Here, the resurrected Jesus appears to the apostles and commissions them to make disciples of all nations, to baptize, and teach. This commission reflects the program adopted by the infant Christian movement.
Gospel of Mark
This gospel, today generally believed by scholars to be the first and to have been used as a basis for Matthew and Luke, begins with Jesus' baptism by John, who preached a baptism of repentance for forgiveness of sins. John says of Jesus that he will baptize not with water but with the Holy SpiritBaptism with the Holy Spirit
Baptism with the Holy Spirit in Christian theology is a term describing baptism in or with the Spirit of God...
. At Jesus' baptism, he hears God's voice proclaiming him to be his Son, and he sees the spirit like a dove descend on him
During Jesus' ministry, when James and John ask Jesus for seats of honor in the coming kingdom, Jesus likens his fate to the cup that he will drink and to the baptism with which he must be baptized, the very cup and baptism in store for John and James (that is, martyrdom).
The traditional ending of Mark is thought to have been compiled early in the 2nd century, and initially appended to the gospel by the middle of that century. It says that those who believe and are baptized will be saved, "but he who does not believe will be condemned." Mark's gospel does not explicitly state that baptized persons who believe will be saved from the "wrath to come," the wrath to which John the Baptist refers in Matthew's gospel, but readers can infer
Inference
Inference is the act or process of deriving logical conclusions from premises known or assumed to be true. The conclusion drawn is also called an idiomatic. The laws of valid inference are studied in the field of logic.Human inference Inference is the act or process of deriving logical conclusions...
that being "condemned" includes the "wrath to come".
Gospel of Luke
;This gospel begins with a statement that it contains reliable information obtained directly from the original eyewitnesses and servants of the word. It introduces the conception of John the Baptist, the annunciation of Gabriel
Gabriel
In Abrahamic religions, Gabriel is an Archangel who typically serves as a messenger to humans from God.He first appears in the Book of Daniel, delivering explanations of Daniel's visions. In the Gospel of Luke Gabriel foretells the births of both John the Baptist and of Jesus...
to Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
the virgin, the birth of the Baptist who will be called the prophet
Prophet
In religion, a prophet, from the Greek word προφήτης profitis meaning "foreteller", is an individual who is claimed to have been contacted by the supernatural or the divine, and serves as an intermediary with humanity, delivering this newfound knowledge from the supernatural entity to other people...
of the Most High, and then the birth of Jesus, in the days of Herod, king
King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...
of Judea, and of Caesar Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
, emperor
Emperor
An emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...
of the Roman Empire. There follows the account of Jesus in the Temple among the teachers; and then the calling and preaching of the prophet John the Baptist in the days of Tiberius Caesar, emperor, of Herod and Philip, tetrarchs
Tetrarchy (Judea)
The Tetrarchy of Judea was formed following the death of Herod the Great in 4 BCE, when his kingdom was divided between his sons as an inheritance...
, of Annas and Caiaphas, high priests
Kohen Gadol
The High Priest was the chief religious official of Israelite religion and of classical Judaism from the rise of the Israelite nation until the destruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem...
; and then by far the briefest account in the canonical Gospels of the baptism of Jesus.
The baptism of John is different from the baptism of the one who is to come after him. Jesus declares later that he has another baptism to be baptized with, and that he is under constraint (he isstraitened) until it is accomplished. (The petition of the mother of James and John, the personal request of James and John, and Jesus' declaration to them that they will be baptized as he will be baptized, and will drink the cup that he will drink, is not in Luke's gospel.)
In the Gospel of Luke, the risen Jesus appears to the disciples and the eleven apostles gathered together with them in Jerusalem and gives them the Great Commission without explicitly speaking of baptism, but readers can infer that "the forgiveness of sins" here includes "baptism" according to the preaching of the apostles at the time of Luke's gospel.
Acts
Acts of the ApostlesActs of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles , usually referred to simply as Acts, is the fifth book of the New Testament; Acts outlines the history of the Apostolic Age...
, written , states that about 3,000 people in Jerusalem were baptized in one day on Pentecost
Pentecost
Pentecost is a prominent feast in the calendar of Ancient Israel celebrating the giving of the Law on Sinai, and also later in the Christian liturgical year commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Christ after the Resurrection of Jesus...
. It further relates baptisms of men and women in Samaria
Samaria
Samaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
, of an Ethiopian eunuch
Ethiopian eunuch
The Ethiopian eunuch is a figure in the New Testament of the Bible. The story of his conversion to Christianity is recounted in Acts 8.-Biblical narrative:...
, of Saul of Tarsus, of the household of Cornelius, of Lydia
Lydia of Thyatira
Lydia of Thyatira is a character in the New Testament. She is regarded as the first recorded convert to Christianity in Europe.-Name:The name, "Lydia", meaning "the Lydian woman", by which she was known indicates that she was from Lydia in Asia Minor. Though she is commonly known as “St...
's household, of the Philippi
Philippi
Philippi was a city in eastern Macedonia, established by Philip II in 356 BC and abandoned in the 14th century after the Ottoman conquest...
jailer's household, of many Corinth
Corinth
Corinth is a city and former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Corinth, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit...
ians and of certain Corinthians baptized by Paul personally.
In Acts, the prerequisites of baptism are faith and repentance. Acts associates baptism with receiving the Spirit, but the exact connection is not always the same.
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.
, and speak of baptism "in the name of Jesus" or "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ", but whether this was a formula that was used has been questioned.
Gospel of John
The Gospel of JohnGospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
mentions John the Baptist's baptizing activity, in particular his baptism of Jesus,, and his statement that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. It also mentions baptizing activity by Jesus, specifying that the baptizing was not done by Jesus himself but by his disciples.
Some references to water in John's Gospel have been interpreted as referring to baptism, in particular, the phrase "born of water and the Spirit" and the account of blood and water coming out of the side of Jesus when pierced after crucifixion
Apostolic Age
The Apostolic Age is the period from Jesus' life to the death of the last apostle (see Beloved Disciple). Most of the New Testament was written during this period, and the primary sacraments of baptism and the EucharistEucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
were established. Protestants in particular value the church of the Apostolic Age as a witness to Jesus' true message, which they believe was subsequently corrupted during the Great Apostasy
Great Apostasy
The Great Apostasy is a term used by some religious groups to describe a general fallen state of traditional Christianity, especially the Papacy, because it allowed the traditional Roman mysteries and deities of solar monism such as Mithras and Sol Invictus and idol worship back into the church,...
. Along with fasting, the practice of baptism may have entered Christian practice under the influence of former followers of John's.
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
Everett Ferguson
Everett Ferguson currently serves as Distinguished Scholar in Residence at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas...
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. 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
Didache
The Didache or The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles is a brief early Christian treatise, dated by most scholars to the late first or early 2nd century...
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. 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. Barclay observes the Didache shows that baptism in the early church was by total immersion, if possible, Barton describes the immersion of the Didache as "ideally by total immersion",, and Welch says it was by "complete immersion".
James V. Brownson notes that the Didache does not specify either immersion or pouring when using running water, and Sinclair B. Ferguson argues that really the only mode that the Didache mentions is affusion. Martin and Davids say the Didache envisages "some form of immersion", and the Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church refers its readers to its entry on immersion, which it distinguishes from submersion and affusion.
Infant baptism
There is overwhelming evidence and an "impressive consensus" that baptism was by the immersion only of those sufficiently old to make a profession of faith, and there is general agreement that the New Testament contains no positive evidence for infant baptism. Others consider the New Testament to be ambiguous on the subject. The requirements made by the Didache on baptismal candidates are typically understood as precluding infant baptism.Baptismal formula
In Matthew's Great CommissionGreat Commission
The Great Commission, in Christian tradition, is the instruction of the resurrected Jesus Christ to his disciples, that they spread his teachings to all the nations of the world. It has become a tenet in Christian theology emphasizing missionary work, evangelism, and baptism...
, Christians are to baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Baptism has been in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit since at least the end of the 1st century. In Acts , Christians baptize "in the name of Jesus" though whether that meant a spoken formula has been questioned.
Theology
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 then, postponement of baptism had become general, and a large proportion of believers were merely catechumenCatechumen
In ecclesiology, a catechumen , “‘down’” + ἠχή , “‘sound’”) is one receiving instruction from a catechist in the principles of the Christian religion with a view to baptism...
s (Constantine
Constantine I and Christianity
During the reign of the Emperor Constantine the Great, Christianity became the dominant religion of the Roman Empire. Constantine, also known as Constantine I, had a significant religious experience following his victory at the Battle of Milvian Bridge in 312...
was not baptized until he was dying); but as baptisms of the children of Christians, using an adaptation of the rite intended for adults, became more common than baptisms of adult converts, the number of catechumens decreased.
As baptism was believed to forgive sins, the issue of sins committed after baptism arose. Some insisted that apostasy, even under threat of death, and other grievous sins cut one off forever from the Church. As indicated in the writings of SaintCyprian
Cyprian
Cyprian was bishop of Carthage and an important Early Christian writer, many of whose Latin works are extant. He was born around the beginning of the 3rd century in North Africa, perhaps at Carthage, where he received a classical education...
, others favoured readmitting the "lapsi
Lapsi (Christian)
Lapsi was the name given to apostates in the early Christian Church, when Christians were persecuted by the Roman authorities to renounce their faith. It also means those who have lapsed or fallen away from their faith and decide later in life to come back to it.-Sacrificati:Those who had actually...
" easily. The rule that prevailed was that they were readmitted only after undergoing a period of penance that demonstrated sincere repentance.
What is now generally called the Nicene Creed
Nicene Creed
The Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that is most widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene because, in its original form, it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325.The Nicene Creed has been normative to the...
, longer than the text adopted by the First Council of Nicaea
First Council of Nicaea
The First Council of Nicaea was a council of Christian bishops convened in Nicaea in Bithynia by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in AD 325...
of 325, and known also as the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed because of its adoption in that form by the First Council of Constantinople
First Council of Constantinople
The First Council of Constantinople is recognized as the Second Ecumenical Council by the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox, the Eastern Orthodox, the Roman Catholics, the Old Catholics, and a number of other Western Christian groups. It was the first Ecumenical Council held in...
in 381, was probably the baptismal creed then in use in Constantinople, the venue of the 381 Council.
Mode of baptism
Warren Wiersbe notes that New Testament scholars "generally agree that the early church baptized by immersion". While other forms were occasionally used, immersion was the common practice. 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 a standard Bible dictionary says that baptism was normally by immersion, without specifying whether total or partial. 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 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.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 C.F 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.
Studies before 1950
In The Archaeology of Baptism (1876) Wolfrid Cote, quoting PrudentiusPrudentius
Aurelius Prudentius Clemens was a Roman Christian poet, born in the Roman province of Tarraconensis in 348. He probably died in Spain, as well, some time after 405, possibly around 413...
, who in his `Psychomachia
Psychomachia
The Psychomachia by the Late Antique Latin poet Prudentius is probably the first and most influential "pure" medieval allegory, the first in a long tradition of works as diverse as the Romance of the Rose, Everyman, and Piers Plowman.In slightly less than a thousand lines, the poem describes the...
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" (p. 31). 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". Cote described this painting as of great antiquity, probably of the 4th or 5th century, while remarking that it is impossible to ascertain the precise age of the pictures in the catacombs of Rome (pp. 34–35). The other paintings that Cote described are of much later periods, while the mosaic in the Baptistery of San Giovanni in Fonte, in Ravenna (erected in the 4th century), which shows John baptizing Jesus by pouring water on his head from a cup, Cote explained as the product of later restoring (pp. 177–178). The font in this baptistery Cote described as ten feet in diameter and three and a half feet deep. 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 (pp. 160–161). He made no mention of any pre-Constantine evidence.
In 1903 Clement F. Rogers published "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. 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. 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." (pp. 257–258) 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" (p. 304). To answer this question, he examines the negative evidence of ancient baptismal fonts, especially those found in archaeological sites, providing on pp. 347–349 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
Louis Duchesne
Louis Marie Olivier Duchesne was a French priest, philologist, teacher and a critical historian of Christianity and Roman Catholic liturgy and institutions....
responded to accusations by Eastern Orthodox that the Roman Catholic was corrupted because of "the Filioque, baptism by affusion, unleavened bread, &c." (p. 49), by pointing to the absence of any ancient representation of baptism that showed the neophyte actually being immersed totally.
Studies in the second half of the 20th-century
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.An article "Baptism in the Early Church" by George Rice (1981), in "Bible and Spade
Bible and Spade
Bible and Spade is a quarterly magazine published by the inerrantist Associates for Biblical Research, explicitly committed to the use of archaeology to demonstrate the historical veracity of the Old and New Testaments...
" 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
Catacomb of Pontian
The Catacomb of Pontian is one of the catacombs of Rome on the Via Portuensis, notable for containing the original tombs of Pope Anastasius I and his son Pope Innocent I...
and a crypt in the catacomb of Santa Lucina (p. 126), as well as a 9th- or 10th-century fresco in the basilica of San Clemente (p. 127); 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". 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.
In 1987, on the basis of archaeology and parallels with Jewish practice, Sanford La Sor
William Sanford La Sor
William Sanford La Sor was professor emeritus of Old Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.-Library:The William Sanford La Sor memorial library was left to Oral Roberts University. The library is held on the 4th floor of the Learning Resource Center...
considered it likely that total immersion was also Christian practice.
In the same year, Lothar Heiser, in his study of baptism in the Orthodox Church, concluded on the basis of the literary and pictorial evidence in that field that "the water customarily reached the hips of the baptizand; after calling on the triune God, the priest bent the baptizand under so as to dip him in water over the head; in the cases of pouring in the Didache and in sickbed baptism the baptized did not stand in the font"; but acknowledges that in present Greek practice the priest places the infant being baptized as far down in the water as possible and scoops water over the head so as to cover the child fully with water.
In 1995, Renate Pillinger concluded from the evidence provided by images and buildings and by some literary sources that it was usual for the baptizand to stand in water no more than hip-deep and for the baptizer to pour water over him.
With regard to the shallow baptismal fonts that archaeologists had discovered, Malka Ben Pechat expressed in 1999 the view that full immersion was possible even in small fonts with a mere 60 centimetres (less than 2 feet) of water, while the fonts that were even shallower were intended for the baptism of infants.
21st-century studies
The latest comprehensive 21st-century study of Christian baptism in all its aspects is Everett Ferguson's in the Early Church: History, Theology, and Liturgy in the First Five Centuries In the close of his book Ferguson devoted four pages (457-460) to summarizing his position on the mode of baptism and came down very strongly for the view 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. 857). Ferguson dismissed Rogers' 1903 study as dated with regard to both the depictions of baptism and his survey of the baptismal fonts.
Like Rice, whom he did not mention, Ferguson said that the size of the baptismal fonts was progressively reduced in connection with the prevalence of infant baptism, although there are a few cases where larger fonts are later than the smaller ones (p. 849). Ferguson also stated: "The predominant number of baptismal fonts permitted immersion, and many were so large as to defy any reason for their existence other than immersion" (p. 834).
Evaluation
Five professional archaeological studies carried out in the last twenty five years which are cited widely and regularly in the relevant scholarly literature (Sanford La Sor, 1987; Lothar Heiser, 1986; Jean-Charles Picard, 1989; Malka Ben Pechat, 1989; Everett Ferguson, 2009), agree on the same conclusions on the archaeological and literary evidence. On the basis of archaeological and textual evidence, 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 latest comprehensive survey of previous studies and examination of the archaeological and literary evidence in combination, a study by Everett Ferguson (2009), confirms the findings of La Sor, Heiser, Picard, and Pechat.Related articles and subjects
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- Baptism of JesusBaptism of JesusThe baptism of Jesus marks the beginning of Jesus Christ's public ministry. This event is recorded in the Canonical Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. In John 1:29-33 rather than a direct narrative, the Baptist bears witness to the episode...
- BaptisteryBaptisteryIn Christian architecture the baptistry or baptistery is the separate centrally-planned structure surrounding the baptismal font. The baptistry may be incorporated within the body of a church or cathedral and be provided with an altar as a chapel...
- CatechumenCatechumenIn ecclesiology, a catechumen , “‘down’” + ἠχή , “‘sound’”) is one receiving instruction from a catechist in the principles of the Christian religion with a view to baptism...
- ChrismationChrismationChrismation is the name given in Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches, as well as in the Assyrian Church of the East, Anglican, and in Lutheran initiation rites, to the Sacrament or Sacred Mystery more commonly known in the West as confirmation, although Italian...
- Christifideles
- Conditional baptismConditional baptismMainline Christian theology has traditionally held that only one baptism is valid to confer the benefits of this sacrament. In particular, the Council of Trent defined a dogma that it is forbidden to baptize a person who is already baptized, because baptism makes an indelible mark on the soul...
- Consolamentum
- Divine filiationDivine filiationDivine filiation is a Christian concept of becoming a "child of God". The concept implicates a share in the life and role of Jesus Christ. Divine filiation refers to the relationship between Jesus and God, specifically as the second person of the Trinity, "God the Son"...
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People and ritual objects
- Baptismal fontBaptismal fontA baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
- BaptisteryBaptisteryIn Christian architecture the baptistry or baptistery is the separate centrally-planned structure surrounding the baptismal font. The baptistry may be incorporated within the body of a church or cathedral and be provided with an altar as a chapel...
- ChrismChrismChrism , also called "Myrrh" , Holy anointing oil, or "Consecrated Oil", is a consecrated oil used in the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Eastern Rite Catholic, Oriental Orthodox, in the Assyrian Church of the East, and in Old-Catholic churches, as well as Anglican churches in the administration...
- Holy waterHoly waterHoly water is water that, in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Lutheranism, Oriental Orthodoxy, and some other churches, has been sanctified by a priest for the purpose of baptism, the blessing of persons, places, and objects; or as a means of repelling evil.The use for baptism and...
- Holy water in Eastern ChristianityHoly water in Eastern ChristianityAmong Eastern Orthodox and Eastern-Rite Catholic Christians, holy water is used frequently in rites of blessing and exorcism, and the water for baptism is always sanctified with a special blessing....
- John the BaptistJohn the BaptistJohn the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
- MikvahMikvahMikveh is a bath used for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism...
External links
- "Baptism." Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
- "Water Baptism" Dispensationally Considered