Baptism

I

Introduction

Baptism (Greek baptein, “to dip”), in Christian churches, the universal rite of initiation, performed with water, usually in the name of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) or in the name of Christ. Orthodox and Baptist churches require baptism by total immersion. In other churches, pouring (affusion) and sprinkling (aspersion) are more common. Most churches regard baptism as a sacrament, or sign of grace; some regard it simply as an ordinance, or rite, commanded by Christ.

II

Antecedents to Baptism

Water was used as a symbol of purification in many religions at a very early date. In the ancient world, the waters of the Ganges in India, the Euphrates in Babylonia, and the Nile in Egypt were used for sacred baths. The sacred bath was also known in Hellenistic mystery cults (see Mysteries).

III

Jewish Baptism

Jewish law provided for the use of water in ritual cleansing (see Leviticus 11:25, 40; 15:5-7); and Elisha commanded the Syrian commander Naaman to dip himself in the Jordan River to be cleansed of leprosy (see 2 Kings 5). Well before the 1st century ad, converts to Judaism were required to bathe (or baptize) themselves as a sign of entering the covenant (tebilath gerim). Some of the later prophets envisaged that Jewish exiles returning home would cross the Jordan and be sprinkled with its water to cleanse them of sins prior to the establishment of the kingdom of God (see Ezekiel 36:25). In this tradition, Jesus' older contemporary John the Baptist urged Jews to be baptized in the Jordan for the remission of sins (see Mark 1:4).

IV

Christian Baptism

Jesus was baptized by John at the beginning of his public ministry (see Mark 1:9-11). Although it is uncertain that Jesus himself baptized, the risen Christ commanded his disciples to preach to and baptize the nations (see Matthew 28:19) as the sign of God's coming rule. Thus, from the outset, baptism became the Christian rite of initiation (see Acts 2:38).

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Like the baptism of John, Christian baptism is “for the remission of sins.” Largely under the influence of St. Paul, it came to be understood also as participation in the death and resurrection of Christ (see Romans 6:3-11). It is also the sacramental means by which converts receive the various gifts of the Holy Spirit (see Acts 19:5-6; 1 Corinthians 12). Baptism was often called illumination in the early church. It came to be regarded also as the renunciation of the world, the flesh, and the devil, and as the act of joining the community of the New Covenant.

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