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I wrote a paper on Baptism while in seminary. The controversial history was
fascinating. Have you ever preached about it?
John the Baptist must have been a pretty prominent figure in his day. The historian,
Josephus, wrote about him as a kind of eccentric character…a kind of ascetic,
almost……a kind of critic of society calling for a change. Best known in the New Testament
for his practice of baptism, he administered it as a cleansing ritual…..”Get rid of the old
wicked ways of your life, wash them away,” he would cry. And apparently, crowds
would come from all over to hear John and be baptized.
But as much as most Christians seem to think John was the originator of Baptism, it had
been around for a long time before him. The word for “washings” is the Greek word
baptismos. Frankly, it was a surprise to me to learn that ritual washings, immersion in water,
was not a new concept in the New Testament, but had been a practice of the Jews of the
Old Testament.
- In John’s era, the Morning Dippers or Hemero-Baptists practiced self-washing
….ritual washing as an act of purification.
- From the Dead Sea Scrolls we know the Qumran community also practiced this same ritual washing as an act of purification as well. It was practiced extensively by the Essene group. All during John’s time.
- The Jews actually required those who converted to Judaism to be immersed in
water…to be baptized “
This explains why there were so many pools in Jerusalem in the early centuries.
Apparently, John’s baptisms were not novel and obviously were not what drew
the crowds.
Click on: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QatSehnlSsA
- And there is the fact that not only the Jews but also the Gentiles practiced the ritual of
being immersed in water. Immersion was done among the Gentiles for purification
or to be ceremonially cleansed, as the Jews practiced and John prescribed.
After Christ, baptism became the ritual act, with the use of water, by which one is admitted to membership of the Christian Church and, in the view of some, as a member of the particular Church in which the baptism is administered. But that is just the beginning of the story. Unfortunately, this beautiful ritual of grace, an act of cleansing, became a very divisive act among us Christians.
Additional sermon notes are available on Page 2.
See Page 1 for several image sets for the text.
Like many doctrines within the Christian Church, controversy about Baptism grew.
Baptism is seen as in some sense necessary for salvation by most Christians.
as necessary.
Among those that do believe Baptism a requirement for salvation, disputes continue
re. the manner and mode of baptizing and in the understanding of the significance of the rite.
-Most Christians baptize "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit"
(following the Great Commission),
-But some baptize in Jesus' name only.
-Most Christians baptize infants,
-Many others believe you must have reached the age of consent.
-Some churches consider Baptism a sacrament.
-Others do not.
-Some insist on submersion or at least partial immersion of the person who is baptized,
-Others consider that any form of washing by water, even sprinkling, is sufficient.
So, how should Baptism be administered?
-The usual form of baptism among the earliest Christians was for the candidate to be
immersed totally or partially. This appears to be John the Baptist’s method.
-But then, persecutions of Christians began to take place. The Christians to be baptized
could not be seen on the river’s edge for fear of their lives. So, the Christian Church met
in caves. It is there that large, shallow pans or baths, a little larger in size than a typical
shower floor, were created and water was carried into the caves to fill them. The person
to be baptized stood in these shallow baths while water was scooped up and poured
over their heads. Both methods were considered legitimate.
-In the early church, Baptism was generally administered to adults at Easter following
intensive lessons in the faith. However, not all converts to the faith rushed into Baptism.
Since it was the belief that Baptism washed away a person’s sins, there were significant
numbers that waited until death seemed eminent before they asked for baptism…..an easy
way to get to heaven, they thought. Constantine was baptized on his death bed.
-St. Austin, “who flourished before the year 400”, and Origen, who was born in the second
century share with us that the church was baptizing infants in their own day and that this
practice was given to the Church by the apostles themselves.
-Around 400 AD, St. Augustine came up with the idea of “original sin.” This basically said
that everyone inherits the sin of Adam at birth and is therefore separated from God from
the beginning of their life. Of course, this caused parents to become concerned over the
fate of their children, should they die before “getting right with God.” When the Black Plague
happened and death was eminent for all, infant baptisms were instituted as a general
practice and eventually became the preferred method. Since it is risky to immerse an
infant in water, baptism was administered with the sprinkling of water upon the head.
-Both adult and infant baptism were considered legitimate by the early church whenever
and however they took place.
Some videos on Baptism:
Baptism as a sacrament: (Catholic) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emxLoLDb0g8
Baptisms: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHgzoDzwhKA
Baptism as a sign: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IESmhpLE6M
Sprinkling the head of an infant was my usual method of Baptism as a pastor. But at the request
of a member of my church in the middle of the Adirondacks, I waded into the cold waters of
Long Lake and baptized a young girl through immersion. It was just as holy. It was as real!
A long time ago in a remote part of the world, a young pastor acquired a cat. Now, the
pastor lived next door to the church and that cat took to jumping through the windows
when the pastor was holding services creating quite a stir. At first, the pastor would catch
the cat, tie him up and continue with the service. Eventually, the pastor brought the cat
with him and before the service, attached his leash to the lectern, where he remained
until the service was over.The pastor grew in reputation. Most called him a very holy man…..some even called him
a saint. And the church grew in number.. Now, the pastor lived a very long time, so the cat
was replaced several times….always with the same breed, same size and color. And these
cats always came to the services….attached to the lectern.When the pastor passed away, his replacement was informed that his duties included
taking care of the cat and bringing him to the church service every week. Always tying
him to the left side of the lectern. In fact, a committee was formed to find another cat with
the same coloring, breed, etc. when that cat finally died.The new pastor couldn’t understand the necessity of such an action. The church fathers
declared vehemently that it was required to have a cat during their Sunday worship! It was
then that a white, blue eyed Siamese cat became a requirement of their faith….an intrinsic
part of the worship rituals of that church and finally ….a doctrine of the entire denomination.
Baptism has been a source of great dispute among Christians. So many different views…..yet
so critical to the faith. Nevertheless, I have wondered, have you …why do you suppose the
Good Thief was assured of heaven by Jesus, when obviously he had not been baptized?
One more story. This was told by an instructor, an ordained minister, at a New England
Divinity School who was also a representative of his Christian denomination with the
World Council of Churches.
He and a group of representatives of all the major Christian denominations were meeting
in Greece for a conference on interfaith dialogue. On a small ship between islands, they
were tossed about quite a bit when a sudden squall came up. One of the ministers lost
his grasp and tumbled over the rail into the water. The water was rough….waves were high
….the ministers on board stood there in horror as they listened to the cries of the drowning
man. A sailor, an Indian Buddhist heard the anguished calls for help and jumped into the
raging water, saving the man.The instructor asked, “Would this sailor, willing to sacrifice his life for another, be damned
to hell because he was not baptized?”
We were silent.
Saint Francis de Sales:
You learn to speak by speaking, to study by studying, to run by running, to work by working;
and just so, you learn to love by loving. All those who think to learn in any other way deceive
themselves.
Think About it!
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