Baptism by immersion

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zach_dunn

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So, I have a few questions.
  1. What exactly is immersion?
  2. What are the differences between immersion and the way Catholics baptize (don’t know the name)?
  3. And, is there anything wrong with immersion?
  4. Why don’t Catholics baptize this way?
I know these questions may be very common knowledge but I am only 16. I just recently got interested in my Catholic faith and I’d really like to learn more.
 
Actually, in some Catholic churches they have the resources to have a Baptismal Pool to actually go into. This is not something that the Church looks down on at all. Some churches still have a small font that they use for babies, but our parish uses a fountain and pond of sorts for the Easter Vigil (night before) Mass where we welcome the non-baptised into the church. This may surprise you, but we as Catholics believe, and in fact profess as part of our Profession of faith, that we believe in “one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.” This means that if a person is baptised in another Christian (recognized) church, that we believe that baptism is valid.

One thing that is part of the baptism is that the person has the opportunity to speak for themself or in the case of infants, they have the support of their family to bring them up in the Christian faith. Another “rule” is that the water flows and is not stagnant (it is poured and therefore moving…just as the Spirit is moving). But, the most important part of the belief in baptism is that the person is Immersed in the Holy Spirit which cleans away the sins. We then in effect put more emphasis on the Spirit which is the third person of the Holy Trinity and God instead of the water which was created by God.

So immersion is great and completely acceptable where people are lucky enough to have the facilities. But, where it is not available, pouring the water is acceptable too.

I hope this makes sense as I understand it.
Peace:)
 
Thanks!

Your post really helped me in my understanding of baptism!👍
 
His_little1 said:
Actually, in some Catholic churches they have the resources to have a Baptismal Pool to actually go into. This is not something that the Church looks down on at all.
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As a matter of fact the Rite of Baptism says that immersion is a better symbol of the dying to death and rising to new life and as such is the preferred method of baptizing, although pouring is also perfectly acceptable.
 
zach_dunn said:
So, I have a few questions.

1 What exactly is immersion?
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immersion is what it says, submerging the whole body under water

2
) What are the differences between immersion and the way Catholics baptize (don’t know the name)?
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Catholics recognize as valid baptism by either immersion or pouring of water
  1. And, is there anything wrong with immersion?
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no there is nothing wrong with it, in fact it is the preferred method for baptism of adults at Easter
  1. Why don’t Catholics baptize this way?
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they do, it is up to the priest, some parishes offer parents of infants the choice of either method, and as I say it is preferred for adults

.
 
This means that if a person is baptised in another Christian (recognized) church, that we believe that baptism is valid.
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For further explanation, a recognized Christian church will baptize using the Trinitarian formula, “In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” They also have to understand the Trinity as the Triune God, the Three-in-One. This makes Mormon baptism invalid, because they believe that the Trinity is three separate beings.

God bless you for studying your faith!

Ruthie
 
zach_dunn said:
  1. Why don’t Catholics baptize this way?
I know these questions may be very common knowledge but I am only 16. I just recently got interested in my Catholic faith and I’d really like to learn more.
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Catholics do baptize by immersion. For example, the early Christian Church mainly baptized in this way. Both the Mozarabic Rite in Spain and the Ambrosian Rite in Milan continued to carry out baptism by immersion even when a majority of Catholics around the world had started to use affusion (pouring water over the head). The Eastern Churches still baptize by immersion, if I remember correctly. And many recent Catholics of the Roman Rite were baptized through this method. So it’s safe to say that immersion is still carried out in the Catholic Church, only it is not as conspicuous or as frequent as affusion.
 
patrick457 said:
Catholics do baptize by immersion. For example, the early Christian Church mainly baptized in this way. Both the Mozarabic Rite in Spain and the Ambrosian Rite in Milan continued to carry out baptism by immersion even when a majority of Catholics around the world had started to use affusion (pouring water over the head). The Eastern Churches still baptize by immersion, if I remember correctly. And many recent Catholics of the Roman Rite were baptized through this method. So it’s safe to say that immersion is still carried out in the Catholic Church, only it is not as conspicuous or as frequent as affusion.
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Funny enough we dont know how jesus was baptized,
and the first painting to be drawn of the event was shown him
being poured on not dunked.
interesting
 
zach_dunn said:
So, I have a few questions.
  1. What exactly is immersion?
  2. What are the differences between immersion and the way Catholics baptize (don’t know the name)?
  3. And, is there anything wrong with immersion?
  4. Why don’t Catholics baptize this way?
I know these questions may be very common knowledge but I am only 16. I just recently got interested in my Catholic faith and I’d really like to learn more.
Click to expand...
You have heard wrong! I was baptized by total immersion, by a Priest at an Easter vigil Mass, in a cattle watering tank (good for humility). Father preferred immersion, as being briefly held under water, then rising from the water was a journey of dying to sin and being reborn into Christ. Not all parishes baptize by immersion, but the process certainly remains valid.
  1. Is the cleansing power in the water, or is it God’s grace?
  2. Is Baptism purely a physical act, or is it primarily spiritual?
How can it be purely physical, since Christ condemned the ritualized physical washing of hands and cups by the Pharisees? He stressed inner cleanliness, which is spiritual. (Mark 7:5-8, Luke 11:39) Again, James advised to wash hands, but also to purify hearts (James 4:8).
  1. If baptism is physical, “requiring” full immersion to be valid, and relying on the cleansing power of water, then everyone who has swum or bathed is baptized, right? This gives supernatural power to the water (creation), rather than to the Creator. This clearly also must be rejected.
  2. If it is not the power of the water, but rather is God’s grace in Baptism, then won’t three drops of water accomplish the same, if that is all that is available?
There is much information in ancient Church history about various forms of Baptism. I would not grieve the Catholic Church for its forms of Baptism, especially since some fundamentalists and Pentecostals no longer believe that baptism is even necessary! That is 100% anti-biblical, and 100% against Christ. (Matthew 28:19)

Christ’s peace be with you.
 
The term baptism comes from the greek word “baptizein” which means to immerse or to plunge. Just though that I’d throw that in since all of the other posts are on target…teachccd
 
zach_dunn said:
So, I have a few questions…
I know these questions may be very common knowledge but I am only 16. I just recently got interested in my Catholic faith and I’d really like to learn more.
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And keep those questions coming! It is so refreshing to hear from people your age. I teach confirmation classes at my parish along with junior high classes and so it really inspires me to hear teenagers who are willing to learn their faith on their own accord and not because mom and/or dad “force” them to. I also teach the pre-Baptism classes at my parish so feel free to ask and I will do by best to provide answers. The other posters gave you some very good answers and there are many here who can help.

So, may God bless you and keep up the good work. You are an inspiration to your peers and we need more people like you…teachccd 🙂
 
teachccd said:
The term baptism comes from the greek word “baptizein” which means to immerse or to plunge. Just though that I’d throw that in since all of the other posts are on target…teachccd
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You use the greek translation, maybe we should use the latin
word “batizo” meaning cleanse. Since the romans are the ones that allowed the bible to be used in the known world the latin derivative is more precise then the greek which the orthodox church wasn’t there until 1000 ad.
 
kevangreen said:
You use the greek translation, maybe we should use the latin
word “batizo” meaning cleanse. Since the romans are the ones that allowed the bible to be used in the known world the latin derivative is more precise then the greek which the orthodox church wasn’t there until 1000 ad.
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Use whichever you prefer.😉 I was just mentioning a fact. Most of the New Testament was written in Greek so I would have to assume that a word rooted in Greek would be accurate enough for our understanding. But thank you for the additional information!! Peace…teachccd 🙂
 
teachccd said:
Use whichever you prefer.😉 I was just mentioning a fact. Most of the New Testament was written in Greek so I would have to assume that a word rooted in Greek would be accurate enough for our understanding. But thank you for the additional information!! Peace…teachccd 🙂
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But “Baptizo” did not ONLY mean “immerse”, did it? Weren’t “pour” and “dip” other frequent usages of the Greek word, “Baptizo”?
 
zach_dunn said:
So, I have a few questions.
  1. What exactly is immersion?
    Baptism by immersion means the one being baptized goes fully into the water.
  2. What are the differences between immersion and the way Catholics baptize (don’t know the name)?
    Baptism by immersion is one of the ways of Catholic Baptism.
  3. And, is there anything wrong with immersion?
    Nothing, the Church has declared it to be acceptable in the first century writing ‘The teachings of the Apostles’ called the Didache, several acceptable forms are described.
  4. Why don’t Catholics baptize this way?
    We do, it’s just not the only way. All of the forms used in the Church in the first and second centuries are still acceptable in the Catholic Church today. The early Church is The Catholic Church.
I know these questions may be very common knowledge but I am only 16. I just recently got interested in my Catholic faith and I’d really like to learn more.
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I have put my answers above in blue. I hope this helps.
BTW, click on the link below for more information on The Catholic Church!
youtube.com/watch?v=swKs2QQU4IA&feature=related

May the Lord give you many happy, holy and blessed years.

Your brother in Christ.
 
From the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
CCC 1239 The essential rite of the sacrament follows: Baptism properly speaking. It signifies and actually brings about death to sin and entry into the life of the Most Holy Trinity through configuration to the Paschal mystery of Christ. Baptism is performed in the most expressive way by triple immersion in the baptismal water. However, from ancient times it has also been able to be conferred by pouring the water three times over the candidate’s head.
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So either is fine, but immersion is the “most expressive” way Baptism is conferred.
 
The Didache, written most likely in the first century (roughly 70-90
AD) declares pouring and sprinkling an acceptable means of baptism, although immersion was preferred.
 
NotWorthy said:
But “Baptizo” did not ONLY mean “immerse”, did it? Weren’t “pour” and “dip” other frequent usages of the Greek word, “Baptizo”?
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You got me there as far as the definition of baptizo is concerned. I would imagine that since the common practice of the Church was to immerse and infuse (pour) with the water then the connotation would be towards both…If anyone else can answer step forward…teachccd
 
teachccd said:
You got me there as far as the definition of baptizo is concerned. I would imagine that since the common practice of the Church was to immerse and infuse (pour) with the water then the connotation would be towards both…If anyone else can answer step forward…teachccd
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i am good at religious history, not who is right that is not the question it is who makes more sence in the end since jesus said his church is a simple one and warns of people complication Jesus message
 
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