My understanding is that they didn’t. Women and girls were covered by their fathers first then their husbands. But I don’t know where to point you to prove that.
M
When the people fed with the loaves and fishes are counted, women and children are not included in the count.
During the time of the early church, all household members were expected to worship the same god(s) as the head of household. Therefore, when the head of the family is baptized, his own household is likewise baptized.
I like to use the analogy of inoculations. Young children are immunized to protect them from physical disease. Young children are likewise protected from spiritual harm through the power of the Holy Spirit received through Baptism.
Every denomination teaches that we are reborn, that we become children of God, adopted sons and daughter of the Father, through the Sacrament of Baptism. Why wait? As Jesus said, “Let the children come to me.” Let the children become a part of the family of Christ, of His community (the Church) while they are still young and before sin has a chance to enter his/her life. Unlike Catholics who accept the reality of original sin, not all denominations accept this dogma or that this stain, this tendency to sin inherent within each of us, is wiped out through Baptism.
While it is true that the infant cannot yet speak for himself or herself in order to give consent and confess faith in our Lord, how many other real life decisions are made on behalf of the child? What reason would keep a parent willing to protect his/her child’s physical health from likewise protecting his/her child’s spiritual health other than disbelief in the efficacy of the Sacrament of Baptism?
Anabaptists do see water Baptism as a mere symbol of the transformation that has already taken place in their lives, as a public statement of that change.
