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postwriter
Guest
The Holy bible states overwhelmingly that we are to be baptized (Acts 2:38. Acts 18:8. Mark 16:16. Matthew 28:19-20) after we have heard the gospel, believed the gospel, and confessed Christ (Romans 10:9-10).
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LilyM
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Nup. It gives plenty of examples of people who did follow this sequence of events, sure. But plenty of examples as well of whole households being baptised en masse - you really think under 18 year olds weren’t included in these ‘ALL his household’ statements? And since WHEN are you equating adulthood with 18 years, huh? Where is THAT in scripture or the practice of the Early Church?
Do you really think that anyone wasted time preaching to each individual of a huge household? Or of NOT baptising infants given the very high infant mortality rate in those days? Heck, those who DID used to baptise AND confirm AND give the Eucharist to kids all at once for this very reason.
Put it this way - if the ancient Jews could circumcise babies as a sign of their initiation into the old covenant with God, then, baptism being the initiation into the new Covenant, we can baptise children. True it’s not explicitly recorded as happening in Apostolic times, however when it IS recorded by 200 AD it’s not treated as a novelty but instead treated as a custom dating from the Church’s earliest days.
The only real critic in early times that I’ve come across being Tertullian, who had heretical views in some other areas, I wouldn’t give too much credence to the idea that baptism must necessarily occur in adulthood.
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