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Water is poured on the head of an infant held over the baptismal font of a Roman Catholic church. Infant baptism [1] [2] (or paedobaptism) is the practice of baptizing infants or young children. Infant baptism is also called christening by some faith traditions. Most Christians belong to denominations that practice infant baptism.
A full-immersion baptism in a New Bern, North Carolina river at the turn of the 20th century. 15th-century painting by Masaccio, Brancacci Chapel, Florence. Immersion baptism (also known as baptism by immersion or baptism by submersion) is a method of baptism that is distinguished from baptism by affusion (pouring) and by aspersion (sprinkling), sometimes without specifying whether the ...
The earliest explicit reference to baptism by affusion occurs in the Didache (c. AD 100), the seventh chapter of which gives instructions on how to baptize, which include affusion: …But if you have no living water, baptize into other water; and if you cannot do so in cold water, do so in warm.
The idea is that both the Red Sea and the water of Noah's Flood served a dual purpose of punishing the ungodly and saving the godly. Baptism is viewed therefore as a means of separating a person from the world. Zachary Purvis notes that anamnesis, "the remembrance of God’s mighty deeds in history," is employed to great effect. [5]
Though water baptism is extremely common among Christian denominations, some, such as Quakers and The Salvation Army, do not practice water baptism at all. [20] Among denominations that practice baptism, differences occur in the manner and mode of baptizing and in the understanding of the significance of the rite.
In the West, baptism by aspersion and affusion slowly became the common practice in later centuries. In aspersion, an aspergillum may be used to place the water on the skin. The Roman Catholic Church regards baptism by aspersion as valid only if the water actually flows on the person's skin and is thus equivalent to pouring ("affusion"). [1]
This visual and audible image communicates a "living waters" aspect of baptism. Some liturgical church bodies use consecrated holy water for the purpose of baptism, while others will use water straight out of the tap to fill the font. [8] A special silver vessel called a ewer can be used to fill the font. Most baptismal fonts have covers to ...
The Sacrament of Holy Baptism is the sacrament by which one is initiated into the Christian faith. In practice, a person being baptized may be wholly or partly immersed in water, water may be poured over their head, or a few drops may be sprinkled on their head. [10] It symbolises a washing away of sins and welcomes the person to the church ...