Baptism In The Early Church

From the very beginning of the Christian church, baptism was the path for entering the church, whether as adults, children, or infants. Although the precise origins of baptismal rituals are not entirely clear, the entire process involved extensive ritual action: from the catechumenate (the period of preparation) to the actual baptism with water and anointing with the oil of chrism during the great Easter Vigil service. A proper understanding of baptism in the ancient church requires a broad perspective that encompasses the whole initiation pattern in early Christianity. The term baptism in this period often refers not only to the water bath, but to the whole complex of preparation and ritual actions that marked the entrance of a new member into the community of faith. Thus, the history of baptism is really the history of the whole pattern of initiation and the various components of that process. We know little about the rites of initiation or preparation for them in the New Testame…