Baptism in the Early Church: History, Theology, and Liturgy in the First Five Centuries

From the jacket: "This magisterial study is a comprehensive survey of the doctrine and practice of baptism in the first five centuries of Christian history, arranged geographically within chronological periods. ... The book deals primarily with with the literary sources, though it also gives attention to depictions of baptism, (primarily of Jesus)in various art forms and to the surviving baptismal fonts. Ferguson's thorough study points to the central importance of baptism in the early church. Many blessings were attributed to baptism, but the two earliest and most consistently mentioned are forgiveness of sins and the reception of the Holy Spirit; faith and repentance were necessary in order to receive these benefits. ... full immersion was the normal practice, and the evidence from art is consistent with this interpretation."This work is massive and detailed and divided into seven parts:Antecedents to Christian baptismBaptism in the New TestamentBaptism in the second centuryBaptism in the third century up until Nicea (325 A.D.)The fourth centuryThe fifth centuryBaptisteriesFerguson's discussion of Gregory of Nazianzus's famous Orations on baptism circa A.D. 380 support the conclusions of the jacket cover: baptism was often delayed until adolescence or adulthood or later. Gregory urges congregants not to put off baptism and most typically refers to it as "regeneration." The penultimate chapter discusses Augustine of Hippo's baptismal practices and theology. Augustine himself presided as bishop of Hippo in the Basilica of Peace between 411 and 430 A.D. Archaeological finds uncovered the basilica's baptistery revealing a baptismal pool some three feet deep and somewhat broader and wider. The process whereby the catechumens at Hippo were to be baptized on Easter are elaborately detailed by Ferguson based on Augustine's own writings. One question is whether or not the catechumens at Hippo were fully immersed. Augustine does not say in his many comments about the baptismal procedure at Hippo, but Ferguson contends Augustine had full immersion in mind. (Some think the baptismal pool not deep enough for full immersion while others contend Augustine had the catechumens wade into the pool to show humility and then kneel for baptism.) Ferguson argues that by "baptismus/baptizare" Augustine referred to the inner purification by Christ whereas "tinctio/intinguere" referred to the physical act of baptism itself. Augustine even uses the word "submersio" and so presumably practiced full immersion according to Ferguson. Important to note that Augustine did consider catechumens to be Christians before baptism, though they were not full members of the Church Catholic. Infant baptism, although not yet the norm in Christian North Africa, was common enough, especially for emergency baptisms. There are hardly any references to the baptism of healthy infants. The ritual for infants was basically the same as for adults. The infants were exorcized, validating Augustine's view of infants being stained with original sin. Adults would then speak the renunciation [of satan] and the profession of faith. "What infants were not yet able to do through their own faith was done for them by those who love them." Augustine resorted to the faith of others to justify the baptism of infants. In "On the Literal Interpretation of Genesis" Augustine states that baptism absolves infants from the punishment of original sin, "so it is right and proper to baptize them." Infants were then immersed in the same way as adults and then received an anointing(chrismation)and a laying on of hands (consignation). Afterwards they participated in the baptismal eucharist, receiving both the bread and the wine. Sermon 174 states "infants are members of Christ and receive the sacraments, including sharing in His table." And so, with Gregory in the East and Augustine in the West - during the Pelagian controversy - infant baptism became the norm for the early church some time in the fifth century.An extremely detailed an invaluable resource, though clearly not without biases given that many would argue infant baptism was normative at a much earlier time in the Church's history. Biases notwithstanding Ferguson's assertions are well documented and he is conversant with the secondary literature.

Fantastic book. Magisterial, indeed. Well researched (understatement). Well written.The only problem I have is one of Ferguson's conclusions on immersion: they are possible, but not necessary. [And I write this as an evangelical.]Luke 11:38 uses baptizo for the washing of hands (immersing the hands, not the whole body). So, it's not always about full bodily immersion. Didache Chapter 7 records the possibility of using pouring water upon the head as a method of baptism in situations where little water is available. Saul/Paul was baptized in the house of Judas. A house would not have had a tub in it, nor a pool out back. Hence, Paul probably had water poured over his head.The question is, is it reasonable to baptize infants by affusion, instead of clasping a hand over their nose and mouth to immerse them (especially since it would usually have been three times in many early traditions)? Is it more practical, and possibly safer? The answer is, 'yes'. And since the Western church has immersed children and adults old enough to deal with it when enough water is present, what's all big hubbub?Evangelical, Baptistic, Pentecostal, and yes, "Church of Christ" Protestantism needs to recognize that the early church was flexible depending on several conditions. So ought we be. As it turns out, generally WE have been the inflexible ones on baptism. Yet ironically, when it comes to the Lords Supper, we have been tremendously flexible when it comes to what the elements should be. Who really thinks Jesus used crackers and grape juice? If one believes that its all just symbols anyway, and one feels free to change some of the symbols (and even delay them till the person feels "lead" to be baptized), then why not others?Me thinks Evangelicalism "doth protest to much."

This book is huge, well cited, and when it was recommended to me as "the most exhaustive book on baptism you'll ever read" I kind of rolled my eyes. When I saw the price, I was a bit hesitant too. But I'm glad I've read this book and the recommendation is true. It covers the pre-Christian Jewish ceremonial washing, Pagan ceremonial washings, scripture, early church fathers, and even some heretical offshoots.If you're new in the faith, you might want to give this a pass. If you're a theology nerd, seminarian, pastor, priest, deacon, or elder you need to read this book.

First, as a Kindle owner, this book has an active table of contents, illustrations (at the end of chapter 3), is fully indexed, and uses greek characters throughout.As far as the content is concerned, it includes everything you ever wanted to know about baptism. Baptism is not only compared from its use in the East and the West but is also compared and contrasted to Jewish washings and even washings in other ancient religions. Issues include full immersion vs partial immersion or sprinkling, infant vs adult immersions, deathbed baptisms, the issue over who should administer the bpatism, male vs female baptism (with the issue of nudity being the prime motive here), as well as debate on rebaptism (especially if a Chrisitan came from a heretical form of Christianity). Not only the writings are looked at but also Christian art, archaological findings of baptismal fonts, and even inscriptions on tombs and burial places. Even an indepth word study is supplied showing how the word Baptizmo is used throughout many Greek sources (both Christian and secular). I sincerely doubt that a person could find another book that has as much detail.

Very informative, if you want to know what they did in the early church and the shape of the baptismal tanks, this is a great book. Covers the period before the church became under government control. Not an easy read as it is more a research paper but very well cited. Summary They immersed people three times in the name of Father Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit and most often used running water before tanks were created. I used that method in my latest baptism and it was so powerful. i included the denouncing of Satan as indicated in the book as well. Pouring was a way to simulate running water when enough water was not available and was also done at least three times in the name of the Trinity of God.