Baptism (and Why Catholics Baptize Infants)
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Why this lesson now: baptism is where Catholic teaching and the Churches of Christ agree more than almost anywhere else, which makes it a good place to start a conversation on common ground. It is also where the sharpest difference lives: baptizing infants. Many Baptist, evangelical and Church of Christ Christians were baptized only after a personal confession of faith.
1. What each side actually claims
The Church of Christ position: baptism by immersion, after a personal confession of faith, is part of how a person is saved and receives forgiveness (Acts 2:38, 22:16). Infant baptism is not found in the New Testament and is not valid.
The Baptist and Bible-church position: baptism is an act of obedience that follows salvation by faith. It is a public symbol, not a means of grace. Only believers should be baptized.
The Reformed (Presbyterian) position: baptism is the sign of the covenant, so infants of believers are baptized, but it is a sign and seal, not what saves.
The Catholic position: baptism is a sacrament that truly forgives sin, including original sin, and makes a person a child of God and a member of the Church (John 3:5, 1 Peter 3:21, Titus 3:5). It is given to adults who believe and repent, and to infants whose parents and godparents promise to raise them in the faith.
2. Steelman the objection first
"Every baptism in the New Testament follows belief. Mark 16:16 says 'whoever believes and is baptized,' and in Acts 2:38 Peter says 'repent and be baptized.' An infant can't believe or repent. There isn't a single verse that says 'they baptized the baby.' The household baptisms don't say a word about infants, and the Greek word baptizo means to immerse, not sprinkle."
3. The Catholic response
Start with common ground: Catholics agree with the Church of Christ that baptism is "for the forgiveness of sins" (Acts 2:38) and that "baptism now saves you" (1 Peter 3:21). Jesus ties it to new birth in John 3:5: "unless one is born of water and the Spirit." A Christian who holds those verses literally already agrees that baptism is not merely a symbol. The disagreement is over who may receive it, not what it does.
On infants, take the objection seriously. No verse says "they baptized an infant." The case is cumulative:
- Households: Acts 16:15, 16:33 and 1 Corinthians 1:16 describe whole households being baptized. These texts don't mention children, so they are suggestive, not conclusive.
- Circumcision: Colossians 2:11-12 links baptism with circumcision, which was given to infants on the eighth day. Peter says at Pentecost that "the promise is for you and for your children" (Acts 2:39).
- Jesus and children: he told the disciples not to hinder the children from coming to him (Matthew 19:14).
- Original sin: if everyone is born needing the forgiveness baptism gives (Romans 5:12-19), there is no reason to make infants wait.
- Earliest evidence: Origen (c. 244) says the Church received from the apostles the practice of baptizing infants, and a council under Cyprian of Carthage (253) discusses baptizing infants without delay. The first real objections to the practice appear much later.
On "baptizo means immerse": that is true of the word's root, and the Church baptized by immersion regularly. But the Didache (c. 100) already permits pouring water three times on the head when there is not enough water to immerse (Didache 7). The Church teaches that baptism with water and the Trinitarian formula is valid either way.
On faith: for infants the faith is the Church's, and the child is raised into it. The same principle shows up in Mark 2:5, where Jesus forgives a paralytic "when he saw their faith," meaning his friends'.
Pastoral note for an OCIA candidate: the Church generally recognizes baptism with water in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit performed in other Christian communities. Whether yours counts is a question for your priest or the OCIA team, because it depends on the exact formula used.
4. Retrieval practice
Which belief about baptism do Catholics share with the Church of Christ?
Why is Acts 16:33 a limited argument for infant baptism?
How does Colossians 2:11-12 support infant baptism?
What does the Didache (c. 100) say about the mode of baptism?
5. Primary source to read next
Catholic Answers — "Infant Baptism", "Early Teachings on Infant Baptism", "Baptism: Immersion Only?", Catholic Encyclopedia — "Baptism" and the Didache, ch. 7, plus Catechism §1213-1284 on Baptism.
For balance: GotQuestions on infant baptism, a clear popular-level objection you're likely to hear.
Stuck, unconvinced, or want to push harder on this? Ask me directly — bring a specific verse or something a Protestant has said to you, and we'll work through it before moving on.
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Quick reference: Baptism cheat sheet.