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The Act of Baptism in the History of the Christian Church

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The Act of Baptism in the History of the Christian Church 'hm^ wi S&i.. ^\\ LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. Shelf ;B ^7 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. EAS -r-.t^" .i- ^•'" -, m^i- K'a' -M -I THE ACT OF BAPTISM IN THE HISTORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. BY HENRY S. BURRAGE. PHILADELPHIA: AMEEICAN BAPTIST PUBLICATION SOCIETY, 1420 CHESTNUT STREET. r/nn, r Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1879, by the AMERICAN BAPTIST PUBLICATION SOCIETY, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. The Library OF Congress WASHINGTON Westcott & Thomson, Stereotypers and EUctrotypers^ Philada, Co tf)t iaemorg HORATIO BALCH HACKETT, D.D.,LL.D, AT WHOSE FEET AT NEWTON IT WAS MY PRIVILEGE TO SIT, AND WHOSE INSTKUCTIONS HAVE BEEN AN INSPIEATION TO ME IN SUBSEQUENT YEARS, THIS VOLUME *^ IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR. ;; PREFACE. In this volume I have endeavored to show what has been the act of baptism in the history of the Christian Church. A large number of works have been consulted in its preparation. Especially worthy of mention are the following: Baptism, and the Baptisteries of Italy, American Baptist Publication Society, Philadelphia, 1875, and The Archeology of Baptism, London, 1876, by Wolfred Nelson Cote; Geschichtliche Darstellung der Verrichtung der Taufe, von Dr. F. Brenner, Bam- berg, 1818 ; A History of the Modes of Christian Bap- tism, by Kev. James Chrystal, Philadelphia, 1861 Denkwilrdigkeiten aus der Christlichen Archdologie, von Dr. Johann Christian Wilhelm Augusti, Bd. vii., Leip- " zig, 1825 ; The Meaning and Use of Baptizein,'' by T. J. Conant, D. D., New York, 1868 ; The History of Infant Baptism, by W. Wall, London, 1819; The History of Baptism, by R. Eobinson, London, 1790; Das. Sacra- ment der Taufe, von Joh. Wilh. Friedrich Hofling, Er- langen, 1859 ; Hippolytus and his Age, by C. C. J. Bun- sen, London, 1852; The Creeds of Christendom, by Philip Schaff, D. D., LL.D., New York, 1877; The History of the English Baptists, by Thomas Crosby, London, 1738 1 ^^ 6 6 PEEFACE. Bye-Paths in Baptist History, by Eev. J. Jackson Goad- by, New York; Historical Vindications^ by Sewall S. Cutting, Boston, 1859 ; Geschichte der Taufe und Tauf- gesinnten, von Johann August Starck, Leipzig, 1789; Mittheilungen aus dem Antiquariate, von Calvary & Co., Berlin, 1870; and Johannes Kessler^s SabbataySt. Gallen, 1870. I should have found very helpful The Baptism of the Ages and of the Nations, by William Cathcart, D. D., published by the American Baptist . Publication Soci- ety, Philadelphia, during the present year, had I not completed the preparation of my manuscript before the appearance of that excellent work. I find in it a few testimonies that had escaped my notice, and these I have transferred to my own pages. For the use of some of the books mentioned above I am indebted to the library of the Newton Theological Institution, and to the library of Colby University. For valuable aid I am also indebted to the Rev. Dr. Alvah Hovey, D.D., President of the Kewton Theological In- stitution, and especially to the Eev. Edward W. Pride of Boston, who has consulted for me rare works in the libraries of that city. If there are other testimonies which should have a place in this attempt to show what has been the act of baptism in the history of the Christian Church, they are not purposely omitted, and I know of none that would in any way modify the general conclusions reached. Portland, Maine, Sept., 1878. CONTENTS. CHAPTEE I. PAGE Baptism in the New Testament Period, a. d. 26-100 9 CHAPTEE II. From the New Testament Period to the Coun- cil OF Nic^A, A.D. 100-325 38 CHAPTEE III. From the Council of Nic^a to the Council of Toledo, a.d. 325-633 53 CHAPTEE IV. From the Council of Toledo to the Council of Eavenna, a.d. 633-1311 91 CHAPTEE V. From the Council of Eavenna to the Westmin- ster Assembly, a. d. 1311-1644 124 CHAPTEE VI. From the Westminster Assembly to the Pres- ent Time, A.D. 1644-1879 169 NOTES 215 INDEX 247 7 THE ACT OF BAPTISM. CHAPTER I. BAPTISM IN THE NEW TESTAMENT PERIOD. ^. D. S6-100. It has been claimed (Lightfoot, Bengel, Wall, and others) that when John the Baptist ap- peared, baptism had long been in use among the Jews as an initiatory rite in the case of proselytes. There is, however, no reference to such an initiatory rite in the Old Testament. Proselytes are mentioned, but all the Old Tes- tament writers are silent concerning proselyte baptism. The same is true of the Apocryphal books and of the books of the New Testament. Moreover, writers like Josephus and Philo make no mention of proselyte baptism. The former, as is well known, is especially minute in his al- lusions to the customs of the Jews; and though in several instances he refers to persons who 10 THE ACT OF BAPTISM. embraced the Jewish religion and submitted to circumcision, he makes no allusion to their bap- tism. So also in the Mishna, or text of the Tal- mud, which belongs to the early part of the third century, there is no mention of proselyte baptism. The same is true of the writings of the Christian Fathers during the first four centuries. Accord- ingly, Meyer, in his Commentary on Matthew ^' (Ger. ed., s. 97), says : The baptism of John has been viewed wrongly as a modified applica- tion of Jewish proselyte baptism, which first came into practice after the destruction of Je- rusalem. The oldest witness concerning it ap- pears in the Gemara Babyl. Jebamoth, 46. 2, while Philo, Josephus, and the older Targums are en- tirely silent in reference to such a rite." The following is from Godet's Commentary on Luke " (Eng. ed., vol. i., p. 172) : The rite of baptism, w^hich consisted in the plunging of the body more or less completely into water, was not at this period in use among the Jews, neither for the Jews themselves, for whom the law only prescribed lustrations, nor for proselytes from paganism, to whom, according to the testimony of history, baptism was not applied until after the fall of Jerusalem. The very title Baptist, given to John, sufficiently proves that it was he THE ACT OF BAPTISM. 11 who introduced the rite. This follows from John i. 25, where the deputation from the San- hedrin asks him by what right he baptizes if he is neither the Messiah nor one of the prophets, which implies that this rite was introduced by him, and further from John iii. 26, where the disciples of John make it a charge against Jesus that he adopted a ceremony of which the insti- tution, and consequently, according to them, the monopoly, belonged to their Master." Geikie, in his Life and Words of Christ (Am. ed., vol. i., pp. " 394, 395), states the fact thus : With the call to repent John united a significant rite for all who were willing to own their sins and promise amendment of life. It was the new and striking requirement of baptism, which John had been sent by divine appointment to introduce. The Mosaic ritual had indeed required washings and purifications, but they were mostly personal acts for cleansing from ceremonial defilements, and were repeated as often as new uncleanness de- manded. But baptism was performed only once, and those who sought it had to receive it from the hands of John. The old rites and requirements of the Pharisees would not content him. A new symbol was needed, striking enough to express the vastness of the change he demanded and to 12 THE ACT OF BAPTISM. form its fit beginning, and yet simple enough to be easily applied to the whole people, for all alike needed to break with the past and to en- ter on the life of spiritual effort he proclaimed. Washing had, in all ages, been used as a religious symbol and a significant rite. Naaman's leprosy had been cleansed away in the waters of the Jor- dan. The priests in the temple practised constant ablutions, and others were required daily from the people at large to remove ceremonial impurity. David had prayed, 'Wash me from mine iniquity.' Isaiah had cried, ' Wash ye, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings.' Ezekiel had told his countrymen to ' wash their hearts from wick- edness.' Ablution in the East is, indeed, of itself almost a religious duty. The dust and heat weigh upon the spirits and heart like a load. Its removal is refreshment and happiness. It was, hence, im- possible to see a convert go down into a stream travel-worn and soiled with dust, and after dis- appearing for a moment emerge pure and fresh, without feeling that the symbol suited and inter- preted a strong craving of the human heart. It was no formal rite with John." ^ It should be added, however, that whatever difference of opinion has existed concerning the origin of proselyte baptism, there has been but' THE ACT OF BAPTISM. 13 one opinion concerning the manner in which it was administered. This was by immersion. Such is the testimony of the Babylonian Gemara, Maimonides, who wrote in the twelfth century, '' says : There must be water sufficient for the dipping of the whole body of a man at once; and such the wise men reckon to be a cubit square and three cubits in depth." And such is the practice in the case of proselytes at the present time. Leo of Modena, Rabbi of Venice, in his book De Ritilms et Usis Judxorum (pars, i., c.
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