(Gr. baptisma , from baptizoµ “to dip,” “to immerse.”) The Christian ceremony of initiation, traditionally either by immersion, pouring, or sprinkling. Seventh-day Adventists “belive in baptism by immersion,” and that baptism “typifies the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, and openly expresses faith in His saving grace and the renunciation of sin and the world, and is recognized as a condition of entrance into church membership” ( Church Manual [1990], pp. 42, 182). Accordingly, baptism is administered only to those who have reached an age of accountability. It “is usually conducted by an ordained minister, but in his absence the local church elder may officiate,” only, however, with the approval of the conference president ( Manual for Ministers [1992], p. 84). Persons entering the SDA Church who have been baptized by immersion in other religious communions are accepted without rebaptism, unless they desire to be rebaptized; however, “it is recognized that rebaptism is desirable” ( Church Manual , p. 51).
When members have apostatized, the Church Manual recommends rebaptism: “When members have fallen away in apostasy and have lived in such a manner that the faith and principles of the church have been publicly violated, they should, in case of reconversion and application for church membership, enter the church as in the beginning, by baptism” ( p. 51).
Seventh-day Adventists believe that candidates for baptism should be thoroughly instructed in the Christian faith, in order that they may take the step intelligently and with resolute purpose. To this end, special classes are conducted in which instruction on the principal articles of faith and on the Christian way of life is given. In non-Christian lands candidates may remain in baptismal classes for as long as one or two years, until they have demonstrated both a theoretical and a practical understanding of the Christian faith. Immediately prior to baptism, candidates are asked to affirm, publicly before the church, their assent to the teachings of the church, and their intent to order their lives in harmony with their beliefs.
Origin and Development of the Seventh-day Adventist View . The question of baptism naturally arose early among SDA s, coming as they did largely from membership in other churches. In 1857 J. H. Waggoner declared that a person should be rebaptized after coming to have a correct understanding of the law of God, since that individual cannot have truly been baptized until having died to sin; in baptism that person “puts on Christ, . . . and takes His name,” but we “cannot live unto God and walk in newness of life, while we continue to transgress the law,” regardless of whether the sin was committed in ignorance ( Review and Herald 9:173, Apr. 2, 1857; 9:181, Apr. 9, 1857). The question of baptism was further discussed by James White in 1867, who listed several conditions that call for rebaptism: not having truly died to sin; having been baptized by an unholy minister or one who opposed “Bible purity” or spiritual gifts, or the work of SDA s; having been baptized before accepting “the truth”; having apostatized and turned to iniquity ( ibid. , 30:114 f. , Aug. 6, 1867). Although there is evidence that the question of the character of the minister was an issue in the early years, this has not generally typified SDA doctrine. The question of whether rebaptism of converts is necessary, however, continued to be an issue until the General Conference session of 1886, when the policy essentially as it stands today (see above) was formally adopted ( EW 99; Ellen G. White, Sketches From the Life of Paul , p. 133; Ev 375; Yearbook [1887], p. 45).
Meanwhile, the theological dimensions of baptism were developed in a series of articles by Waggoner in 1878, followed by four more articles from J. N. Andrews in 1880 ( Review and Herald , Feb. 14–June 6, 1878; Jan. 15, 22, Feb. 5, 26, 1880). Emphasis was placed on the relation of baptism to the law: baptism is the outward act signifying that the sinner has died with Christ, i.e. , has been united with Him in His atoning death; he or she dies to the transgression of the law and thus is forgiven of past sins; he or she rises to a new life of obedience to God’s will, a life of consecration. In a later series appears a new emphasis on the importance of faith and the work of the Spirit, particularly in connection with baptism as a symbol of resurrection: O. Davis writes in 1893 that in baptism “God . . . raises us up as He raised Jesus up a new creature, if we have faith in the operations of God.” “We are reckoned new creatures, born of the Spirit” ( ibid. 70:595, Sept. 19, 1893; 70:614, Oct. 3, 1893). Ellen G. White portrays baptism as an oath of allegiance on the part of the one baptized ( Ev 307 [1903]) and represents that individual as having received “a pledge from the . . . Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit” ( SDACom 6:1074 [1900]). “If we are true to our [baptismal] vow, there is opened to us a door of communication with heaven-a door that no human hand or satanic agency can close” ( ibid. , 1075 [ Review and Herald 83:20, May 17, 1906]). In more recent years C. B. Haynes wrote: “When the believer . . . rises from the baptismal waters, he testifies that his only hope of a life that will give him victory over his old sinful nature is in a risen Lord and the new spiritual and resurrection life which his Lord alone can give” ( These Times 67:19, September 1958).
Historical Backgrounds of Baptism. The OT background of baptism is to be found in the ceremonial washings with water specified for the ancient Hebrew rituals. It included both sprinkling and bathing the entire body ( Lev. 14:8 , 9 ; 16:4 ; cf. Zech. 13:1 ). Compare also “Purge me with hyssop” ( Ps. 51:7 ); in the ancient services of purification hyssop was dipped in water and used for sprinkling the people ( Lev. 14:6 , 7 ; Num. 19:17–19 ).
In late Judaism at least three developments are relevant to a background for baptism:
1. According to the Talmud ( Tractate Mikwaoth ), virtually all the washings prescribed in the sanctuary rituals were to be accomplished by complete immersion in a pit filled with water ( a Mikweh ), This makes understandable the variant reading of Mark 1:4 , where even beds are spoken of as being baptized, a ceremony provided for in the Talmud.
2. There is evidence from the Talmud ( Yebamoth 46 a-b) that from the end of the first century of the Christian Era at least, baptism along with circumcision and sacrifice was required for the admission of a proselyte to Judaism. While some have questioned that this was practiced as early as the time of John and Jesus, it is now generally conceded by scholars that it must have been. (See Frank A. Moran, “Jewish Elements in Christian Baptism,” pp. 10–13, where the problem is discussed and the evidence presented for the antiquity of a proselyte baptism.)
3. Josephus mentions daily ritual washings of the Essenes ( War 2. 19. 5, 10), and there are repeated references in the Dead Sea scrolls to some kind of ritual washing ( 1QS , III, 4–6, 8–10; IV, 18–21). In addition, a number of cisterns have been found at the Qumran monastery, at least one of which is well suited for baptism (W. H. Brownlee, “John the Baptist in the Light of Ancient Scrolls,” The Scrolls and the New Testament , ed. Krister Stendahl [1957], pp. 38, 39).
A development may be observed in Jewish, Johannine, and Christian baptism: Jewish baptism was largely a cleansing from ritual defilement and, at least at Qumran, was also connected with rectitude of life and granting of “a holy spirit” by God ( 1QS , III, 6–10; IV, 18–20).
John the Baptist seems to place an even greater emphasis upon repentance and also looks forward to a connection between baptism and “spirit.” With John the emphasis seems to be much more directly upon cleansing spiritually and upon ethical rectitude, while at Qumran there is a stronger ritual orientation upon the cleansing of the “flesh.”
Particularly significant is the fact also that while the Qumran ritual was highly exclusive, limited only to members of the community—the “elect”—John’s baptism was open to all who repented.
As contrasted with that of John, Christian baptism is “in the name of Jesus” and associated with the reception of the Holy Spirit ( see Acts 19:1–6 ). Also in contrast with Qumran, the Holy Spirit in the New Testament is divine and not simply “a holy spirit” granted by God to an individual. Furthermore, Christian baptism is connected with the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ ( Rom. 6:1–11 ).
Infant Baptism. Seventh-day Adventists reject infant baptism, asserting that there is no Scripture warrant for such a practice. They believe that active faith on the part of the participant is a prerequisite for baptism, and since infants cannot exercise such kind of faith their baptism would be entirely without meaning.
Historically clear evidence of infant baptism first appears in the Christian church during the second half of the second century. Whether it arose first in the East or in the West is not clear. However, our earliest testimony to it is in the West, and the two major factors that seem to have contributed to its appearance are first attested there: an identification of baptism as “spiritual circumcision” (Justin Martyr Dialogue With Trypho 43, in ANF , vol. 1, p. 216); and the belief that baptism cleansed from original sin.
Infant baptism is probably referred to by Irenaeus ( Against Heresies 2. 22. 4, in ANF , vol. 1, p. 391), and is testified to from the beginning of the third century by Tertullian ( On Baptism 18, in ANF , vol. 3, p. 678). The fact that in the East infant baptism apparently was practiced before the doctrine of original sin was introduced suggests that the latter may have been introduced in explanation, at least partially, of the practice of infant baptism. Thus, Origen ( d. c. 254) supported infant baptism as an apostolic tradition and used it as an evidence for the doctrine of original sin, which he strongly taught ( Commentaria in Epistolam ad Romanos 5. 9, in PG , vol. 14, p. 1047; In Lucam Homilia 14, in PG , vol. 13, p. 1835; In Leviticum Homilia 8, in PG , vol. 12, p. 496). However, the doctrine of original sin was never as deeply rooted in the East as in the West.
Mode of Baptism. From the beginning Seventh-day Adventists have practiced baptism by immersion. While it is unsafe to make the meaning of baptizoµ a final argument for the mode of baptism, it does seem clear that as used in ancient literature, at least to A.D. 100, baptizoµ never departs from the basic meaning of “to dip,” “to overwhelm.” At the same time it cannot be proved beyond all doubt that baptizoµ never refers to a rite performed by sprinkling or pouring, in view of the wide variety of figurative uses in which the word is employed. The strongest argument for baptism by immersion is a theological one—Paul’s symbolism of baptism as representing death, burial, and resurrection, which would have had no significance if the apostolic church had practiced a mode of baptism other than immersion.
Significance of Baptism. From the beginning Seventh-day Adventists, in common with their Protestant heritage, have rejected any view of baptism as an opus operatum , that is, as an act that, in and of itself, imparts grace and effects salvation. Historically, the beginnings of such a view of baptism—the idea that ritual washing had some kind of supernatural power—are very early and may well be a part of the early Christian heritage from Judaism. This already seems to be suggested in Hermas , book 3, similitude 9, 16. Tertullian is the first writer to refer to baptism as a sacramentum . However, this in itself cannot be taken as proof that he thought of baptism as a sacrament in the sense of an opus operatum , for he expresses disapproval of the belief of some who expected from baptism a magical cleansing of sin without true repentance. This in itself testifies to the extent to which baptism, in some minds, had come to be considered an opus operatum by the early third century (Tertullian On Repentance 6). However, in another treatise he comes very close to the idea that the water of baptism has a special power after the invocation of God has been made over it ( On Baptism 4). Later in the fourth century the Donatist controversy was settled in favor of baptism as an opus operatum as against an opus operantis . Augustine’s victory over Pelagius on the side of the doctrine of original sin did much to enhance a sacramentalist view of baptism.