CHAPTER XII
infant baptism
One of the customs held and upheld by Pedobaptist churches, which Baptists seriously condemn, is infant baptism. It is practiced by both Roman Catholics and Protestants as a religious institution; and though not held as sacredly, or practiced as widely as formerly, it still prevails to a wide extent throughout the Christian world. And yet it was not instituted by Christ, nor practiced by His Apostles, nor known in the primitive churches, and has neither sanction nor recognition in the Word of God. It is for this reason that Baptists utterly reject and condemn the custom, as not simply useless and without authority, but as a most pernicious and hurtful usage; that it is injurious both to the child that receives it, and to the church which allows it, can be easily shown. Baptism before faith, and without a profession it, contradicts and does violence to all New Testament teaching.
not of scriptural authority
Now, that infant baptism is not of Scriptural authority, and was not known in the first Christian ages, nearly all its advocates and defenders have with considerable candor admitted. Only a few of their historians and scholars can be cited here.
Dr. William Wall, a learned Divine of the English Church, who wrote the “History of Infant Baptism,” a work so able that the clergy in convocation assembled gave him a vote of thanks for his defense of the custom, says: “Among all the persons that are recorded as baptized by the Apostles, there is no express mention of any infants.” Hist. Inf. Bap., Intro., pp. 1, 55.
Thomas Fuller, the historian, says: “We do freely confess there is neither express precept nor precedent in the New Testament for the Baptism of Infants.” Infants’ Advoc., pp. 71, 150.
Luther says: “It cannot be proved by the sacred Scriptures that infant baptism was instituted by Christ, or begun by the first Christians after the Apostles.” Vanity of Inf. Bap., Part II., p. 8.
Neander says: “Baptism was administered at first only to adults, as men were accustomed to conceive of baptism and faith as strictly connected. We have all reason for not deriving infant baptism from Apostolic institution.” Ch. Hist., Vol. I., p. 311; Plant. and Train., Vol. I., p. 222.
Professor Lange says: “All attempts to make out infant baptism from the New Testament fail. It is totally opposed to the spirit of the Apostolic age, and to the fundamental principles of the New Testament.” Inf. Baptism, p. 101.