Dorothy continued: "'And they went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch and he sprinkled him."
"Let us have another passage," said the father.
Dorothy continued: "'Therefore we are buried with him by sprinkling into death.'"
"Oh, my," said Mr. Page, bursting into a laugh, "where did you ever see anyone buried by sprinkling a few drops of earth upon him? Say, Friend Sterling, how did this idea of sprinkling get into so many churches? It certainly does not seem to have a single leg to stand upon."
"I can give you some passages where the word sprinkle would sound natural; for example this passage: 'Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel unto every creature, and he that believeth and is sprinkled shall be saved.' That sounds just as natural as if it read 'he that believeth and is immersed shall be saved'."
"Maybe so," said Mr. Page, "but it sounds just a little limp to me. Besides, you could hardly put the word 'pour' in that passage. If you want to make a real point you must give some passage where the word 'sprinkle' would sound natural and the word 'immerse' would seem out of place."
"Yes," spoke up Dorothy. "Can you give us such a passage, Mr. Sterling?"
"I have such a passage and it will show that immersion could not have been the mode of baptism."
"Out with it," said Mr. Page.
"It is the words spoken to Saul. It reads: 'Arise and be baptized.' Now that baptism could not have been an immersion. Saul was evidently seated and he was told to arise or to stand up. What was he to stand up for? To be sprinkled, of course. You would not ask a man who was seated to stand up to be immersed."