Baptism

“Baptism: The rite of Christian initiation. Baptism is performed by pouring or sprinkling water on a person or by immersing him briefly in water, accompanied usually with the formula ‘I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.’ The rite is held to wash away the stain of original sin and to make the recipient a member of the Christian Church. Much controversy has surrounded the mode of administration and the age and which baptism should be administered.”

Excerpted from: Murphy, Bruce, ed. Benet’s Reader’s Encyclopedia, Fourth Edition. New York: Harper Collins, 1996.