A Catholic and I debated the topic of infant baptism. He used the argument of “household” referring to babies as well. When I told him that households could mean teens or servants he said that he would rather follow the practice of infant baptism followed by earlier Christians 2000 years ago.<\/p>\n
He then argued that the Bible is alone not sufficient. He asked me to prove “Where, in the Bible and the Bible alone, does the Bible teach the Bible alone?”\u00a0When I quoted Timothy “All scripture is inspired by God….”, he said “scripture” refers to the Old Testament.<\/p>\n
How can I prove to him that infant baptism is nonsensical, even after talking to him about the household topic, etc.?<\/p>\n\t
Christians are required to teach the gospel. It is up to the ones listening to decide whether to accept the message or not. Keep in mind that Jesus, the Master Teacher, was not able to convince everyone he taught; therefore, don’t expect to be able to convince everyone you teach. You are not greater than the Lord.<\/p>\n
You did get the person to indirectly acknowledge that “household” does not necessarily include children. This is why he shifted his argument. He knows the Bible doesn’t support his claim so he states that tradition trumps the Bible.<\/p>\n
Honest Roman Catholics will admit that infant baptism did not appear in the church until the second or third century. Consider these Roman Catholic sources:<\/p>\n
In other words, according to the Roman Catholics, the practice of infant baptism is based solely on their traditions and is not found in the Scriptures. The earliest mention of infant baptism is by Irenaeus in c. AD 180: \u201cFor he came to save all through means of Himself \u2013 all, I say, who through Him are born again to God \u2013 infants and children, and boys, and youths, and old men\u201d [Against Heresies, vol. 1, p. 391]. Origen (185-c. 254) also mentions infant baptism: \u201cBaptism according to the practice of the church is given even to infants.\u201d This is not something that was always done, but it was a very early innovation.<\/p>\n
I suspect the initial impulse to baptize infants was to imitate the Jews and have a ritual that would keep children in the church as they grew up. Later, a justification was sought for that practice that was already being done. \u201cEcclesiastical custom with regard to the administration of Baptism has undergone a change in the course of history. Whereas the early Church baptized adults only, the baptism of children soon became the usual practice\u201d [Pastoral Medicine, pages 32-33]. What developed was a belief that sin was inherited from Adam. \u201cWhere in the fourth and fifth centuries the doctrine of original sin became better known, the practice of infant baptism progressed rapidly\u201d [Legislation on the Sacraments in the New Code of Canon Law, page 72].<\/p>\n
This is why the person you are talking to insists that infant baptism is necessary. From his view, to not baptize an infant places the child at risk of going to hell if he dies early. Therefore, you won’t make much progress on infant baptism until you address the issue of original sin.<\/p>\n
But all of this will be difficult because he doesn’t accept the authority of the Bible. Without a common foundation, it will be hard to prove points.<\/p>\n
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work<\/em>” (II Timothy 3:16-17).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
“Scripture” means sacred writings. All Scripture is sacred because it comes from the mouth of God. But do only the Old Testament writings come from God? Paul claimed that he wrote as guided by the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 2:10-13). Peter stated that Paul’s writings were Scripture in II Peter 3:15-16. Therefore, the New Testament is just as much Scripture as the Old Testament.<\/p>\n
According to Peter, “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust<\/em>” (II Peter 1:2-4). “Everything” doesn’t leave out much. In fact, when the man you are debating goes to his traditions, he is stating that God didn’t give knowledge of everything pertaining to life and godliness and that the Scriptures aren’t able to make a man complete. In other words, his position contradicts the statements of Peter and Paul.<\/p>\n
In reality, he should be proving how traditions written by men can add to the Scriptures that come from God and still be right. People who have done this in the past have been condemned for it. “… you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men’<\/em>” (Matthew 15:6-9).<\/p>\n\t
Response:<\/h2>\n
Wow, you are so good at explaining things. Thanks a lot!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Question: A Catholic and I debated the topic of infant baptism. He used the argument of “household” referring to babies as well. When I told him that households could mean teens or servants he said that he would rather follow the practice of infant baptism followed by earlier Christians 2000 years ago. He then argued…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[78,282,1599],"class_list":["post-11888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-authority","tag-infant-baptism","tag-roman-catholic-church"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":54933,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-the-reasoning-behind-infant-baptism\/","url_meta":{"origin":11888,"position":0},"title":"What is the reasoning behind infant baptism?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 30, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: There is a Catholic whom I talk to and he told me that the reason for baptizing infants is for the opportunity for them to put on the body of Christ if they were to pass away before reaching the age of accountability. They also say that Paul went\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":15798,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/infant-baptism\/","url_meta":{"origin":11888,"position":1},"title":"Infant Baptism (Shouse)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 19, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"by Roger Shouse published in\u00a0Biblical Insight, Vol. 5, No. 7, July 2005. Advocates of infant baptism wrongly assume that the term \"household\" includes infants. Baptizing a baby is often viewed as a very special event in the lives of young parents. Grandparents come to witness the special occasion. A white\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/11\/InfantBaptism.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":30347,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/infant-baptism-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":11888,"position":2},"title":"Infant Baptism (Hamilton)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 11, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Download Audio Text: Romans 7:7-25 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Historians will admit that infant baptism did not appear in the church until the second or third century \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Roman Catholics \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThere is no express mention of the baptism of infants in the New Testament\u201d [Question Box, page 23]. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a02.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt is difficult\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":89836,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/by-what-authority-3\/","url_meta":{"origin":11888,"position":3},"title":"By What Authority? (Matthews)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 28, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Samuel Matthews \"For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;\u00a0 looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":38990,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-is-the-church-of-christs-view-of-baptism-different-from-the-denominations\/","url_meta":{"origin":11888,"position":4},"title":"How is the church of Christ’s view of baptism different from the denominations?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 23, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello, I recently came across a YouTube comment about baptism that puzzled me a bit: \"It's also important to know the church of Christ view of baptismal salvation is different from every other view; that of the Lutherans, Anglicans, Catholics or Orthodox.\" Is this a correct assessment? If so,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":46950,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/infant-baptism-4\/","url_meta":{"origin":11888,"position":5},"title":"Infant Baptism","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 19, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"by Gus Nichols The Scriptures nowhere even so much as mention infant baptism. Let those who may think I am in error tell us whoever baptized an infant in the days of the inspired apostles? Whose baby was it? When was it done? How was it done? The New Testament\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/infantBaptism2-300x269.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11888","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11888"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11888\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}