What happens at a baptism, step by step

Quick answer: Nearly every Christian baptism follows the same four movements. The person or family is welcomed and the reason for the service stated; promises are made, by the candidate or by parents and godparents; water is used with words naming the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit; and the congregation welcomes the newly baptized. Everything else — oil, a candle, a white garment, full immersion — varies by tradition.

What are the four movements every baptism shares?

Strip away the local customs and the shape is remarkably stable across traditions that otherwise disagree about a great deal.

1. Gathering and naming. The minister says what is about to happen, and the person being baptized is named.
2. Promises and profession. Faith is professed — by the candidate personally, or by parents and godparents on behalf of an infant. In liturgical churches this takes the form of questions and a creed.
3. The water. Poured, sprinkled or by full immersion, with the words naming Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
4. Welcome. The congregation receives the newly baptized, often with applause, a blessing, or a hymn.

What is the order of service at an infant baptism?

In a Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran or Orthodox parish, the sequence is close to this:

• The family is greeted at the door or at the font, and the child's name is asked for.
• A reading, usually from the Gospels — Mark 10, where children are brought to Jesus, and Matthew 28 are the common choices.
• Questions to the parents and godparents: whether they will bring the child up in the faith, and a renunciation of evil in some liturgies.
• The creed, said by all or by the godparents.
• Blessing of the water, then the baptism itself. In Catholic and Anglican practice water is normally poured over the head three times; in Orthodox practice the infant is usually immersed three times.
• Anointing with oil, in traditions that use it.
• A white garment, and a candle lit from the Easter candle and handed to a parent or godparent.
• Prayers, the Lord's Prayer, a blessing, and the welcome.

Ten to twenty minutes, typically, folded into a Sunday service or held as a service of its own.

What is the order of service at an immersion baptism?

In a Baptist, Pentecostal or non-denominational congregation, the shape is simpler and the personal profession is at the centre:

• The person gives a short testimony — how they came to faith. Some congregations skip this; many consider it the heart of the service.
• The pastor asks a direct question, usually some form of "do you profess faith in Jesus Christ as Lord?"
• Both step into the water: a baptistry built into the church, or a river, lake or pool.
• The words are said, and the person is lowered backwards fully under the water and raised again.
• The congregation applauds or sings. Several people are often baptized in the same service.

Immersion is chosen deliberately for what it pictures. Paul writes:

We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life. (Romans 6:4)

What do the symbols mean?

A church that does not use oil or a candle is not omitting something — those traditions locate the meaning in the water and the profession, and keep the rite deliberately plain.

Where does the biblical wording come from?

Two passages supply most of what is said aloud. The instruction at the end of Matthew gives the formula:

Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I commanded you. (Matthew 28:19-20)

And Peter's answer in Acts gives the shape of the response:

Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38)

Read Acts 2 and Acts 8 together and you can see why traditions disagree about who should be baptized while agreeing entirely about what baptism is. That argument is laid out in infant baptism or believer's baptism.

What does a guest do?

Sit where you are directed, stand when the congregation stands, and join in whatever you are comfortable joining. At many infant baptisms guests are invited forward to gather around the font; go if you are asked, stay if you would rather.

Two practical notes. Photographs: ask the family beforehand, because churches differ and some ask that only one person take pictures. And if communion falls in the same service, the question of who is invited to receive varies by church — see who can take communion.

Who is allowed to baptize?

Ordinarily, an ordained minister: a priest or deacon in Catholic and Orthodox practice, a pastor or minister in Protestant and evangelical churches. Some congregations also authorise a designated lay leader.

Nearly every tradition provides for one exception: urgent need. If someone is in danger of death and asks for baptism, most churches hold that anyone may baptize, using water and the words naming the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. A baptism done that way is recorded with the parish or congregation afterwards. If this happened in your family, the thing to do is tell the church what was done — nobody is reprimanded for it.

What is written down afterwards?

In the traditions that keep registers — Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican and most of the historic Protestant churches — the baptism is entered in a book belonging to the church where it happened, with the name, the date, the parents, the godparents and the minister.

That entry has practical uses years later: it is what gets requested at confirmation, at a church wedding, or when someone is asked to be a godparent. It is worth knowing which church holds your record, because tracing it decades afterwards takes longer than requesting a copy.

Churches that baptize on profession of faith usually record it in the congregation's minutes with less formality, and often hand the person a certificate on the day.

How long does the whole thing take?

The rite is short. The service around it is not always. An infant baptism inside a Sunday Eucharist can mean an hour and a quarter in the building; a standalone baptism service might be half an hour; an immersion service with six candidates and testimonies can run longer than either. If timing matters, ask the family what the service will be.

Scripture quoted from the World English Bible (public domain). This article describes what different Christian traditions practice; it does not recommend one over another.