Take Me To The Water: River Baptisms

Here's a page out of the book "At Home in Carrollton" from my neck of the woods. describes how it was done by a participant.

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Well of course to many people, river baptism was in keeping with the practice of John the Baptist, (also called John the Baptizer) who conducted his baptisms - including that of Jesus Christ - in the the River Jordan. It was seen as traditional and in keeping with the spirit of the thing.

Somehow, an 85 degree baptismal font doesn't quite match the drama. Then again, I was Baptized in Rochester New York in January when you normally need a chain saw to get to the water through the ice anyway.

And it wasn't just confined to Baptists, of course. There's a subset of Christianity called the Anabaptists which includes the Amish, the Mennonites and more.

Civil War buffs are of course familiar with the so-called "Dunker Church" at Antietam; "Dunker" refers to full-body adult immersion. (They themselves did not use the term). The sect originated in Switzerland (or Germay, can't recall) but encountered a good deal of religious persecution in the early 18th century and many of them migrated to the US, particularly Pennsylvania, Maryland and the Carolinas. Most followers called themselves The Brethren.

And just on a personal note, I was rather disappointed to discover that the minister who baptized me was wearing big rubber fishing waders under his robe. Didn't seem right somehow. ;-)
 
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I absolutely LOVE seeing old pictures of river baptisms. They are beautiful to me. I know it's a practice and folk tradition Baptist of all - white and black -- and usually perform in rivers, bayous, and lakes.

Immersion baptism, understood as demanding total submersion of the body, is required by Baptists, as enunciated in the 1689 Baptist Catechism: "Baptism is rightly administered by immersion, or dipping the whole body of the person in water, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit",[173] indicating that the whole body must be immersed, not just the head.

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The tradition of submerging someone in a river to wash away their sins began in Europe, came to America in the 18th century and spread across the South by Baptist ministers, Daniels says. The Christian tradition replicates Jesus' baptism in the Jordan River by John the Baptist 2,000 years ago.

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Baptisms were generally held during the summer or early fall so the water would be warm enough. Outdoor baptismal locations tend to be used traditionally in a community, with various churches using the same spot for generations. Source






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1848 Daguerreotype of former slaves receiving baptism on the Island of Martinique after emancipation.

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A large group of African-American spectators stands on the banks of Buffalo Bayou to witness a baptism (ca. 1900).

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African Americans Post Civil War- Baptism in Georgia Late 1800’s

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What a treasure trove of pictures! Thank you so much for collecting these together and sharing them.

Would the "Buffalo Bayou" about halfway down the first post be the same Buffalo Bayou that runs through Houston? Freedmen's Town in Houston is very near to Houston's Buffalo Bayou.
 
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What a treasure trove of pictures! Thank you so much for collecting these together and sharing them.

Would the "Buffalo Bayou" about halfway down be the same Buffalo Bayou that runs through Houston? Freedmen's Town in Houston is very near to Houston's Buffalo Bayou.

Yes :smile:

Description:
A large group of African-American spectators stands on the banks of Buffalo Bayou to witness a baptism. Many umbrellas are present indicating an effort to provide some shade from the heat of the day. Houston, Texas

Here's the source: http://digital.lib.uh.edu/collection/p15195coll2/item/93

Here's another in the collection:

 
Thanks for posting these great photos!
If I remember right, my grandfather-whose family were Presbyterian-was baptised in a creek.

My own church is not Baptist, and we practice infant baptism more than adult baptism, but whenever weather permits, our baptismal service is held at the local creek, where our pastor wades in, carrying the baby, and pours creek water over the baby's head. Churches come and go as populations grow and ebb, but waterways tend to endure. I like to imagine these youngsters growing up and someday telling their grandchildren, "Here's the creek where I was baptized."
 
Yes :smile:

Description:
A large group of African-American spectators stands on the banks of Buffalo Bayou to witness a baptism. Many umbrellas are present indicating an effort to provide some shade from the heat of the day. Houston, Texas

Here's the source: http://digital.lib.uh.edu/collection/p15195coll2/item/93

Here's another in the collection:

Thank you, Dede! This means so much to me. I lived in Houston for many years, rode my bicycle up and down along that bayou countless times -- probably past that very spot -- and never had any idea that people had been baptized there. How beautiful.
 
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Coming from NH - the muddier places down South look mighty scary to me - like a snake lurking about, possibly an alligator near a bayou. Did I mention I'm scared of snakes?

But I LOVED the pictures. I'm amazed at simply how many were involved in a baptism .
 
My own church is not Baptist, and we practice infant baptism more than adult baptism, but whenever weather permits, our baptismal service is held at the local creek, where our pastor wades in, carrying the baby, and pours creek water over the baby's head. Churches come and go as populations grow and ebb, but waterways tend to endure. I like to imagine these youngsters growing up and someday telling their grandchildren, "Here's the creek where I was baptized."
Thanks for your response.
What you describe was my grandfather's experience. It was just the way they did it 'back then', and some places still today.
 
You're welcome, @WJC, I'm glad to have stirred up a pleasant family memory for you.
Thanks for your response.
He is the only one of my known family members that was baptised in a creek- or, "crick" as he called it. There must have been others. By the time they got to me we were Methodists and just got the sprinkling of water in the church....
 
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