Mexico weekly ledger., 1885-04-16
I" THE ACTION OF BAPTISM. "

ing assertions, If for nothing else
And, with your consent. Mr.. Editor,
l wish to enter my solemn and earn.
est protest against all the statements
made by ''Discipl.." in the article
above named. most positively de.
ny that ut the time our Savior gave
the great commission Baptidzo had
ever had the meaning Or Specification
of dip or irnmerse.''
There are now in existence only
twenty-two well atttSied cases of The
occurrence Of Baplitizo in all Greek
literature that is older than the
Christian era. And in not a single
one of the whole number does Bap-
tidzo mean to "dip or immerse "
t. Disciple is challenged to produce
al example from the Greek literature,
sacred or classic, shat is older than
the Christian era, where Bspti'lzo has
the meaning of dip or immerse."
Let him find the example and show
from the text and context that it has
such meaning and he will do more
for his cause than a thousand state
ments from uathority-or the ''tradi-
tion of IRE Elders" If we are to
depeneon the authority of lexicog-
raphers, commentators and learned
men, l can prove that the earth is
fiat and that the sun m"ves around
It and that the world does not turn
lover"
When the Savior .'gave his great
commission TO haptize all the heathen"
Matt. 2S, 10. 20.) the Old Testa-
ment had been translated into Greek
more than two centuries. And when
the Old Testsment was translated into
the Latin the Greek word kota pom.
tfdzo was translated by the latin
demergo in Palm 6S; g, l6. by mergo
IN Math. IA. 80; and by demergo in
Mathis, 6. The Greek kataduno is
translated into Latin by submergo in
Exodus Is, 5. Duno is rendered by
sobmergo in Ex. Is. 10. Buthidzo is
translated 10y the latin merge III Luke
5, Z, aid 1st Tim, 6, 3, and by sub
merge IN End Maccabees IL, 4. Bui
mark this: Baplidzo is never transla
ted by merge. demergo, submergo, Oh
inmergo in all the Bible! Now her,
are four Greek words used eigh
times in the Greek Bible and once il
the Greek Of the Apocrypha, will
which it is we'll known that the Savio
and his Apostles were familiar, all o
which are translated into Latin h,
competent scholars hy the ever merg,
and its compounds. So that il ou
Savior had wished to command immgr
sion. he had plenty of words at ham
iu the Greek to express the lection
Of immersion or submerslon," o
which Disciple seems so fond
But he did not use any one of tn
four, but used Baptiflzo, which a
that time had no such meaning q
"dip" or "immerse. And it neve
had sneh g. si4sni6Sesioa I'll .ne pro,
tice of the supcrstitious Catholic
perverted and prostitu,ed the ord
! nance of baptism into rite Ito soa
out sin and soak in grace An
then the baptistnal literature of I'll
Greek and Roman Catholics colore
and controlled all the works of subs,
quent photographers, critics an
commentators. This is proven by II
fact that all the best LeXicons defI
Baptidzo as meaning ito dip repeo
edly," Ito dip oft and repeatedly
false and risllcu Gus statement-th
never had any better foundation tha
the three partial lmmersions practice
Ihy the ignorant and superstition
Catholics.
Yes, Mr. Editor. the CATHOLICS ha'
/ a patent on Disciples "Actioa
/ Baptism. They are the original i
! veulors of immersion and that u
less than 200 ye,rs after the gre
commission WAS promulgated. "Di
ciple" ought to remember that Il
hest scholars on his side to-day W
admit that .'baptidzo neuer takes o
ehat it puts into the ,uater. So th
10 command to put people under &
water would br command TO droN
them! Our Savior never gave SUI
an order! God never command
q one man to put another into the wat
. for any purpose! If so, when al
where! r
And then Disciple is very u
fortunate in his references to t
places where baptism was admin
tered. He mentions but one lnstan
of Christian baptism Why did
not tell of the time when 5000 ps
sons we're baptized in The dry city
Jerusalem. in one day, where wat'
except for domestic purposes, II
Iour cisterns, was excessively scare
Why did he avoid the baptism in
Philipian Jail at midnight! Whyt
he not go to the house OF Cornell
Il. where water was evidently broug