A Historical Overview of the Primarily Independent Origins of Original Sin and Infant Baptism in the Fathers Until Augustine

Seminary Room N310

The purpose of this paper is to examine the historical development of original sin (the foundational element of soteriology) and that of baptism (one of the essential rituals of the Church which concerns its nature), particularly infant baptism, something closely associated with original sin after the time of Augustine. This study will show that the origins of infant baptism were largely independent of the emergence of the doctrine of original sin, but that it arose instead due to various other historical and theological factors—a certain reading of John 3:5, high infant mortality rate and low life expectancy, “emergency baptisms” immediately before death (due to the preceding two items), and especially the ex opere operato view of the sacraments.