You Say Baptism, I Say Baptizo

What is interesting about the word ‘baptism’ is that it is what is called a transliterated word. When the first English Bible translations were being done, the Greek word ‘baptizo’, unlike other Greek words, was not translated into English. Instead, the translators simply created a new English word, ‘baptism’. So, basically, when you say the word ‘baptism’, or ‘baptize’, or ‘baptized’, you are actually speaking Greek. You are saying ‘baptizo’.

Now, as I mentioned before in another post, the meaning of the word baptizo is:

1. to dip repeatedly, to immerse, to submerge (of vessels sunk)
2. to cleanse by dipping or submerging, to wash, to make clean with water, to wash one’s self, bathe
3. to overwhelm

Many have sought to define for themselves (their denomination) the meaning of what water baptism is for them. But, the ramifications of the fact that baptism is a transliterated word straight out of the Greek does not allow for this, and has some interesting results for those who attempt to make it mean something other than immersion when it is being used to describe the sacrament that follows faith in the New Testament.

For example, if you say, “Our mode of baptism is aspersion (sprinkling)”, since the word baptism is straight out of the Greek, what you are really saying is, “Our mode of immersion (baptizo) is sprinkling”, or, “Our mode of washing (baptizo) is sprinkling”, or, “Our mode of dipping (baptizo) is sprinkling”, or, “Our mode of submerging (baptizo) is sprinkling”.

Basically, it becomes a nonsensical statement, seeing as the word baptism already carries with it its own meaning, as it is a word that has been brought over from the Greek.

Our paedo brothers, to be accurate, might need to consider transliterating a different Greek word for the sacrament they perform which is commonly called baptism. The Greek word for sprinkling is rantizo, therefore, I would like to suggest rantism instead of baptism.

The meaning of the word rantizo is:

1. to sprinkle
2. to cleanse by sprinkling, hence to purify, cleanse

This word more accurately conveys the practice of our Presbyterian brothers. The only problem, though, is that this word (nor any other Greek word for sprinkling) is not the one used whenever the sacrament that follows faith in the NT is presented.