Church & Sacraments Baptism

Who should be baptized, and what does baptism actually do?

Every Christian tradition on this map baptizes. They split over two things: whether babies should be baptized, and whether baptism itself changes the person or marks a promise God has made. That gives three views.

The 3 views side by side

Believers onlyCredobaptism	Babies too, as a signPaedobaptism as a covenant sign	Babies too, and it brings new birthBaptismal regeneration
Who gets baptized?
Only people who profess faith for themselves. From Second London Baptist Confession, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, John MacArthur, The Church of Eleven22 Statement of Faith	Believers, and the children of believing parents. From Westminster Confession, John Owen, John Calvin, Huldrych Zwingli	Believers, and the children of believing parents. From Martin Luther, Philip Melanchthon, John Wesley, Augustine of Hippo
What does baptism do?
Publicly shows faith the person already has. It isn’t how anyone receives faith or is saved. From John MacArthur, Charles Haddon Spurgeon	Marks a child as inside God’s covenant promise. The water itself doesn’t make anyone born again. From John Calvin, Westminster Confession, Huldrych Zwingli, R.C. Sproul	God uses it to give new birth and forgiveness. Several add that faith has to receive it, so it isn’t automatic. From Martin Luther, John Chrysostom, Philip Melanchthon, John Wesley
The main argument
In the New Testament, people believe first and are baptized after. From Charles Haddon Spurgeon, Second London Baptist Confession	Baptism took the place of circumcision, which Israel gave to its baby boys. From John Calvin, John Owen, Huldrych Zwingli, Westminster Confession	God has tied his promise to the water. Jesus says no one enters the kingdom unless “born of water and the Spirit.” From Martin Luther, Augustine of Hippo, John Wesley, Philip Melanchthon
Where they differ among themselves
Very little here. Everyone on this side who names a method wants full immersion, and Peters goes furthest, making baptism a test of whether a church is a true church. From Second London Baptist Confession, John MacArthur, The Church of Eleven22 Statement of Faith, John Piper, Justin Peters	How much it gives. Zwingli says it conveys nothing; Westminster says grace is “really exhibited and conferred” through it. From Huldrych Zwingli, Westminster Confession	Whether it works on its own. Melanchthon insists faith must be joined to it, and Augustine and Wesley tie its benefit to the life that follows. From Philip Melanchthon, Augustine of Hippo, John Wesley
Key passage
Acts 8:36-37	Colossians 2:11-12	John 3:5
In their own words
“Those who do actually professe repentance towards God, faith in, and obedience, to our Lord Jesus, are the only proper subjects of this ordinance.” Second London Baptist Confession, 2LBC 29.2 (1677/1689 printing, original spelling)PRIMARY SOURCE	“Hence it is incontrovertible, that baptism has been substituted for circumcision, and performs the same office.” John Calvin, Institutes IV.xvi.4 (Beveridge trans.)PRIMARY SOURCE	“Therefore state it most simply thus, that the power, work, profit, fruit, and end of Baptism is this, namely, to save... for by the Word such power is imparted to Baptism that it is a laver of regeneration, as St. Paul also calls it.” Martin Luther, Large Catechism IV, second part, on what Baptism profits (Triglot, Bente & Dau trans.)PRIMARY SOURCE
On this map
10 figures	8 figures	10 figures

Who holds which view

Believers onlyBabies too, as a signBabies too, and it brings new birthNo stance

36 OF 36 FIGURES · 22 QUOTED · 8 WITHOUT A STANCE

Believers only

Believers only, on profession of faith

Second London Baptist Confession1689AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Charles Haddon Spurgeon1834 – 1892AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Billy Graham1918 – 2018LEANSPRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Gavin OrtlundlivingAFFIRMS°STANDARD ACCOUNT John MacArthur1939 – 2025AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED John Piperb. 1946AFFIRMS°STANDARD ACCOUNT Josh HowertonlivingAFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE Justin PeterslivingAFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED The Church of Eleven22 Statement of Faithundated (read 2026)AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Voddie Bauchamb. 1969AFFIRMS°STANDARD ACCOUNT

Babies too, as a sign

Infants included, as a covenant sign

Huldrych Zwingli1484 – 1531AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Jacobus Arminius1560 – 1609AFFIRMS°STANDARD ACCOUNT John Calvin1509 – 1564AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED John Owen1616 – 1683AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Jonathan Edwards1703 – 1758AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Westminster Confession1646AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED R.C. Sproul1939 – 2017AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Tim Keller1950 – 2023AFFIRMS°STANDARD ACCOUNT

Babies too, and it brings new birth

Infants included, and effective for regeneration

Augustine of Hippo354 – 430LEANS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Council of Constantinople I381AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Council of Nicaea I325LEANS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Irenaeus of Lyonsc.130 – c.202LEANS°STANDARD ACCOUNT John Chrysostomc.347 – 407AFFIRMS°STANDARD ACCOUNT❝ QUOTED John Duns Scotusc. 1266 – 1308AFFIRMS°STANDARD ACCOUNT Thomas Aquinas1225 – 1274AFFIRMS°STANDARD ACCOUNT Martin Luther1483 – 1546AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED Philip Melanchthon1497 – 1560AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED John Wesley1703 – 1791AFFIRMS°PRIMARY SOURCE❝ QUOTED

Figures who hold no stance here

These are not gaps in the table. Each group below says which kind of blank it is — searched and not found, held open on purpose, never framed in these terms, or deliberately unassigned because no stance fits.

HELD OPEN ON PURPOSE1 FIGURE

Engaged the question and concluded it should not divide anyone. A position, not an absence.

M. Heiser1963 – 2023PRIMARY SOURCEHELD OPEN°“ QUOTED

NO POSITION FOUND7 FIGURES

Searched and not located. An honest gap in the map.

AthanasiusC.296 – 373NOT LOCATEDNOT FOUND°Basil the GreatC.330 – 379NOT LOCATEDNOT FOUND°“ QUOTED Chalcedon451 · DOCUMENTNOT LOCATEDNOT FOUND Ephesus431 · DOCUMENTNOT LOCATEDNOT FOUND William of OckhamC. 1287 – 1347NOT LOCATEDNOT FOUND°George Whitefield1714 – 1770NOT LOCATEDNOT FOUND“ QUOTED Charles Grandison Finney1792 – 1875NOT LOCATEDNOT FOUND

How to read a cell — sourcing tiers, blanks, and why some figures are never quoted

PRIMARY SOURCEread in a primary source

STANDARD ACCOUNTstandard scholarly account

DISPUTED READINGdisputed among scholars

NOT LOCATEDnot located in a source

A cell marked quoted carries the figure's own words — 359 of 518of them, about 69%. Where there is no quotation the claim is still sourced, and the tier says how far. 3 figures carry no quotation at all, for reasons that differ: a living author cannot be quoted at length under copyright where Calvin can, and a figure at the standard account tier has simply had no primary-source pass yet. 3 of them state their own reason on their page.

A state label ending in ° was read from the stance, tier and note rather than stated on the map. See themethodology.

Augustine of Hippo

354 – 430 · LATIN FATHER

LEANS TOWARDREAD IN A PRIMARY SOURCE

Babies too, and it brings new birth

Every person, infant to elderly, dies to sin in baptism — infants to original sin alone, adults to their added sins too. But the real center of On Baptism, Against the Donatists is a validity/profit distinction: schismatic (Donatist) baptism is real and valid — Augustine refuses to re-baptize converts from it — yet it doesn't 'avail' for salvation until the person is reconciled to the church's unity and charity. Baptismal regeneration in Augustine is sacrament-plus-conversion, not a flat guarantee; he explicitly allows the sacrament can be present without the conversion, and says the reverse happened without the sacrament in the case of the thief on the cross.

See the full position →

IN THEIR OWN WORDS

"The sacrament of baptism is one thing, the conversion of the heart another; but that man's salvation is made complete through the two together."

On Baptism, Against the Donatists IV.25

WORTH CORRECTING

Acts 2:38-39, in the map previously, was not found cited in these two works — dropped from refs as unconfirmed. Infant baptism itself is argued from unbroken apostolic custom and the circumcision typology, not a direct scriptural command.

SCRIPTURE

John 3:5 Galatians 3:27 Genesis 17:9-14 Romans 5:18