Chapter 22.—30. That the place of baptism is sometimes supplied by martyrdom is supported by an argument by no means trivial, which the blessed Cyprian adduces1459
| 1459 Cypr. Ep. lxxiii. 22.
|
from the
thief, to whom, though he was not
baptized, it was yet said, "To-day shall thou be with me in
Paradise."
1460
On considering which, again and again, I find that not only martyrdom for the sake of
Christ may supply what was wanting of
baptism, but also
faith and conversion of
heart, if recourse may not be had to the celebration of the
mystery of
baptism for want of time.
1461
| 1461 In Retract. ii. 18, Augustin expresses a doubt whether the thief may not have been baptized.
|
For neither was that
thief crucified for the name of
Christ, but as the
reward of his own
deeds; nor did he
suffer because he believed, but he believed while suffering. It was shown, therefore, in the case of that
thief, how great is the
power, even without the visible sacrament of
baptism, of what the
apostle says, "With the
heart man believeth unto
righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation."
1462
But the want is supplied invisibly only when the administration of
baptism is prevented, not by contempt for
religion, but by the necessity of the moment. For much more in the case of
Cornelius and his
friends, than in the case of that robber, might it seem superfluous that they should also be
baptized with
water, seeing that in them the
gift of the
Holy Spirit, which, according to the
testimony of holy Scripture, was received by other men only
after
baptism, had made itself manifest by every unmistakable sign appropriate to those times when they spoke with
tongues. Yet they were
baptized, and for this action we have the
authority of an
apostle as the warrant. So
far ought all of us to be from being induced by any imperfection in the inner man, if it so happen that before
baptism a person has advanced, through the workings of a pious
heart, to
spiritual understanding, to
despise a sacrament which is applied to the body by the
hands
of the
minister, but which is
God’s own means for working spiritually a man’s dedication to Himself. Nor do I conceive that the function of
baptizing was assigned to John, so that it should be called John’s
baptism, for any other reason except that the
Lord Himself, who had
appointed it, in not disdaining to receive the
baptism of His
servant,
1463
might
consecrate the path of
humility, and show most plainly by such an action how high a value was to be placed on His own
baptism, with which He Himself was afterwards to
baptize. For He saw, like an excellent
physician of
eternal salvation, that overweening
pride would be found in some, who, having made such progress in the understanding of the
truth and in uprightness of character that they would not hesitate to place themselves, both in
life and
knowledge, above many
that were baptized, would think it was unnecessary for them to be baptized, since they felt that they had attained a frame of mind to which many that were baptized were still only endeavoring to raise themselves.
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