This post was written by Lucy Lacanienta, an Art History major at Brigham Young University who works at the Maxwell Institute as a Front Desk Assistant and Graphic Designer. Lucy researched artwork related to the book, Ancient Christians: An Introduction for Latter-day Saints, and wrote a series of educational posts.
Did you know that 3rd-century Christians practiced baptism too?
The earliest Christian art and architecture on record was discovered in Dura Europos, Syria in a small house church (ca. AD 240). Within the home, one room was modified to serve as a place for baptism, a religious initiation rite. The baptismal font itself was covered by an arch and placed into the wall, mimicking contemporary burial niches. Prior to the washing, each initiate was anointed with oil and led through the ceremony by members of their respective gender, indicating the participation of women in early Christian ritual practices.
Though baptisms could have been performed in the nearby Euphrates River, this location emphasizes the recognition of the rite’s symbolism in relation to death. After the washing, the new initiate would emerge from the symbolic tomb of the dead as an official follower of Christ, through whom they had found new life. The surrounding paintings depict biblical and Christological scenes including the good shepherd, Adam and Eve, and either the woman at the well or perhaps the earliest representation of the Annunciation, establishing a precedent for later Christian art.
Although we do not know the full story of this space or those who worshiped here, we learn from examples like this that our early brothers and sisters also sought to see Christ in their ritual worship.
Check out Ancient Christians: An Introduction for Latter-day Saints to learn more! (Chapter written by Mark Ellison).
Baptistry reconstruction, house church, Dura Europos. Photo courtesy of Yale University Art Gallery. https://smarthistory.org/origins-of-byzantine-architecture/