As the World Council of Churches document Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry has reminded Christians, the scriptures of the NewTestament and the liturgy of the Church unfold the meaning of baptism in various images (often based on Old Testament water symbols) which express the mystery of salvation. Baptism is participation in Christ’s death and resurrection (Romans 6.3–5; Colossians 2.12); a washing away of sin (1 Corinthians 6.11); a new birth (John 3.5); an enlightenment by Christ (Ephesians 5.14); a reclothing in Christ (Galatians 3.27); a renewal by the Spirit (Titus 3.5); the experience of salvation from the flood (1 Peter 3.20–21); an exodus from bondage (1 Corinthians 10.1–2) and a liberation into a new humanity in which barriers of division, whether of sex or race or social status, are transcended (Galatians 3.27–28; 1 Corinthians 12.13). The images are many but the reality is one.

Several dimensions of baptism became clear as the early Church developed its practice. Initiation into the Church was a vital concern of the whole Christian community and not only of the candidates for baptism and their immediate families. Preparation for baptism was a responsibility shared among various members of the community, both ordained and lay. Becoming a Christian had as much to do with learning to live a new lifestyle within the Christian community as it did with specific beliefs. When the day of baptism finally arrived, the event took place within the context of the Sunday eucharist, when the whole community was gathered and where the newly baptized received communion for the first time. -Book of Alternative Services

The Baptism of Vajk by Gyula Benczúr won First Prize in competition Minister of Culture József Eötvös announced with the purpose of promoting historical painting in Hungary. In the study prepared for the painting, which was eventually entered for the competition, a conspicuous group of pagan Hungarian was present. When the final picture was completed in 1875, there was no indication of the pagans, i.e. the opposition; after the political compromise between Hungary and Austria in 1867, those who financed the competition preferred a rendering of this decisive event without allusions to any conflicts. Vajk (the later King St. Stephen) is seen kneeling in the foreground, to be baptized by Saint Adalbert, dressed in ornate attire.