Hello and welcome. In this article, we'll examine relevant texts in The Didache to understand who the proper recipients of baptism are and if The Didache aligns with Credobaptism or Paedobaptism. For background context, we recommend reading our brief introduction article on the proper recipients of baptism from historical perspectives, which you can read here.
REVIEWING COMMON CLAIMS FROM PAEDOBAPTISTS
In the apologetic landscape, Paedobaptists defending their practice routinely claim that the baptismal practice of Christians always included infants, going back to the apostles. They argue that the practice of believers being the only proper recipients of baptism has no attestation until the 1500s, and that Paedobaptism was the universal practice before then.
“Since the Apostles themselves, paedobaptism was practiced and handed off to the Apostolic Fathers, who handed it off to the next generation, known as the Early Church Fathers. It must be noted that since the early church itself, dating back to the Apostles, paedobaptism has always been practiced.” - Trey Soto, Do Christians have to believe in Paedobaptism?
“Infant baptism was the universal practice of the church until after the Protestant Reformation.” - Theopolis Institute, Infant Baptism in the History of the Church
“Infant baptism is the universal practice of the Christian church for over the first 1500 years of its existence.” - Kim Riddlebarger, The Biblical Case for Infant Baptism, VI.D
“It is not infant baptism which is an odd practice, rather it is the rejection of infant baptism which is a novelty and only represents a single strand of Protestantism…. If we are going to compare opinions then I am convinced that it is only reasonable to believe that the earliest Christians, taught by the Apostles, had the correct understanding, and that any novel ideas, which are contrary to 1500 years of unanimous Christian teaching, cannot be authentic Christianity.” - St. George Orthodox Ministry, Infant Baptism?
“Infant baptism was the universal practice of the church until after the Protestant Reformation.” - Tim Lecroy, Infant Baptism in the History of the Church
“For fifteen hundred years after Christ, the practice of infant baptism was universal; that to this general fact there was absolutely no exception,” - Samuel Miller, cited by Booth in, Children of the Promise, p. 179
In this article, we will examine The Didache.
WHAT IS THE DIDACHE?
The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, commonly referred to as The Didache, is an early Christian document that was originally lost to history. It was rediscovered in 1873 by Philotheos Bryennios in a manuscript at the Monastery of the Holy Sepulchre in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul). The thematic focuses of The Didache include moral instruction, guidance for worship, church practices, rules for leadership, community life, and expectations about the end times. Turning our attention to dating The Didache, what's the consensus on when it was written?
“The dating and composition of this document is shrouded in obscurity. Some scholars date it around the year 60 or 70, others at the turn of the first century, or in the first half of the second century. Still others place it in the latter part of the second century…Since the majority of scholars still argue for a date in the first century, this work is included in this study.” - Stander and Louw, Baptism in the Early Church, p. 31-32
"The Didache is a list of instructions for use in the late first- and early second-century church." - Jefford, Reading the Apostolic Fathers, Introduction, XX
"Modern scholarship has constantly debated the date of the writing of the Didache. No absolute date is certain, though the broadest consensus of current thought would place the composition of the text, in all of its various stages, between AD 70 and 150." - Jefford, Reading the Apostolic Fathers, p. 28
“The Church polity indicated in the Teaching is less developed than that of the genuine Ignatian Epistles, and shows the existence of extraordinary travelling teachers ( "Apostles" and "Prophets," chap. xi.). This points to a date not later than the first half of the second century, probably as early as the first quarter…Bryennios and Harnack assign, as the date, between 120 and 160; Hilgenfeld, 160 and 190; English and American scholars vary between A.D. 80 and 120.” - Riddle, Introductory Notice To The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, Section 5
“Although in the past many English and American scholars (J. A. Robinson, R. H. Connolly) tended to asign it to the late 2nd cent., most scholars nowadays place it in the 1st cent.” - Cross, The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, p. 479
Since its rediscovery, opinions on the date of the Didache's composition have varied. Some scholars have dated the document as early as 60 AD, shifting it from the late second century. Nevertheless, there is a time window in which the text most likely fits. The current consensus is between the late 1st century and early 2nd century. We aren't committed to a particular date. For the sake of this article, we'll operate with the year 100 AD, which is a median year to round out our date estimation. So whatever the Didache has to say about Baptism reflects Christian practices around the year 100.
WHAT DOES THE DIDACHE SAY ABOUT BAPTISM?
“But concerning baptism, thus shall ye baptize. Having first recited all these things, baptize {in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit} in living (running) water. But if thou hast not living water, then baptize in other water; and if thou art not able in cold, then in warm. But if thou hast neither, then pour water on the head thrice in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let him that baptizeth and him that is baptized fast, and any others also who are able; and thou shalt order him that is baptized to fast a day or two before.” - The Didache, Chapter 7
The relevant portion of the Didache for our investigation in this article is Chapter 7, which gives details and instructions for baptismal practice. With this chapter now in mind, let's outline the argument for Credobaptism in the Didache and then work through it in greater detail.
OUTLINING THE ARGUMENT FOR CREDOBAPTISM IN THE DIDACHE
The argument for Credobaptism in the Didache can be summarized with the following points:
1. The Didache commands those who are to be baptized to fast beforehand. The doctrine of fasting and what it entails means that the baptized were at a certain point of awareness and maturity in their human development beyond infancy.
2. What is meant to be recited before baptism in The Didache is about moral living, which is better suited to people older than infancy.
3. The exhaustive amount of detail given for the mode and location of baptism makes it unlikely that The Didache also affirmed additional categories for the recipients of baptism but just failed to include that detail.
4. Other baptismal texts in the 2nd century that mention fasting beforehand also seem to be framed on a Credo basis, with no mention of infants (and neither of these sources explicitly affirm infant baptism elsewhere)
5. As an additional supportive point, various Paedobaptists who have written about the Didache arrive at similar conclusions when honestly interpreting the text outside of a polemical environment defending Paedobaptism.
WHAT HAVE SOME PAEDOBAPTISTS SAID ABOUT BAPTISM IN THE DIDACHE?
While not representative of every comment from Paedobaptists on the Didache (there are others we will address later), the following comments are worth noting as they agree with some of the points we outlined above.
“It was indeed common practice for baptismal candidates to make public statements of their beliefs. It is also evidence from this passage that fasting is part and parcel of the pre-baptismal instruction. This is in accordance with our explanation in chapter 1 that fasting was more than the mere abstinence from food. It was a period of prayer and spiritual dedication. This aspect of the pre-baptismal period automatically eliminates infants.” - Stander and Louw, Baptism in the Early Church, p. 33
“Nevertheless they seem to me to yield at least some hints, if not more, worthy of consideration. For example, the Didache deals with baptism in a special chapter (7). It is clear that certain baptismal instruction is given prior to the baptism of which it speaks, and the pattern for this teaching is laid down in chapters 1-6. The presupposition of baptismal instruction itself automatically rules out infants little children.” - Aland, Did The Early Church Baptize Infants?, p. 53
“The directions for baptism in the Didache envisage responsible participants as its subjects. There is no provision for young children, but nor are they explicitly excluded.” - Wright, Infant Baptism in Historical Perspective, p. 47
“Didache 7. Willy Rordorf, ‘Baptism according to the Didache’, in J.A. Draper (ed.), The Didache in Modern Research (Studies on the History of Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity, 37; Leiden, 1996), pp. 212-22, mentions infant baptism only in connection with the use of warm water and only to dismiss it summarily from consideration (p. 219). There is no mention of infants in Nathan Mitchell, ‘Baptism in the Didache’, in Clayton N. Jefford (ed.), The Didache in Context (Novum Testamentum, Supplements, 77; Leiden, 1995), pp. 226-55. Neither Rordorf (pp. 221-22) nor Mitchell (pp. 226-27) includes provision for infants among the Didache’s notable omissions. In 1949 Jeremias still related warm water to the baptism of children, in Did the early church practice infant baptism? (Göttingen, 2nd edn, 1949), p. 29, but no longer in Infant Baptism (1958/60). Cf. André Benoît, Christian Baptism in the Second Century: The Theology of the Fathers (Studies in Religious History and Philosophy, 43; Paris, 1953), p. 31: “Nothing in the Didache provides a positive argument in favor of infant baptism.'” - Wright, Infant Baptism in Historical Perspective, Chapter 3, Footnote 11
These Paedobaptist scholars understand The Didache as reflecting a baptismal practice oriented toward professing believers rather than infants, since it describes baptism as being preceded by instruction and fasting. Scholars such as Kurt Aland, H. F. Stander, and Johannes Louw argue that these requirements presuppose candidates capable of understanding and participating in the process, which favors Credobaptism.
At the same time, Paedobaptist David F. Wright echoes this sentiment but also adds that The Didache never explicitly says something like "don't baptize infant children". Some Paedobaptists might be quick to jump on this comment and use this line of thinking as a defeater for any Credobaptism arguments from The Didache. However, as we noted in our introductory article here, this misunderstands Credobaptist hermeneutics and language. Many Credobaptist faith statements don't explicitly exclude the baptism of infants. Instead, the exclusion is derived from affirmative details that exclude infants as being proper candidates because the positive characteristics given are incompatible with that category of people. In fact, it's normally the Paedobaptist faith statements that explicitly discuss the baptism of infants and include them as a proper category of recipients. Therefore, the Credobaptist perspective does not require a text to explicitly say "don't baptize infant children" to conclude that it supports believer's baptism. Consequently, lacking an explicit rejection of infant baptism in a text should not be seen as a defeater of Credobaptism or an implicit affirmation of Paedobaptism.
Wright goes on in his footnotes that some treatments of The Didache have mentioned the use of warm water as a potential accommodation to allow for infant baptism, but these treatments go on to reject such a proposal. In fact, apparently, Joachim Jeremias, a vocal apologist for Paedobaptism in the mid 20th century, once held that perspective but dropped it in later works. That perspective seems to have fallen completely out of favor in modern analysis as well. Wright then mentions various treatments of The Didache from Rordorf, Mitchell, and Benoît that do not mention infants as a category of recipients that the text has in view.
The overall scholarly consensus reflected in these Paedobaptist sources is that The Didache provides positive evidence for believer-oriented baptismal practice, while offering no clear positive evidence or provision for infant baptism.
THE DOCTRINE OF FASTING IN THE BIBLE
Since fasting is the nearest antecedent to baptism in The Didache, let's unpack fasting and what it commonly entails throughout scripture.
Jol 2:12-13 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
Jon 3:5-10 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water: But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not? And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.
Ezr 8:21-23 Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance. For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way: because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek him; but his power and his wrath is against all them that forsake him. So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was intreated of us.
Psa 35:13 But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into mine own bosom.
In the Old Testament, fasting occurs when a serious spiritual situation arises, and people humble themselves to seek God's guidance, mercy, deliverance, or understanding.
Dan 9:2-3 In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes:
Neh 1:4 And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,
Mat 17:21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
Mrk 9:29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.
Luk 2:37 And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.
Act 14:23 And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed.
1Co 7:5 Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.
Between the Old and New Testaments, we also see that fasting is closely connected with prayer. So biblically, fasting is much more than simply refraining from food and is not a standalone activity. It amplifies intentional prayer, repentance, discernment, and dependence on God. Fasting is part and parcel of other religious activities.
Act 9:8-9 And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.
Act 9:17-18 And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized.
When it comes to the connection between fasting and baptism in the New Testament, there is no explicit link. There is no command or repeated pattern of fasting preceding baptism. The closest thing we see is in Acts, after Saul's encounter with Jesus, he didn't eat or drink for three days and was subsequently baptized.
However, since fasting is biblically associated with repentance, prayer, humility, and spiritual preparation, it’s not implausible for a tradition to eventually arise among some Christians in which the practice is connected to baptismal preparation, as we see in The Didache.
THE DOCTRINE OF FASTING IN OTHER EARLY CHRISTIAN SOURCES
In most early Christian sources, fasting comes up when certain passages of scripture are quoted in which a person fasted. We don't have abundant sources discussing fasting in their own words. However, there are a few worth reviewing, two of which relate to fasting and baptism, and therefore shed further light on the practice, helping us better understand The Didache.
“Wherefore, forsaking the vanity of many, and their false doctrines, let us return to the word which has been handed down to us from the beginning; “watching unto prayer,” and persevering in fasting; beseeching in our supplications the all-seeing God “not to lead us into temptation,” as the Lord has said: “The spirit truly is willing, but the flesh is weak.” - Epistle to the Philippians, Chapter VII
To begin, Polycarp is one of the earliest sources outside of The Didache to speak of fasting in their own words. He categorizes fasting alongside prayer as part of "our supplications" to God. This comment from Polycarp builds off of the biblical instances where we see fasting and prayer closely associated.
Justin Martyr's First Apology is generally dated in the 150s, so roughly 50 years after The Didache. Like Polycarp, he connects fasting to prayer. However, this fasting is connected to baptismal preparation, like we see in The Didache. Justin doesn't explicitly say "but don't baptize infants" here, yet this baptismal text comes across as even more strongly Credobaptist than The Didache. For Justin, baptism is part of dedicating oneself to God and is preceded by being personally persuaded and believing in Christian doctrine and understanding Christian moral standards. Those who meet these criteria then pray and fast. After this, Justin talks further about the rite of baptism.“I will also relate the manner in which we dedicated ourselves to God when we had been made new through Christ; lest, if we omit this, we seem to be unfair in the explanation we are making. As many as are persuaded and believe that what we teach and say is true, and undertake to be able to live accordingly, are instructed to pray and to entreat God with fasting, for the remission of their sins that are past, we praying and fasting with them.” - First Apology, Chapter LXI
“The other pledging, and assuring him on oath that he would find forgiveness for himself from the Saviour, beseeching and falling on his knees, and kissing his right hand itself, as now purified by repentance, led him back to the church. Then by supplicating with copious prayers, and striving along with him in continual fastings, and subduing his mind by various utterances of words, did not depart, as they say, till he restored him to the Church,” - Who is the Rich Man that Shall Be Saved?, Section XLII
“Now fastings signify abstinence from all evils whatsoever, both in action and in word, and in thought itself." - The Stromata, Book VI, Chapter XII
Clement of Alexandria's writings are generally dated between the 190s and the very beginning of the 200s. Unlike Justin, he doesn't provide an outline of baptismal practice that includes fasting. Still, we see the pattern of fasting being connected with prayer and other moral activities.
“They who are about to enter baptism ought to pray with repeated prayers, fasts, and bendings of the knee, and vigils all the night through, and with the confession of all bygone sins, that they may express the meaning even of the baptism of John: “They were baptized,” saith (the Scripture), “confessing their own sins.” - On Baptism, Chapter XX
“Another custom has now become prevalent. Such as are fasting withhold the kiss of peace, which is the seal of prayer, after prayer made with brethren. But when is peace more to be concluded with brethren than when, at the time of some religious observance, [Such as fasting] our prayer ascends with more acceptability;” - On Prayer, Chapter XVIII
These two texts from Tertullian are also generally dated between the 190s and the very beginning of the 200s. With Tertullian included, we have three sources with a roughly 50-year gap between each other in the 100s AD that mention fasting in connection with baptism. In On Baptism, Tertullian doesn't mention other categories of people who are proper recipients of baptism. Like Justin, it seems that baptism is occurring on a credo-centric basis. Meaning that, whoever it is being baptized in his mind, has developed enough to pray, confess sins they've committed, and fast. In On Prayer, Tertullian continues the trend of fasting being connected to prayer when he says that prayers during fasting observance are more acceptable to God.
What does all of this mean for The Didache? It means that the command to fast for multiple days before baptism was likely enjoined by other commonly associated activities like prayer and seeking God's guidance, along with the other trends we see in biblical and historical sources. If this is the case, it further goes to show that the baptismal recipients that The Didache has in mind are people who have reached an age of understanding and enough spiritual awareness to participate in these activities. In other words, it has Credobaptism in mind. When it comes to the other historical sources in the second century that place fasting before baptism, they provide corroborative evidence to the view that The Didache did not have infants who had not yet believed in mind as proper recipients of baptism, since these sources also do not provide additional categories or baptismal instructions that would include infants.
LOOKING AT OTHER DETAILS IN THE DIDACHE
Fasting aside, there are still other details to consider that lend themselves to the argument that The Didache supports Credobaptism.
“But concerning baptism, thus shall ye baptize. Having first recited all these things, baptize {in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit} in living (running) water. But if thou hast not living water, then baptize in other water; and if thou art not able in cold, then in warm. But if thou hast neither, then pour water on the head thrice in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let him that baptizeth and him that is baptized fast, and any others also who are able; and thou shalt order him that is baptized to fast a day or two before.” - The Didache, Chapter 7
To start, let's look at the first sentence of Chapter 7. The text indicates that the prior chapters are meant to be recited before baptism. The reciting comes "first". So what is included in the prior chapters? To summarize, the prior chapters include: How Christians should live in chapters 1-4, which is identified as the way of life. Chapter 1 begins with the commandment to love God and love your neighbor as yourself. Chapter 2 lists actions that Christians should avoid. Chapter 3 lists attitudes and habits that lead to sin. Chapter 4 focuses on life in the Christian community. Chapter 5 contrasts the way of life with the way of death by listing wicked behaviors like murder, adultery, theft, and more. Chapter 6 concludes the section on the two ways.
Since what is to be recited before baptism is largely moral guidance, it also gives the impression that The Didache has in mind baptismal candidates who would find the moral guidance generally applicable to themselves at their current stage of development as a person. This again would mean that people older than infancy are in view as baptismal candidates.
“But concerning baptism, thus shall ye baptize. Having first recited all these things, baptize {in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit} in living (running) water. But if thou hast not living water, then baptize in other water; and if thou art not able in cold, then in warm. But if thou hast neither, then pour water on the head thrice in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let him that baptizeth and him that is baptized fast, and any others also who are able; and thou shalt order him that is baptized to fast a day or two before.” - The Didache, Chapter 7
The next part of Chapter 7 further lends support to Credobaptism. When it comes to the mode of baptism, The Didache provides five distinct methods or modes of baptism, beginning with the best-case ideal scenario and ending with a last resort if none of the previously mentioned options are available. Because The Didache provides so many exceptions and category distinctions for the mode of baptism, it's hard to fathom that The Didache also affirmed various exceptions and category distinctions for the recipients of baptism, but just failed to mention them. If The Didache affirmed infant baptism, and applied the same thoroughness to the recipients of baptism as it did to the mode of baptism, it would be fair to expect to see something like this: "But before the baptism let him that baptizeth and him that is baptized fast, but if the baptized has sponsors, let their parents fast in place of the young child as representatives, and any others also who are able; and thou shalt order him that is baptized or their sponsors to fast a day or two before." But as we see, it does not provide these additional categories for the recipients of baptism. Therefore, if the baptismal instruction and command to fast seem to envision only those of responsible age and understanding, it is likely that this is the only category that is a proper recipient of baptism. As a result, The Didache then affirms Credobaptism.
In summary, each portion of chapter 7 supports Credobaptism in The Didache.
ADDRESSING COUNTERARGUMENTS
With our argument for Credobaptism covered, we will now address a few potential responses from Paedobaptists.
Response 1. There is no explicit negation of infant baptism
We briefly touched on this earlier, but it's necessary to review. This is arguably the most common response and counterargument against the majority of historical arguments for Credobaptism. For an example specific to The Didache, observe the following:
“It [The Didache] explains what we ought to do when we baptize adult converts to the faith. But it doesn’t say anything in particular about what we ought to do for infants that are born into the context of a Christian household.” - Biblical Understanding, Does the Didache Really Teach Credobaptism?, 3:29-3:40
Paedobaptists often demand explicit denial and negation of infant baptism to concede that a document supports Credobaptism. Unfortunately, this demand is unreasonable on multiple points.
First, it assumes that the concept of Paedobaptism was in the author's mind and awareness. But if, as many Paedobaptist scholars have acknowledged, infant baptism developed and came into prominence over time, it would not be unnatural for the concept to go unmentioned and also without affirmation if the document in question was written before development and/or prominence arose. Hypothetically, if the New Testament did teach Credobaptism, and infant baptism was not explicitly practiced until a later time, why would we require a source before that time to explicitly denounce a practice that did not yet exist?
Second, it is entirely common in the way humans qualify categories (especially when trying to be succinct) to exclude something without explicit denial. Instead, exclusion is grounded on not falling within the bounds of the description and details that are affirmatively qualified. Some practical examples would be:
1. If a parking sign said, "Parking for residents", we wouldn't conclude that it's permitted for visitors or commercial vehicles to park because they aren't explicitly excluded. The affirmative qualification excludes these categories.
2. If the law said, "Citizens age 18 or older may vote", we wouldn't conclude that it's permitted for non-citizens to vote because they aren't explicitly excluded. No explicit prohibition is necessary for the implication.
3. If a scholarship said, "This scholarship is awarded to undergraduate engineering majors", we wouldn't conclude that it's also awarded to graduate students or non-engineering majors since they aren't explicitly excluded.
In summary of our second point, it's strained and unnatural to require that an early Christian source must explicitly reject a practice, or else it's assumed that they affirm said practice. The more affirmative details and descriptions we are given, the more likely it is that anything unmentioned is not affirmed by the source.
Third, and finally, by this standard, a large number of Credobaptist faith statements, if taken on their own, would affirm the practice of infant baptism because they don't explicitly reject it. As we previously mentioned, Credobaptists often arrive at and summarize their position through affirmative details and qualifications rather than explicit negations.
Response 2. The Didache is in a missionary context
This response does not directly defeat the Credobaptism argument. However, some Paedobaptists might draw inferences that deserve attention, which go a little bit deeper than the first response we covered.
“Didache 7.1 informs us that a course of moral instruction preceded baptism, a course expounded by the “I'wo Ways Scheme’ (Did. 1-6), and we may conjecture from the First Epistle of Peter that the injunction to charity had a dominating position in primitive Christian baptismal instruction, even if we do not see in this letter the working-over of a baptismal address or indeed of a baptismal liturgy, but explain the numerous echoes of baptismal terminology by the theory that the letter was addressed to the new converts of a recently completed great missionary drive.” - Jeremias, Infant Baptism in the First Four Centuries, p. 30
“Furthermore, it is probable that early church manuals such as the Didache reflect the fact that the church was still living and breathing within its original missionary context. We know that the church was growing quite rapidly throughout the second century, from the relatively small base of believers which it had achieved by the end of the apostolic era. Early church writings were produced within that expanding missionary environment and reflect the language of the Great Commission and Peter’s call to “repent and be baptized.” - Holstrom, Infant Baptism and the Silence of the New Testament, p. 100
The idea that The Didache was written in a missionary context can be seen in the works of Jeremias and Holstrom, defending the practice of infant baptism historically. The inference that could be drawn from this view of The Didache being written in a missionary context is that it's only dealing with first-generation converts to Christianity, and thus the baptisms are framed on a credo-basis because there are not yet infants who could be baptized. But once there are infants, they would be baptized as well.
There are a few problems with this response and inference as a means to get around The Didache supporting Credobaptism.
First, it is not clear that The Didache is being written with the focus of going out, converting, and baptizing only first-generation Christians. Chapter 7 treats the proceedings of baptism as the standard rule, without any added caveats. The text just plainly says, "But concerning baptism, thus shall ye baptize." It doesn't say this is how you baptize when you're out on a mission journey, or some similar statement.
"Whosoever therefore shall come and teach you all these things that have been said before, receive him; but if the teacher himself be perverted and teach a different doctrine to the destruction thereof, hear him not;" - The Didache, Chapter 11
"But let every one {that cometh in the name of the Lord} be received; and then when ye have tested him ye shall know him, for ye shall have understanding on the right hand and on the left." - The Didache, Chapter 12
"If the comer is a traveller, assist him, so far as ye are able; but he shall not stay with you more than two or three days, if it be necessary. But if he wishes to settle with you, being a craftsman, let him work for and eat his bread. But if he has no craft, according to your wisdom provide how he shall live as a Christian among you, but not in idleness." - The Didache, Chapter 12
"But every true prophet desiring to settle among you {is worthy of his food.} In like manner a true teacher {is} also {worthy,} like {the workman, of his food.}" - The Didache, Chapter 13
"Appoint for yourselves therefore bishops and deacons worthy of the Lord, men who are meek and not lovers of money, and true and approved; for unto you they also perform the service of the prophets and teachers. Therefore despise them not; for they are your honourable men along with the prophets and teachers." - The Didache, Chapter 15
Furthermore, later in the Didache, we see instructions for a group of Christians on how to handle different types of people entering their fellowship and community. Chapter 15 instructs them to appoint bishops and deacons among themselves. It is evident, then, that The Didache was written to an already established community of Christians, not as Jeremias says, "new converts" of a missionary drive. Baptism was simply one of the functions of the community, and they were given reinforced wisdom on how to perform it. Therefore, seeing The Didache as primarily missionary-focused in theme misses the mark.
Regardless of that aspect, another problem arises if we grant that this text's focus is on a missionary context and concerns only the baptism of first-generation converts. For this view to explain the silence about infant baptism, these conversions and subsequent baptisms would have to be of people who have no family with young children. Paedobaptists might vary on exact reasoning, but they normally hold that if a head of household converts to Christianity and is baptized, the rest of their family should be baptized as well. Therefore, even if we granted a first-generation missionary conversion context, it doesn't solve why The Didache on its face supports Credobaptism, because it's unlikely that these first-generation converts would be only single people with no families and young children. If there were any families with young children among these missionary conversions, we would be back to square one, of why these additional categories for the recipients of baptism were not included in The Didache. In summary, this response only holds up if 1. It could be demonstrated, against what we mentioned, that The Didache was written primarily in a missionary context, and 2. That all of those who had been converted were single adults with no families and young children.
Response 3. It's traditional for baptismal orders to be this way and still support Paedobaptism
“Yet it is not permissible to draw the conclusion that the way in which the baptismal instruction is framed (on the assumption that the doctrine of the Two Ways in the Didache is intended for this purpose) demonstrates that in AD 100 not only infants and little children, but also older ‘children and those who are growing up’ (A 53f.) were excluded from baptism. For this inference overlooks the fact that it is simply traditional for baptismal orders to have the baptism of adults in view without on that account leaving out the children.” - Jeremias, The Origins of Infant Baptism, p. 40-41
The other and final response we will look at. Jeremias asserts that during this time, it was traditional for baptismal orders to not have young children in view, but also not to leave them out as valid recipients.
“There is, however, one demurrer to be entered against this reasoning. As far as the Jewish observances are concerned, we have explicit evidence for the inclusion of infants when the ritual regulations fail to mention them. This is precisely what we lack for baptism in the era of the Didache. Nevertheless, Jeremias’ argument may be held to have shown a prejudice in favour of preferring explicit incidental evidence over the silence of accounts of ritual when the two appear to conflict, as we suggest they do for Rome in the mid-second century. But we cannot do this with the silence of the Didache.” - Wright, Infant Baptism in Historical Perspective, p. 10
Paedobaptist theologian David F. Wright correctly pushes back on Jeremias that 1. We do have explicit evidence for the inclusion of infants in certain Jewish texts. 2. We don't have any evidence of this during the time of The Didache. 3. We cannot follow Jeremias' logic on the silence of The Didache regarding infant baptism. Furthermore, Jeremias is likely grounding the claim that this is "simply traditional" on the Jewish proselyte baptism texts that he lists on pages 38 and 39 of his other work, Infant Baptism in the First Four Centuries. If that's the evidence he has in mind, we have a problem. The problem is that these texts are normally dated toward the end of the 3rd century and throughout the 4th century. These texts are not close to being contemporary with The Didache, which was written around 100 AD. Therefore, it's weak and unconvincing to project them back onto a text written over 150 years earlier.
In conclusion, the primary responses and counter-arguments that we've seen from Paedobaptists seeking to dismantle The Didache as evidence for Credobaptism are logically problematic and unconvincing.
SUMMARIZING OUR FINDINGS
To summarize the argument for Credobaptism in The Didache: Three aspects of chapter 7 indicate that the document only has morally developed and spiritually mature people as the recipients of baptism. The command to fast and moral instruction beforehand are two affirmative details that give this indication. On the flip side, the silence about other categories of recipients for baptism, while the text is exhaustive about valid categories for the mode of baptism, indicates that the silence is intentional, and infants are not meant to be implicitly included. As corroborative evidence for this interpretation of chapter 7, two other sources written within roughly 50 to 100 years of The Didache also place fasting before baptism, seem to have only believers in mind (perhaps more explicitly than The Didache), and do not provide a categorical inclusion of infants as proper recipients. Finally, the overall scholarly consensus reflected in various Paedobaptist sources is that The Didache provides positive evidence for believer-oriented baptismal practice, while offering no clear positive evidence or provision for infant baptism. As a result, we have Credobaptism in The Didache.
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