Why Can Baptism Be Performed By Anyone?

[Veridicus]

Is there a [i]scriptural [/i]basis for why Baptism can be confected by anyone if necessary, but Confession and the Eucharist belong specifically to the priesthood? Or is baptism's separation from the other sacraments in terms of who can confect it more a matter of developing Tradition?

Edited March 19, 2009 by Veridicus

[Thy Geekdom Come]

I'm not off the top of my head aware of any lay-performed baptisms in Scripture, however, it is clear from Tradition (and the use of reason) that such must be the case. With Confession and the Eucharist, it is clear that priestly authority is a must; these two sacraments require someone who is, in the order of grace, able to act in persona Christi. However, Baptism was always understood as being more on the part of the person being baptized. The "authority" behind it, so to speak, was not priesthood, but the faith of the catechumen. Without such faith (and, certainly, proper Trinitarian form), the Baptism could not take place (in the case of infants, the faith of the parents is able to stand in for the child, as the parents are the natural authority over the child). In the same way, the Western Tradition in Marriage does not have the priest conferring the sacrament; instead, the husband and wife confer it on one another, because this is the way it would be in nature, and grace builds upon nature.

This is a simple explanation, but I hope it suffices for now. If I have time, I'll do a little more research.

God bless,

Micah