Baptism
Gospel Living

Why is eight the age for baptism?

06/23/21 | 1 min read
Let’s explore the Doctrine and Covenants to find out.

Tucked away in sections 67–70 of the Doctrine and Covenants is an important revelation: the earliest age at which someone should be baptized!

The Prophet Joseph Smith knew from the Book of Mormon that infants don’t need to be baptized (see Moroni 8). And he knew children shouldn’t be baptized until they “arrived at the years of accountability” (Doctrine and Covenants 18:42). But when exactly was that?

The answer finally came when the Lord described how parents should teach their children about the gospel. He said, “And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands” (Doctrine and Covenants 68:27).

This detail about gospel administration is an example of how God reveals things “line upon line, precept upon precept” (2 Nephi 28:30). Who knows what else He is waiting to tell us? Sometimes we just need to be patient and wait for answers to come.

Practice Answering

In many Christian religions, people are baptized when they are babies. What if someone asked you why members of the Church get baptized at age eight instead? Practice what you would say.

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