All 3 Uses of
baptism
in
The House on Mango Street
- I would like to baptize myself under a new name, a name more like the real me, the one nobody sees.
Chpt 4 *baptize = "spiritually renew" in a Christian ceremonystandard suffix: The suffix "-ize" converts a word to a verb. This is the same pattern you see in words like apologize, theorize, and dramatize.
- Six-thirty already and my little cousin's baptism is over.†
Chpt 19
- Now Uncle Nacho is coming in his car, and we have to hurry to get to Precious Blood Church quick because that's where the baptism party is, in the basement rented for today for dancing and tamales and everyone's kids running all over the place.†
Chpt 19
Definition:
-
(baptism) a Christian ceremony signifying spiritual cleansing and rebirth
or:
a challenging experience that initiates or purifieseditor's notes: Most churches baptize infants, but some require an adult to request baptism, and a few (such as the Quakers) require no baptism at all.
Typically, water is used as part of the ceremony, such as sprinkling a little water on a baby's head; though some churches use complete submersion in water.