Your baptism probably counts. If you were baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with water, the Orthodox Church recognizes that baptism as real and valid. You won’t be baptized again.
Here’s what happens instead. You’ll be received into the Orthodox Church through Chrismation, the mystery where the priest anoints you with holy oil and seals you with the gift of the Holy Spirit. It’s the completion of what began in your infant baptism. Then you’ll make your first confession and receive communion at the next Divine Liturgy.
This is the consistent practice of the Antiochian Archdiocese, following the policy of the ancient Patriarchate of Antioch. We operate by what’s called “economy”, recognizing the grace that God has already given through baptism in other Christian communities, even when those communities don’t have the fullness of the faith. Baptism can’t be repeated. It’s a one-time mystery that marks you permanently as Christ’s own.
But your priest will need to verify a few things first. He’ll ask where and when you were baptized. If you have a baptism certificate from your Catholic parish or Baptist church, bring it. If you don’t, that’s okay too. Most people don’t keep those things in a file cabinet. Your testimony about what happened is usually enough.
The critical question is whether your baptism used the Trinitarian formula. Did the minister or priest say something like “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”? If yes, you’re good. If you were baptized in “Jesus’ name only”, as happens in some Oneness Pentecostal groups, that’s not a Trinitarian baptism, and you’ll need to be baptized in the Orthodox Church.
The method matters less than you might think. Full immersion three times is the ancient practice and what we do for baptisms in the Orthodox Church. But if you were sprinkled or had water poured over your head as a baby, we still recognize that as baptism if it was done in the Trinity’s name. The form wasn’t perfect, but the reality was there.
I’ve known folks here in Beaumont who were baptized at First Baptist when they were eight years old, others who were baptized Catholic as infants, still others who went under the water at a Church of Christ. All of them came into the Orthodox Church through Chrismation, not baptism. Your priest isn’t going to be rigid about this. He’s applying the Church’s wisdom, which has dealt with converts for two thousand years.
What you’ll go through is a period of preparation, catechism classes, attending services, learning to pray. You’ll need a sponsor, someone who’s already Orthodox and can walk with you through this process. When your priest determines you’re ready (and that’s his call, not a formula), he’ll schedule your Chrismation. It usually happens on a Sunday during the Divine Liturgy, right before communion.
The service itself is brief but profound. You’ll renounce Satan and unite yourself to Christ. You’ll recite the Nicene Creed. Then the priest will anoint your forehead, eyes, nostrils, mouth, ears, chest, hands, and feet with holy chrism, saying each time, “The seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit.” That oil was consecrated by the Patriarch and contains dozens of spices and perfumes, connecting you to the ancient Church and to Orthodox Christians across the world. After Chrismation comes confession, and then you’ll receive the Eucharist for the first time as an Orthodox Christian.
Some Orthodox jurisdictions handle this differently. The Russian Church Outside Russia often baptizes converts regardless of their previous baptism. But that’s not our practice in the Antiochian Archdiocese. We trust that God’s grace was operative in your baptism, even if it happened in a community that doesn’t have the fullness of the apostolic faith.
If you’re still not sure whether your baptism will be accepted, just ask your priest. Bring whatever information you have. He’ll figure it out with you. This isn’t a gotcha situation. The Church wants to receive you in the way that’s faithful to tradition and respectful of what God has already done in your life.
