B BAPTISM The word is derived from the Greek bapto, meaning “to dip” or “to immerse.” Ritual washings were common religious practices in the first century C.E. These were external rites of purification, signifying what they effected—death to an old way of life; rebirth into a new community. PRE-CHRISTIAN RITUALS The Jewish community had many different purification rituals, but only one baptismal ritual. Proselyte baptism was administered to gentiles who sought membership in the Jewish community.