19. THE BAPTISTERY
After having explained the foregoing, it is time to give indications on the characteristics and form of the baptistery.
In each cathedral, and also in each parish church, as prescribed in our provincial Councils, and in all the other churches where the care of the souls is exercised, or where the Bishop has given permission for a specific reason, a baptistery with a sacrarium will be built, in the form and way indicated below, according to the needs and size of each church.
The location and form of the baptistery chapel
In each cathedral and provostal church, archipresbyterate or other designation, which is the head church of the district, the location and form of the baptistery will be as follows.
A location will be chosen, as the architect sees fit, distant from the facade of the church, depending on the layout of the land, facing south. Here a shrine or chapel dedicated to St. John the Baptist will be built. It will have a volume of about thirty-three cubits, dignified in structure to correspond to the characteristics of the church.
It will be round, octagonal, or hexagonal, or another shape which will not however go beyond the confines of a perfect circle. The most suitable and decorous form is the octagon. The roof of the building will be vaulted, and, depending on the shape, will have a prominent top part, and be covered with lead sheets. A cupola will also be part of the fastigium from which the baptistery will receive light from all sides.
The floor will be of marble or solid stone, tessellated, or, where this is not possible, at least in brickwork. It will be raised three or more steps above the street level, just as long as it is no higher than the floor of the church.
The entrance will face west, and be equipped with a small vestibule and will have the prescribed form for a church door.
The number of windows will depend upon the form of the building and the judgement of a skilled architect. Each will have the form approved by the architect on the basis of what the construction requires.
The height of the entire building, up to the to part of the roof, will be in proportion to its width, according to the general architectural criteria, and as the architect sees fit.
The altar of the baptistery chapel
Inside only one altar is to be built, two cubits from the wall facing east, if there is sufficient space in the chapel. It will have the shape and characteristics indicated for the other altars, and like them will be equipped, enclosed, furnished and decorated. The sacred representation of St. John the Baptist baptizing Christ the Lord will be depicted on the wall above the altar.
If it is impossible to build an altar as indicated and of that size, there will be an image or sacred painting of St. John the Baptist on the wall in its place.
Location of the baptistery when it is not possible to erect it separate from the church
Where the chapel of St. John the Baptist is not separate from the church, and cannot be built for lack of funds, then, with the consent of the Bishop, a baptistery of the form indicated below can be placed in the chapel in the church.
Differences in the baptistery according to the Roman and the Ambrosian rites
We will now describe the form of the baptistery, according to the way in which baptism is administered today.
By the form of the baptistery of Roman rite we mean the one suitable for baptism by effusion, since in almost all churches of Roman rite the most frequent custom and practice today is to baptize in this way.
The second form, built for baptism by immersion, we have called Ambrosian baptistery, since in churches of Ambrosian rite immersion is still retained.
Site and form of the baptistery of Roman rite
The baptistery must be at the center of the chapel. It will be eleven cubits wide and deep so that at least three steps will lead down into it from the floor of the chapel. This descent and this relative depth will make it resemble a sepulcher.{8} At the foot of the lowest step there will be an empty space, seven cubits and sixteen ounces in diameter. At the center of this space will be placed the baptismal font or basin, into which the water flows. It will be three cubits wide, excluding the rims, calculated on the central axis, and two cubits deep. It will be round or octagonal, or some other shape, as is appropriate to the shape of the chapel. If possible, it will be made of a single block of marble or some other stone. Or it will be made of two or more slabs of marble or stone, eight ounces thick.
These slabs will be solid and not porous. They will fit together tightly, strongly and properly joined together. Inside they will be perfectly smooth. Outside they will be decorated by pious sculpture that conforms to good taste.
If it is not made of a monolith, the bottom of the basin will be covered and reinforced, lined with slabs of marble or granite, carefully set together and joined with bitumen. On all sides it will slope gently down towards the center and will have a few grooves, so that the water can be guided towards the hole at the center, dug out under the base of a small column. Below the bottom of the basin, underground, there will be a small sacrarium-like cistern, into which the water that runs down from the head of the child being baptized will flow.
At the center of this bottom or place a small marble column will be fixed or rise up set on a triangular or square or hexagonal base, or of some other shape as thought suitable, well and decorously worked and decorated.
The baptismal font, in which the water will be kept for the entire year, will be placed in an adequate and decorous fashion on the upper part of the small column. This vase will be round or octagonal or of some other shape, corresponding to that of the chapel and the basin below. It will be two cubits wide, and about twelve ounces, or a bit more, deep, depending on the size of the church. It can be about sixteen ounces higher than the lower basin, calculating the height perpendicularly from the top of the rim of the lower basin to the top of the rim of the upper font.
The silver spoon
A silver spoon will be used to pour the water on the head of the child being baptized. It will be attached to the upper font by a handle, somewhat curved in at the top. On the left side the rim of the spoon will have a raised ridge, like a channel, from which the water will be gently poured on the head of the child.
Site and form of the baptistery of Ambrosian rite
What has been said above concerns the site and form of the Roman baptistery. Now follow the site and form of that of Ambrosian rite.
The baptistery will be located at the center of the chapel. It will be made in such a way as to resemble a sepulcher, and stairs will lead down into it, as prescribed regarding the form of the Roman baptistery.
The baptismal basin must be in the shape which, from ancient remains of baptisteries, we know to be extremely old. It will be used for the baptisteries to be built in cathedrals, district, provostal, or archipresbyteral churches.
The basin will be of marble or solid stone, not porous. If possible the baptismal font will be made of a single block of marble, like a sepulcher. If a single block is not possible, there will be two, and if not even this is possible, the basin can be made of several square blocks, compactly and tightly joined with bitumen.
The blocks, eight ounces thick, must be smoothly polished inside and decorated outside with pious and decorous sculpture. The shape, as for the baptistery of Roman rite, will be octagonal or round, or other, in keeping with the building.
It will be two cubits high, from the bottom to the top. It will be three cubits wide, calculating the empty space. In the lower part, on the eastern side, there will be a hole of three ounces, from which, when the baptismal water is renewed, the old water will flow into the sacrarium, which, as explained below, will be built beneath, like a small cistern.
This small hole will be tightly closed with an oak or ash plug wrapped in oakum, or some other even more secure system. The bottom will be solid and whole if the basin consists of a single stone. If it is formed of more than one block, the bottom will be carefully and diligently made in brickwork, and so firmly tiled that there are absolutely no cracks through which even the slightest amount of water could run out. The bottom will slope gently towards the hole. At the center of the chapel or place indicated a basin of the type described above, solidly built, will therefore be set.
A small cistern into which the old baptismal water flows when it is renewed will be excavated in the eastern part, as a sacrarium, in the floor around the baptistery basin.
This cistern adjoining the baptismal font, will have a small door, one cubit square, with strong door panels, lock and bolt, and will be opened only when, after opening the hole in the basin, the water will be emptied into it.
Details common to Roman and Ambrosian baptisteries
The following can be elements common to both the Roman and Ambrosian baptisteries, as far as the construction is concerned: the cover or ciborium, the size of the site, the enclosure, the decoration, the ceiling and the canopy, as will be described individually below.
The ciborium
The covering known as ciborium suitable for both types of baptisteries, will be of marble or solid stone in the more important churches. (A stable structure formed of small slender columns or piers, with considerable space between the columns, will support the ciborium and it will be two cubits high. In the baptistery of Roman rite, these small columns or piers will be attached to the top of the rim of the baptismal font. In that of Ambrosian rite they will be set on the rim of the baptismal font itself. An architrave and a frieze, as well as a cornice, will be set at the top of the columns as an appropriate ornament, on the advice of the architect. The entire structure will have an orbicular or pyramidal marble covering. At the top a statue of St. John the Baptist baptizing Christ will be set. The spaces between the small piers will be closed by bronze panels, decorated with some pious story, which can be removed when the baptistery is in use.
The lid
In order to keep the baptismal water clean, a lid made of two walnut panels will be used for the baptistery basin, both of Roman and Ambrosian rite, built in the prescribed form, and also for baptisteries of different form, which will be described below. The panels will be joined in the center by iron hinges, and placed between the ciborium and the basin.
This lid will completely cover and close the opening of the basin itself, in accordance with its shape and proportions.
Where, according to the Ambrosian rite, baptism is by immersion, this lid will be used only in the larger baptisteries, so that it does not impede the immersion of the child, while it can be used in all the baptisteries of Roman rite, where baptism is administered by effusion.
The site of the one and the other baptistery
The site of both baptisteries will be of the same shape as the baptismal font and the chapel. The floor will be consolidated with marble tesserae and will be enclosed by a colonnade on the topmost step.
The colonnade
The form of the colonnade should correspond to the structure of the baptistery. It will consist of eight single columns, or sixteen coupled columns. If it is hexagonal, there will be six or twelve columns, as required by the shape. It will be decorated and enclosed at the top by a frieze and cornice, with the advice of the architect. It will be covered by a coffered, or vaulted or arched ceiling, solidly made with plastered canework, and incrusted and decorated with molded and gilded stuccowork. Railings will be set between the columns in the colonnade, according to the criteria prescribed above for the chapel railings.
The canopy
The canopy will be used to cover the entire ciborium. It will be of silk or half-silk fabric, and will be white, a color conforming to the mystical significance of the sacrament.
However a canopy of some other suitable fabric, of the same color, can also be used.
The ambry for the Holy Chrism, etc.
The ambry in which to keep the container of the Holy Chrism and the oil of the catechumens, the ritual book of the sacraments, the towels, and all other things needed for the administration of baptism, whether in the baptistery of Roman or of Ambrosian rite, can be put on one side of the baptistery chapel, in the wall or set against the wall, as the architect sees fit.
It will be tightly closed with panels, lock and bolt, and decorated with worked marble or sculptured pious images. Inside it will have partitions clearly distinguished according to the kind of objects that are to be kept there and their use, and it will be lined with panels of poplar or some other wood, to keep out the dampness of the wall or of the marble. It will then be completely lined in white silk.
The smaller kind of baptistery
Where a lack of space or funds makes it impossible to build a chapel of St. John the Baptist and the baptistery as wide and high [as described above], they will both be made in the prescribed form, but smaller, so that the baptistery, without its colonnade, will be enclosed by an iron railing set around the single step which leads down. It will be covered only by the chapel ceiling, since the modest size of the building makes it impossible for it to have one all its own.
The cover or ciborium may also be built in wood, even joined to the ambry, in the prescribed form, if it cannot be made in marble.
Another form of chapel or site, to be used both in the baptistery of Roman and of Ambrosian rite
In every parish church, or lesser church, where permission has been given to build a baptismal font, the chapel will be built near the main entrance, inside, on the Gospel side. It will be like the other side chapels built for the altars.
All things prescribed for the other chapels with altars, regarding the floor, the entrance, length, width, height, internal space, vault, railings, etc. will be observed.
In churches where a chapel of the established size cannot, for lack of space, be built, one that provides at least sufficient space for the baptistery essentials, as described above, will be built. There will also be enough space for the priest who administers baptism and for the godparents. If the chapel cannot be built as prescribed on the Gospel side, it will be built, as the Bishop sees fit, on the other side, if it can be done here in the prescribed form and more easily, as explained below.
If then for lack of space it is impossible to build even a small chapel, not even on the other side, then on the Gospel side, near the door, the wall will be considerably curved, making it project outwards in a semicircle. The baptistery will be properly set up, all or in part, in this concavity, and will be enclosed on the other three sides by iron railings.
Where lastly not even a baptistery of this type can be built, it will be placed on the same side against the wall, respecting however the criteria that it is not blocked or occupied by the door made on that side. It will be furnished, as above, with iron railings, so that between it and the baptistery font there is a space of one cubit or a bit more, depending on the characteristics of the site. Precaution must be taken also in all other forms of baptisteries which will be described below that the door to one side of the main portal, is not obstructed by the baptistery.
Above all care must be taken that, if possible, the baptistery is not placed right against the wall when the church, even if without aisles, is sufficiently large. In this case the site of the baptistery will be in the corner near the door, on the Gospel side, the same distance of two cubits or more from each of the walls, depending on the space, with iron railings. It will be square or octagonal or similar, always respecting the precaution mentioned above. The baptistery will be at the center of this site, whatever form it is in, so that it is at least a cubit and a half, if possible, from the railing enclosure.
If the church has aisles and relatively narrow bays, the baptistery will be located within the limits of the bay closest to the main door, on the Gospel side or in the space between the bay and the main door. It will be enclosed by iron railings. This space will be square or octagonal or other in shape, whatever seems most suitable and decorous depending on the characteristics of the place.
All that has been prescribed above regarding the shape and height of the railing of the chapels must be observed also for the baptistery railings. If the Bishop thinks that the baptistery built in the church, in whatever place and in whatever form, cannot be enclosed, for lack of funds, by iron railings or marble enclosure, it will at least be furnished with wooden railings, as has been prescribed for chapels.
Placement of the baptistery on the right side
In those cases where, as the Bishop sees fit, it is more opportune to locate the baptistery, in conformity to the prescribed criteria, on the right side of the church rather than on the left, it will be placed on that side, in conformity however otherwise with the following criteria: the baptistery chapel, or apse, or the near wall will be decorated with a painting of St. John the Baptist baptizing Christ the Lord. The baptistery will be built in this chapel or location in this site. It will be entered by going down one or more steps, in the form described above with regards to all the rest, and suitable to the Roman or Ambrosian church, if there are funds. If there are not, the following form, according to the Roman rite, is to be applied.
Second form of baptistery of Roman rite
The basin will be round or of some other appropriate form as seems best, in marble or solid stone, two cubits and a half in diameter, eight ounces or at the most ten, deep, slightly concave at the bottom, with its grooves. It will be placed on a base or on a column, no more than two cubits high from the floor to the rim of the basin. There will be a hole at the center, about a finger wide, which goes through the column or base and leads to a small cistern, put in below to collect the baptismal water that is poured.
The other basin
Moreover, at the center of this basin, there will be another one, also in marble, of a similar shape but smaller in size, that is one cubit and eight ounces in diameter, including the thickness of the basin. It will be supported by a marble or stone support, resting on the lower basin. The baptismal water will be kept in this smaller basin.
Second form of baptistery of Ambrosian rite
The second form of baptistery of Ambrosian rite will be as follows. There will be a basin in the form and size prescribed above for the Roman rite, but it will not have a hole in the center. It will be deeply scooped out, and it will not have an upper basin.
If however the basin is not of solid stone, another basin of tin or tinned bronze will be set within so that the water cannot gradually seep out, until one of solid stone, neither porous nor cracked, can be procured.
The sacrarium
The sacrarium to be used in this baptistery of Ambrosian rite can be of one or the other kind as will be described below, as long as the baptistery and sacrarium are enclosed in a single enclosure.
Details common to both second forms of baptistery
The floor of the baptistery in the form described above, whether of Roman or Ambrosian rite, will be set at a depth so that access will require at least one step, if not three. The basin of the baptistery, supported by the small column, must however project.
The baptistery which, entirely or in part, is set outside the chapel or in a hemicycle, whether it touches the wall, or is at a distance, will have a covering either vaulted, supported by two or more columns, somewhat at a distance from the wall itself, or made of worked wooden panels, decorated with pious painting, or of painted cloth. The wood or cloth covering will be supported by iron chains hung from the ceiling or by some other solid structure.
The ciborium and the ambry
The ciborium and the ambry, common to both forms, will be as follows: the ciborium will be pyramidal in shape, in finely worked walnut panels and, if possible, also appropriately painted and gilded. These panels, compact and well joined, will fit perfectly one to the other, and their joints should be covered with very fine strips of wood or molding inserted so that no dust or other kind of dirt can penetrate into the baptistery.
The ciborium will rest on the rim of the lower basin of the baptistery of Roman rite, and on the top of the rim of the baptismal font in that of Ambrosian rite. In the upper part of the ciborium a small ambry, in which to keep the holy oils and other objects needed for administering baptism, will be set. It will be about eight ounces from the upper part of the basin. Inside it will be carefully lined with white silk.
Another form of ciborium
The ciborium can also be of another form, and that is in wood, as the preceding, and supported by small columns and piers of the same material, exactly as for the marble ciborium which has been described above.
Door panels of the ciborium
The door panels of the ciborium, of whatever form it may be, should face the front wall of the church, so that the face of the priest who is baptizing and the head of the child being baptized are turned eastward. The doors will open not inwards but outwards and will be large, so that when open, the whole half of the baptistery is within reach. They will be securely closed with key, lock and bolt.
Third form of baptistery, only for the Roman rite
The third form of baptistery follows. Suitable for the Roman rite, it can be permitted only there where the Bishop, because of a grave lack of funds, thinks it necessary to give his permission.
A block of solid worked marble, of oval form, and two cubits and eight ounces long, and one cubit and twelve ounces wide, will be procured. Two basins will be chiseled out of this block, three ounces apart from each other, and they will be smoothed. They must be round in form and equal in width and depth. A small column, in the prescribed form, will also be set under the oval block.
Of these two basins, one, closest to the main altar, will serve to keep the baptismal water. The other, into which the water will be poured during baptism, will be closer to the wall opposite the main altar. At the bottom of this last basin there will be a channel to take the water to a hole, put into one side of the basin, and which leads to the interior of the empty column, so that the water can flow to a small underground cistern.
This baptistery too will be covered by a wooden ciborium in the form prescribed above, with a small ambry and canopy.
So much for the baptistery. Brief instructions regarding the sacrarium now follow.