What age were you baptized? Do you believe you were too old, too young or just right at the time of your decision and why?

Judith Vargo: I was about 40. I wish I had been baptized 10 years before when I first came to faith in Christ because my baptism had a big impact on my faith-life. I felt like I was finally part of the family of Christ.

Greg Sala: I was 14. I believe I was ready at the time.

Donna Merillat Heatwole: I was 14, in a very large GC church. All of the 14-year-olds were baptized. Who would dare to say no? The pressure was too great. Basically the only thing I remember is that the water ran down my back. Too young!


Sam Steiner: I was baptized when I was about 10 or 11 at the North Lima Mennonite Church. It was an immature baptism; I got rebaptized at Rockway Mennonite Church in Ontario when I was about 28.

Jane Bishop Halteman: I was 12—got baptized after making a “decision” at Laurelville Mennonite Camp. Too young, but no harm done, I suppose, as I continue to grow (even at 65) into what it means to be baptized!

Allison Marie Goertz: I was 13 or so and I’m tempted to say I was too young, but no, I don’t think I was. Getting baptized is just that first baby step that says “I’m committing to this journey.” Sure, I didn’t fully understand what following Jesus entails but guess what? I still don’t! Isn’t that what’s exciting and keeps us growing and maturing in our faith and life?



Eber Dean Rice-Smucker: I was 10. In retrospect, way too young! However, I really wanted baptism. Several months before I came under conviction for lying to my parents, prayed for forgiveness and committed my life to Christ. Could hardly wait until it was officially the ‘right time’.


Conrad Martin: I was 11. I didn’t understand everything that it meant at the time, so I would separate the baptism of new believers from the act of becoming a member of a church––Maybe make membership a two-tiered process.

Patricia Hershberger: I was 8 years old and I have pondered this “right age” question for a long time. My decision and my baptism were real for me then and have continued real for me through the years since then. I want children affiirmed with their decisions to follow Jesus, however I wonder about church membership in this way, even in light of how as we’ve understood baptized into one body.

Joan Troyer: I was 13- and a half yrs old. I knew then what I wanted to commit to. But in later years I’ve come to know and continue to seek that which I committed too.

Robert Martz: I was rebaptized at 30. First was I was baptized as an infant in a Lutheran church.

Bethany Bowman: I was baptized at age 13 I feel I was old enough and remember our minister at the time meeting with me several times before we made it “official”. The time with my minister was very important in helping me understand the commitment.

Jake Short: I was 18, rather late for my congregation. I wish I would have waited until some time in university, or possibly even afterwards since a few years made a huge difference in my spiritual maturity. But then again, the Quaker influence on me has a tendency to reject baptism as necessary.

Wilma Ressler Cender: I was 12 when I was baptized in the Mennonite church. I was not pushed into it however. It was something that I decided on my own to do and wanted to. I do not regret being baptized at that age. I do wonder, however, if the younger ages are ready for the responsibilities of membership. I go back and forth myself on what is the best way for the baptism/membership combination.

Susan Sommer: Eighth grade, however old that was. Felt absolutely right at the time. Later, I thought maybe I had been too young. Now (I’m 64) I think I knew what I was doing. I give credit to what I knew as a young teen.

Alma Perez Ovalle: I was 13. I was baptized in the Nueces River by my Dad, pastor of a South Central Conference Spanish Mennonite church in Robstown, Texas. Good age.

Allison Boehm Lehman: I was 14 and a high school freshman and do not think I was too young. I made the decision based on a growing commitment to the church, which was accelerated by the American response to the 9/11 attacks. (My congregation did not push baptism on youth.) I have certainly learned and grown a lot in the past 10 years and expect my journey to continue in the decades to come, but it was the right age for me because it was when I started taking being Mennonite seriously.

Please feel free to add your thoughts as a comment below!