[onewhippedpuppy]

I'm sure there's way more knowledgable people on here when it comes to religion, I'm a pretty recent catholic convert, and trying to futher educate myself as I go along. Baptism is to forgive the original sin that we are all born with, essentially forgiving us of the sinful nature that we have thanks to Adam and Eve, the originators of sin. It's also a way of being welcomed into the church, though that's not it's intended purpose. It's like starting your child out with a clean slate, at least from a religious standpoint. There are many cases of Jesus and others baptising people in the rivers from the Bible, so it's not a man made part of the religion.