An example of this movement is the increasing tendency for Christian initiation practices to imitate those of the pagan mystery cults. Baptismal services “became highly elaborate, much more dramatic—one might even say theatrical—in character.”23 Baptismal homilies began to speak of these ceremonies as “awe-inspiring” and “hair-raising” to characterize their sensationalism.24 One sees a similar shift in the celebration of the Eucharist, which became more formalized, incorporating elements such as “ceremonial actions, vesture, processions, and music to an extent previously unknown.”25 However,
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