Why did a Greek writer say a ship was baptized at sea?
A Greek classical writer described a ship as baptized at sea because it was inundated and sunk, with ocean water filling every crook and cranny. Baptism means complete inundation, not merely a ritual, and the ship's going down illustrated that total saturation.
Les explains that the word baptized must be identified: it means to be inundated, completely inundated. He mentions Homer or Plato, though he does not remember which, as a Greek classical writer who spoke of a ship being baptized at sea. Since this was before submarines, that meant the ship sank and went down, because ocean water filled every little crook and cranny as it went down. That illustrates what baptism does: it simply inundates the person. But in this case the element is not water; it is the invisible person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit, who has inundated us in Christ. This happens the moment we believe the Gospel, and you don't feel a thing.