If you could travel back in time to 1829 and visit Pennsylvania, USA, you might bump into Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. While translating the Book of Mormon, they read about how the Savior gave His disciples the authority to baptize (see 3 Nephi 17–18). They had a question:
Where was that authority now? Did anyone on earth have it?
On May 15, Joseph and Oliver went to the woods to pray about it. They were visited by an angel! John the Baptist—the one who baptized Jesus Christ—visited them as a resurrected being. He ordained them to “the Priesthood of Aaron” (Doctrine and Covenants 13:1).
Now they had authority to baptize in the name of Jesus Christ! They baptized each other and began baptizing other believers. Today every member of the Church can trace the authority of their baptism back to that day in May.
Trace Your Baptism
Note: You can read more about the Aaronic Priesthood in this Church History Topics essay.