The Baptism / Christening of Children
Many parents find that the birth of their children is a profoundly moving experience, and this is surely right; sharing in God’s work of creation ought to fill us with wonder. Accordingly, they often want to give thanks to God for their child, and to seek His blessing upon the little one and their whole family as they embark on a new journey of family life together.
For many, because of family traditions, the most obvious first step is to bring the child to be Christened or Baptised (they are the same thing with different names). We welcome requests like this and have a special programme of events for parents (and Godparents) which together we call Considering Christening. If you are interested in this, please contact us.
Parents
Alongside Considering Christening, we expect parents who are considering Christening to get involved in the life of the church and to attend worship on Sundays if this is not already their practice. (The Christening service requires parents to promise they will do these things anyway.) We also expect parents to join one of our introductory discussion groups as they consider the promises and statements they would be required to make in the Christening service.
Godparents
Being a Godparent is a wonderful privilege and an awesome responsibility. It goes without saying that Godparents are to be trusted friends of the parents who would take care of the children should anything happen to the parents, but this does not convey the full picture.
The relationship of Godparent to child is primarily one of spiritual oversight. Godparents play a key role in the child’s growth to maturity in the Christian faith. For this reason, the Church of England requires that all Godparents are baptised, confirmed and over 16 years of age. We strongly advise that parents do not choose Godparents until they have attended the discussion elements of the Considering Christening programme. If parents have already approached prospective Godparents, we would encourage these close friends to attend Considering Christening too. There is more information for Godparents here.
Thanksgiving
As part of the Considering Christening programme, we invite all parents to celebrate the fact that God has given them a child through birth or adoption with a Service of Thanksgiving. This gives parents a great opportunity to thank God publicly for their child, to celebrate with friends, family and the local community, and to ask for God’s blessing upon the child and their family.