What is Baptism?
Baptism is the public identification with the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God the Son. The water symbolises the cleansing of our rebellion toward God for which we are forgiven though the gift of his son, Jesus. Baptising a baby, toddler, or older child, is a symbol of God’s blessing to God’s people. Through baptism, children become members of the church, can be raised in the Christian Faith, and in due course, confirm their faith in later years, at their Confirmation Service.
What does a Baptism cost?
- Absolutely nothing! Zero. Nil. £0.00.
- The baptism of your child is as important to us as it is to you. Your child being baptised grafts them into the church community. We don’t think you should be paying to have your child become part of the church community!
- As a gift from the Church, each child will receive a Baptism Candle, a book of prayers and a personalised card with the baptism details on (if you’d like an official baptism certificate there is a statutory charge of £15 for that).
- After the service in Church, you and your guests will come into the Community Centre Hall for hot drinks and cake (which we will provide for you free of charge).
Do I need to start attending Church?
Yes of course! You will be making a commitment at your child’s baptism of setting an example to them and helping them take their place within the life of the church. It is important to start that now. This doesn’t just mean coming one Sunday and never again (it makes us so sad when this happens). It means truly joining the church community and making Sunday worship a weekly priority for your family.
You can be assured your family will be made to feel welcome and will benefit spiritually, socially and in so many ways by being part of the church community.
Do I need to have Godparents?
Yes. A minimum of three. Two of whom must be the same gender as the child. All Godparents need to have been baptised. It is important to choose godparents for the right reasons. The clue is in the name ‘God’ parent. The Godparents are making very important commitments to helping you raise your child in God’s ways – in the way of the Christian Faith. Choose someone to be a Godparent who has a firm faith in God and is already regular at or willing to commit to being regular at Sunday worship at their local church.
Do we need to be married?
Marriage between a man and a woman is the family unit which is God’s best for the nurturing of children. If you are not married, you are still welcome to enquire about getting your child baptised. The Vicar will encourage you to give serious consideration to taking the vows of marriage as the stable and committed family unit for children to be raised in the Faith.
Do we as parents and godparents need to be Christians?
It is important that parents bringing their child to baptism believe in one God in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. That God the Son, Jesus, entered humanity and made the ultimate sacrifice of offering his life as a payment for the rebellious lives we lead towards God. Jesus died but defeated death and overcame evil, sin and death. We too can defeat evil, sin and death though a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Baptism is a command of Jesus to his followers. It is the mark of identifying with the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Baptism for your child, is your commitment to raising your child as a Christian. It is therefore logical, appropriate and a matter of personal integrity that you believe in God as revealed through Jesus, and that you are serious about following him, learning about him, and regularly worshipping him with other Christians.
Some people choose to have their child christened because it seems like the right thing to do, the ‘traditional’ thing to do or because it follows the family pattern. These are all understandable reasons which prompt the thought of having a child baptised. But it’s important to understand they should not be the basis for having a child baptised. The basis for having a child baptised is to identify them with the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Chris.
The Baptism Service
As a baptism of a child is so important to us, all our baptisms take place within our main Sunday services.
Baptisms take place at our main morning service at 11:00 AM. This is arranged months in advance and the whole service is centred around the baptism.
A baptism is a special occasion for your family and for our church family. We will work together closely with you to ensure it is a memorable service. After the service in Church, the celebrations will continue in the Church Hall with some light refreshments for you to celebrate your child’s baptism. We anticipate that in addition to Godparents and immediate family you will want to invite wider family and friends. We can provide reserved seating in Church for you to invite up to 30 guests in total. We will require bookings of those 30 places in advance.
Arranging a Baptism
Step One
Come to Sunday worship weekly for three months
Step Two
Attend an Information Evening (after the three months)
Step Three
Step Four
Step Five
Give yourself plenty of time, as the process from beginning to the baptism itself can take six months.
