Having your child christened (baptised) is one of the most important and meaningful gifts you can give them.

Here you will find information relating to baptism including the following:

• What is baptism?
• Making decisions and promises
• What happens during the service?
• The role of godparents
• Thanksgiving

If you would like to have your child christened then please contact our administator Jayne Mawby on 01623 822430 or email office@churchesofsherwood.org.

If you require more detailed information about christenings please see:

https://www.churchofenglandchristenings.org

What is baptism

In baptism, you as parents are: thanking God for his gift of life, deciding to start your child on the journey of faith and asking for the Church’s support.

For your child, baptism: marks the start of a journey of faith, which involves turning away from the darkness of self-centredness, turning towards Christ and becoming a member of the local and worldwide Christian family.

Baptism is a ‘sacrament’: a visible sign of God’s love. In baptism, we are thanking God for his gift of life and publicly acknowledging his love. We are acknowledging that we all need to turn away from the darkness of evil and to make a new start with God.

Making decisions and promises

When you bring your child for baptism, you will be asked to declare publicly on behalf of your child that you believe in God and that you will bring your child up to follow Jesus.

You will be asked to answer on your child’s behalf, that you have decided to turn away from everything which is evil or sinful and to turn instead towards Christ.

The declarations made by you and the child’s godparents will be made in front of the church congregation. the Christian community will promise to support you and pray for you and your child.

During the service, you will be asked to make important declarations and promises – we will help you understand what these mean.

The role of godparents

Godparents make the same promises on behalf of the child being baptised as parents. Godparents promise to pray and support the child and to help the parents to bring up the child in the Christian faith. It is an important and responsible role.

You should have at least three godparents, two of the same sex as the child and one of the opposite sex. Godparents can be family members or friends. However, it is important that you choose people who will take an interest in your child’s spiritual welfare and who will pray for you and your child; they must be baptised themselves.

Thanksgiving Service

You may wish to ask your parish priest about having a service of Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child. In this service, you thank God for the gift of your child ad the child is blessed. You do not make the same promises as in the Baptism service.

If you choose to have a Thanksgiving, you may also have a Baptism service for your child at a later date.