So you’re thinking about a Christening for your child?

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We would love to talk to you about having your child Christened at Christ Church. Please get in touch using our “Contact Us” page. You may find it helpful to read the following information first.

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The Church of England offers two alternative services, and the first decision is which is the most appropriate for you and your child. Both services offer you the opportunity publicly to give thanks to God for your child’s safe arrival, to welcome them into your family and to seek God’s help, as well as the support of your wider family and community, as you bring up your child. A “Service of Thanksgiving and Blessing” goes no further, whereas a Baptism Service marks the beginning of a journey of faith, with the parents and godparents making declarations of Christian faith on the child’s behalf and promising to bring them up as a Christian.

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Service of Thanksgiving and Blessing

With this service a family celebrates the arrival of a new child within the family, names their child and prays for God’s blessing. Your family and friends promise to be there for you and your child. Parents are not required to make declarations about their own Christian faith, or to promise to come to church regularly, although we would love it if you did decide to become part of our church family.

 

Some parents might choose this service if they want to allow their child to choose for themselves, when they are older, to be baptised. The service usually takes place outside a main Sunday morning service and can be arranged on a date to suit you – normally around lunch time on a Sunday.

 

Someone from the church would visit you or meet you at the church to talk about the service before the actual day.

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​This service reflects what Jesus did when he took children in his arms and blessed them.

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Baptism Service

Baptism is a “sacrament”, a visible sign which marks God’s invisible work in welcoming new people into his kingdom. Baptism is the way for people to become members of the church and part of the community of faith. In baptism we celebrate that God loves us first and offers forgiveness and new life in Him unconditionally. For this reason, the Church of England is very happy to welcome all believers and their children, whatever their age, in this way. 

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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 water used in baptism symbolises that the child is being washed clean of evil, sharing with Jesus in his death so that they can share with Jesus in rising again to new life.

 

If this is what you believe, it is a beautiful celebration of the fact that your child does not have to wait to grow up before starting to follow Jesus. If you do not feel able honestly to make these promises, it might be better to choose the Thanksgiving Service for now. If that is your choice, you can always return for a Baptism Service at a later date.

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Baptisms normally take place within our regular morning worship service at 11am on the fifth Sunday of the month. This is so that the declarations you make can be witnessed by the church family your child is joining, as well as your family and friends. The Christian community will promise to support you and pray for you and your child.

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Godparents

Godparents make the same declarations and promises as the parents. They promise to pray for 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. Godparents of children to be baptised must be baptised themselves. Your child should have at least three godparents: two of the same sex as the child and one of the opposite sex. They can be family members or friends.

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In the Thanksgiving Service, there is an opportunity for you to choose people who do not make the same Christian commitment as is expected of godparents, but who stand up with you as part of the service to commit to helping and supporting you to bring up your child. In this way their role is equivalent to

godparents.

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Adult Baptism

Teenagers and adults can also be baptised, either by sprinkling with water as we would for children or by full immersion in a baptism pool. You can only be baptised once, so this is not an option if you were baptised as a baby. 

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If you would like to publicly affirm your commitment to the faith, we can discuss ways of doing this. Many people choose confirmation, in which following your declaration of faith the Bishop will lay his hands on your head and pray for you to receive the Holy Spirit.

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What does it cost?

Both the Baptism Service and the Service of Thanksgiving and Blessing are free.

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What next?

We would love to talk further to help you choose the best option for your family. Whichever you choose, we want to offer you the warmest possible welcome to our Church.

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Why not come along to one of our services at 11am on a Sunday, where you can meet us and find out more? Especially if you are thinking about baptism, it is really important to see the church in action for a few weeks before you take this important step. 

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If you prefer to make contact before joining us on a Sunday morning, please use the Contact Us page to ask for someone to get in touch.