Baptism at St Andrew’s
f you are reading this, you are probably thinking about having your child baptized (or ‘christened’ as it is more often known). Perhaps you are considering being baptized yourself. At St Andrew’s, we take delight in baptizing both infants and adults. However, we also take baptism very seriously. In baptism we accept and trust that Jesus died on the cross for us, in order to restore our relationship with the God who made us and loves us. Baptism is not something to be taken lightly, a ‘wash-and-go’ affair, but the start of a lifelong commitment to following Christ, with all the joy and devotion that that entails.
In the baptism service, serious promises are made before God in church. With that in mind, before we come to arranging a baptism, we like to make sure that parents, godparents and adult candidates understand the real meaning of the service and the serious responsibilities that are undertaken in baptism.
As a first step in the process, we therefore ask to meet the parents or the adult candidate so that we can get to know them and to have an informal chat about baptism and why it is important to them. Then, if they wish to explore things further, we invite them to attend a baptism preparation evening, and if a date is then agreed, we also ask the family to attend at least two family services at St Andrew’s.
Adult candidates will be asked to join us for a longer and more detailed course of preparation.
Another option – Service of Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child
Some parents would like to acknowledge that their child is a gift from God and to invite God into their child’s life, but do not feel that baptism is right for them at this stage. This is perfectly understandable and we encourage parents to follow their conscience in this matter.
In these circumstances, we offer a different form of service – a Service of Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child. This is a very beautiful service in which God is thanked, the child is blessed, and prayers are said for child and family. It allows parents to come before God with their child without having to make promises they might not be ready to make.
If you would like to explore the rich gift of God in baptism or the simple beauty of a service of thanksgiving, may we kindly ask you to ring Revd Bryan Silletti, our baptism co-ordinator, on 07936958483 to arrange a meeting.
May God bless you as you respond to His calling.
You may find it helpful to read through our baptism service and also our Information for Godparents booklet
There is more general information about baptism at www.baptism.org.uk/christening.htm