Baptism (Christening) in our Churches

The Bible’s name for Christening is Baptism, and Baptism is an initiation ceremony, based on belief and trust in God and his Son Jesus. In the Bible we hear of adults being baptised but probably children were as well. This means that you can be baptised at any age; it is only custom in this country for children to be baptised. If you are looking for your child to be baptised, you will need to choose godparents (any number) who will make promises about following Jesus for themselves and showing their faith to your child. Because of this, godparents need to have been baptised themselves, though not necessarily in the Church of England. Please do speak to the church if you want a godparent who has not been baptised.

Baptism normally takes place in your local parish church. If you don’t know which your church is, please look at the website www.achurchnearyou.com. This will tell you, based on your postcode. Again, if you want a baptism in one of our two churches and you live in a different parish, please do check that out with us. It may well be possible. Whatever your situation, we will aim to help you; we will not make it difficult for you! And we will do all we can to make the service special. A Baptism service is free.

Baptism at St Andrew’s, Sutton Park

Because the Vicar works at two churches it may not be possible to have a baptism on the date you choose. You will generally have a choice:

• on the first Sunday of the month, at 9.30am during the normal Family Service, a short, child-friendly service lasting no more than an hour.
• on the second Sunday of the month at 12.30pm, outside the normal service times, with another family. This service lasts up to half an hour.

For Baptism requests for St Andrew’s, please contact our Curate, Rev Eileen Connolly, on 07708 604 085; email: reveicon1@gmail.com

Baptism at St Peter’s, Wawne

As with St Andrew’s, it may not be possible for you to have a baptism on the date you choose. You will generally have a choice:

• on the first Sunday of the month, at 11am during the normal Family Service.
• on the third Sunday of the month at 12.30pm outside the normal service times, with another family.
• If there are many baptism requests, e.g. during summer months, you may be offered the fourth Sunday of the month at 12.30pm.

For Baptism requests for St Peter’s, please contact Mrs Julia Smith on 01482 834293.