Baptism

PLEASE NOTE THAT BAPTISMS WILL BE DEFERRED UNTIL SUCH TIME THAT THE PUBLIC HEALTH ADVICE IS THAT CONGREGATIONS CAN GATHER SAFELY.   IN CASE OF NECESSITY, BAPTISMS WILL BE CELEBRATED WITH ALL THE HYGIENE PRECAUTIONS THAT HAVE BEEN LAID DOWN BY THE CHURCH IN ITS COVID-19 ADVICE.

Bishop Alan

Baptism Preparation

Congratulations on the arrival of your new baby! Our Catholic Community joins you in thanking God for the gift of this new life. As you are seeking the baptism of your child in the Catholic Church, the following guidelines are presented to help you embark upon this journey of faith with Christ and his Church.

A. The Sanctifying Role of the Church

Through Baptism, God enables us to participate in his life in Jesus Christ and makes us his children. It is through this sacrament that we receive the Holy Spirit and become members of the People of God, of the Body of Christ, which is the Church. Baptism becomes our commitment to grow in this new life and to strive to acquire spiritual maturity. By baptism, God purifies us from sin.

Baptism is the sacrament of faith which has the Risen Christ as its source, and it is the offer of salvation for all people.  Intimately linked to Confirmation and to Holy Eucharist, Baptism is, with these two sacraments, Christian Initiation. The child is baptised in the faith of his/her parents, of his/her godparents and of the Church.

B. Basic Guidelines and Information for Infant Baptism

Parents are responsible for bringing their child to the Sacrament of Baptism as soon after birth as possible. Except in case of necessity, the church is the usual place of baptism.

In order that a child be baptised, it is necessary that…

  • the parents consent, or at least one of them, or someone legally standing in their place,
  • and that there is reasonable hope that the child will be brought up in the Catholic Faith.

GODPARENTS

A person may only have one or two godparents (also called sponsors); if two are chosen, they must be male and female.

In order for someone to be eligible as a godparent, these are the requirement:-

  • they be chosen by the parents,
  • have the ability and the intention to fulfil the rôle,
  • be at least 16 years of age, and…
  • be a confirmed Catholic, who has already received the Most Holy Eucharist, is leading a life in harmony with the Catholic Faith (including Marriage) and will be a good role model for the one being baptised,
  • and be neither the father nor the mother of the child.
  • A baptised person who belongs to another Christian community may be admitted only as a “Christian witness” (not a Godparent) provided that there is at least one Catholic godparent who fulfils the above criteria. A non-baptised person cannot be a witness.

C. Baptismal Preparation in your Parish

In order to respect your request for the baptism of your child, you are invited to follow closely the stages of preparation offered below…

  • Contact your parish priest and express your desire to have your child baptised.
  • Introduce yourself to the parish priest if you do not already know him personally.
  • Open yourself to the invitation to actively join the life of the parish.  If you are not registered parishioners, please consider becoming involved in the prayer and celebration of the Sunday Mass and the parish community.
  • While baptismal preparation varies from parish to parish, you will be invited to participate in some manner of faith formation prior to the baptism of your child.  This may take the form of a meeting(s) with the parish priest, a pastoral assistant, or participation in a baptismal preparation session for parents led by a catechist.

It is extremely important to take your faith-life seriously because, before God, you have taken on an awesome responsibility for the salvation of another—your own child!  Your commitment and openness to baptismal preparation will help develop the faith-life of your child as he/she matures.

D.  Other Information

Are you living in a parish other than the one in which you wish to have your child baptised?

You are required to take your Baptismal Preparation in the parish in which you reside and then receive a testimonial letter from your Parish Priest to have your child baptised in another parish. This requirement respects the reality that parish priests normally have sacramental jurisdiction only over their own parishioners.  Therefore, when one seeks a sacrament outside of one’s parish, the proper parish priest’s permission is necessary.  Furthermore, the invitation to connect with one’s own proper parish first is founded on the hope that the faith-life of the family and of the one(s) to be baptized will be lived in community and not in isolation.

E. When do baptisms take place?

Baptism is the Gateway to the other Sacraments. It is not a private rite but one which should be celebrated publicly within the context of the Christian Faithful gathered for Sunday Mass.

LENT is the only time during the year when we defer Baptism. It is a penitential season when the whole Church is preparing for the Queen of Feasts, Easter. EASTER is the most appropriate season for Baptism and we will try and accommodate you anytime throughout the Easter Season at a Sunday Mass.

Marital Status

Your marital status will be clarified during the baptismal preparation process.  Baptism is not denied if the parents are unmarried or not married in the Roman Catholic Church.  However, there may be reason to postpone Baptism if parents are not practicing the Faith, or have no intention of marrying in the Church and  living a Catholic life in harmony with the Gospel.  If your status is not in harmony with the Roman Catholic understanding of sacramental marriage, please inquire as to how we may help you enter into proper sacramental marriage or, if need be, seek a declaration of nullity by the Church.

**********

All of the above information applies to INFANT Baptism only.  If you have a child to be baptised who has reached catechetical age/the age of reason (7 years), you and they will receive different preparation.  Having sufficient understanding, the preparation will now be for the full complement of the Sacraments of Initiation, i.e. Baptism, Confirmation, and The Holy Eucharist.

May God richly bless and guide you in your journey of faith!

Contact for Parish

Awaiting Appointment – for the present – The Parish Priest

Contact for Filipino Community:

Mrs Elizabeth Malubay

Mobile: 0798 844  3094

Contact for Kerala Syro-Malabar Rite:

Fr Philip John:

Mobile: 0771 313 9350

Email: kochuspip@gmail.com

If you would like to proceed please download the forms below (Baptism Booking Form and the form to give to the prospective Godparent(s) to be completed and given to the Baptism Catechist at your meeting. The day and time that you have chosen may not be possible for any number of reasons so please have a “back-up” date in mind.

BAPTISM BOOKING FORM (2015)

GODPARENT FORM

Facebook
YouTube