Our group is all about helping parents who are thinking about having their child christened (or baptised – it’s the same thing).
Having your child christened is a tremendous thing to do. It’s saying to God ‘thank you’ for this wonderfully precious gift and that you want God to have a strong place in your child’s life. It’s a celebration of your child’s new life not only surrounded by all your friends and relatives but also surrounded by the undoubted love of Jesus our Saviour. And it’s a chance for you as parents to make some special promises about how you will bring your child up.
Our group exists to help parents make this celebration as smooth but as meaningful as possible.
Information Evenings
Firstly we invite you to an Information Evening, normally held a few weeks beforehand on zoom. This gives you a chance to:
- Find out what happens in the service
- Hear about what baptism / christening means
- Hear about other services at All Saints
- Help us plan for the service
The evening is for you as parents and also for your child’s future godparents if they are able to come.
Church gathering
We also encourage you to come along on a Sunday morning to see the church space, meet the family who you are sharing the christening service with, and meet the priest taking your service. You are welcome any Sunday but we will arrange a particular gathering so that you can
- Have a cup of coffee or tea
- Meet the other parents who are sharing your service
- Get some advice about the practicalities
- Meet the priest taking your service
The Christening Service
It’s members of the Christening Care Group who look after you on the day of the ceremony (which is usually scheduled for 3:00 on the last Sunday of a month, although there are exceptions).
You’ll be sitting in groups with all your friends (there are usually two families in one service). So we prepare the church to arrange those groupings and generally set the church up. As you all arrive, we welcome you and get you settled down.
After the service we invite you to stay on and either take photographs or just chat to your friends; there’s no hurry.
When you leave, you will have a set of certificates for you and your chosen godparents, the christening candle as a special memento and hopefully lots of happy memories of a joyful ceremony.
