Baptisms
Baptisms, Dedications and Blessings
Services for children
The birth of a child is a very special time for you as parents and for the wider family. There are a number of ways the church can help you to celebrate the event. Whilst baptism (sometimes called christening) is most often requested, the alternatives of blessing or dedication are also available in our churches. All three services express our thanks to God for the gift of a child and ask God’s blessing on him or her and they can be held in any of the Watling Valley churches. There is no charge for these, however during the service itself there's an opportunity to make a donation for the work of the church.
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BaptismBaptism is an event that can only happen once in a person’s life and by it they become part of the Christian Church. The word “baptism” has to do with the water that is sprinkled over the child at the heart of the service, as a sign of new life in Jesus Christ. In a service of baptism you, as parents, declare your own Christian faith and commit yourselves to bring up your child in that faith, and you also choose Godparents to support you and your child in this commitment. When young children are baptised the hope is that, when they reach adulthood, they will take part in confirmation, in which they express for themselves the faith declared by their parents and the church at their baptism. Parents will be expected to undertake some preparation for the baptism service. | DedicationIf you believe that children should be baptised when they are old enough to make promises for themselves, then you could choose a service of Dedication. The content of the service is otherwise very similar to baptism, but without the use of water and words of baptism, and with Supporters rather than Godparents. Parents will be expected to undertake some preparation for the service of dedication. | BlessingIf you don't feel that you want to declare your own Christian faith, but would still like to give thanks for your child and seek God's blessing, then you could choose a service of Blessing. In this service you promise to love and care for your child and to teach them a good way of life. You may choose people to support you in making these promises and in your task of parenting. |
