Baptisms
Baptism Preparation
Having a baby is still a miraculous thing. Many parents feel that they want to mark this special occasion. At St Mary Magdalene we offer two very different services.
Thanksgiving for a Child
This is a service that enables families to come and celebrate a birth or adoption.
It takes place in a regular Sunday service It is a joy-filled to say thank you for the safe arrival of the child. There is no expectation of a long-term commitment to the Christian faith or to the church.
Baptism, also called Christening
Jesus taught his disciples that they should seek to lead other people into the Christian faith. This faith is described as two images - a body: where Jesus is the head and where his followers make up the whole, and a vine: where Jesus is the trunk and his followers are connected branches. Both images speak of connection and continuity.
A baptism is an act of initiation into the Christian faith. It is a lifelong commitment to following Christ. There are vows to be made by parents and Godparents. In Matthew 28 Jesus says: Make disciples, baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you.
Here at St Mary Magdalene, we take this very seriously, so we would expect you to be coming to church regularly before requesting baptism for a child. We prepare families individually for baptism and support them afterward so that the children can develop their own faith. Sometimes parents are baptized at the same time as their children.
The important thing to remember is that Baptism is about becoming a lifelong follower of Jesus.
For further information please contact us.
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