Baptism
Baptism or “Christening”
What is Baptism?
Baptism is when a person publicly acknowledges his or her faith in Jesus
Christ and is the beginning of their membership of the Christian Church.
When children who are not old enough to answer for themselves are baptised,
their parents and Godparents answer for them (see below).
Baptism is a service of initiation into the Church of God,
not into the Church of England or any particular denomination. A baptism in
St John's
will be recognised by most Christian denominations, including all those
represented in Stansted.
Who can be baptised?
As a parish, we have an open baptism policy and are happy to baptise any
adult who lives in the parish and who expresses a desire to follow Christ.
Adult baptism always takes place after a period of preparation, which is
usually held alongside those who are preparing for confirmation. Those who
are being baptised are also encouraged to take this further step of
confirmation.
Similarly we will baptise any child whose family lives in the parish.
Children are always supported at baptism by their parent(s) and/or
guardian(s) and usually by Godparents. These adults are asked publicly to
- acknowledge their
own faith,
- to bring up the
child(ren) within the family of the Church and
- encourage them to
consider confirmation when they are older and can make their own
Christian commitment.
We provide preparation for baptism for the child's family and Godparents
so that they are aware of the significance of the purpose of the service,
and can be offered the help and support of the local Church as they seek to
carry out the promises made in the service.
This preparation begins with a series of visits made by a member of our
Baptism Team, who will also be present at the Baptism Service. There will
also be a visit by one of the clergy.
Baptisms take place on Sundays either at the 9:30 Service, or on Sunday
afternoons.
As baptism is part of a process of belonging to the church, candidates
are encouraged to come to church if they do not already do so.
Please contact us if you want to find out more about Baptism at St John's - either as
an adult, or for your child. The first point of contact will be the Church
Office (01279) 815243 <church.office@stansted.net>.
For further information visit the Church of England's
"Life Events" page.
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