Congratulations! You have just given birth or are awaiting the birth of your child. You have shared with God in the task of introducing the gift of a child into our world.
You now wish to have your child baptised and welcomed into the Wallsend family of parish communities. The church recognises various times from our birth to our death in which we experience the love, support and strength of Jesus at work in our lives, starting with our Baptism when we are welcomed into the faith community to receive the gift of God’s unconditional love. Through this event, your child will become a part of God’s family in a special way by sharing in the life of our parish community through your presence and involvement in our life as a people.
The community wishes to share with you an understanding of what your role as Christian parents involves so that you may take an active part in your child’s baptism. Through a programme of preparation we hope to increase your understanding of what the church means when we speak of parents as being the first teachers of their child in the ways of faith.
If you are seeking to have your child baptised and are regularly attending Mass, then please ask Fr David for a Baptism application form and once completed and returned he will advise on how to take the next steps. To request a Baptism for your child you will need to come along to Mass at one of our churches (see here for Mass times) If you do not regularly attend Mass then after doing so for a few weeks, please introduce yourselves to Fr David to discuss your application, if appropriate he will give you a form and once completed you will be given a date to come along for a Baptism catechesis session. Once you have attended the session you will be offered a choice of dates for Baptism.
We take this opportunity to join with your family and friends in rejoicing at the birth of your child and look forward to playing an active part in welcoming your child into the life of our Christian community.
Please CONTACT US for further information.
What should I keep in mind when choosing Godparents?
Please take care in deciding who will be godparents at the ceremony. It helps enormously if they firmly believe in what they are being asked to undertake, please let Fr John have the name of your Godparent who must be a regular attender at Mass.
The Catholic Church provides detailed guideline that are very clear.
“To be admitted to undertake the office of sponsor, a person must:” (Canon 874.1)
“be appointed by the candidate for baptism, or by the parents or whoever stands in their place, or failing these, by the parish priest or the minister; to be appointed the person must be suitable for this role and have the
intention of fulfilling it;” (Canon 874.1.1)
“be not less than sixteen years of age, unless a different age has been stipulated by the diocesan Bishop, or unless the parish priest or the minister considers that there is a just reason for an exception to be made;” (Canon 874.1.2)
“be a Catholic who has been confirmed and has made their First Communion, and who lives a life of faith which befits the role to be undertaken;” (Canon 874.1.3) ie a practising Catholic who attends weekly Mass.
“not be either the father or the mother of the person to be baptised.” (Canon 874.1.5)
“A baptised person who is not a Catholic may be admitted only in company with a Catholic sponsor, and then simply as a witness to the baptism.” (Canon 874.2)
Baptism- For parents who would like their child baptised the date for the next catechesis session is Thursday 8th June 6.30pm at St Aidan’s Wallsend.
If you are seeking to have your child baptised then please ask Fr David for a baptism application form and once filled in and returned he will advise you on how to take the next steps.
To request a baptism for your child you need to come along to Saturday Mass 5.00pm at Our Lady and St Columba, Sunday 10.00am at St Aidan’s or Sunday 11.30am at St Bernadette’s. Please keep yourself informed by regularly looking at our newsletters which are on the website: www.wallsendcatholic.church
If you do not already regularly attend Mass then after doing so for a few weeks, please introduce yourself to Fr David Smith and, if appropriate, you will be given a baptism application form. Once the form is returned you will be given a date to attend a baptism catechesis session. Once that is completed then you will be offered dates from which you can choose the most suitable for your family. Fr David looks forward to baptising your child and welcoming them into the community. Thank you!
