Baptism

Congratulations on the arrival of your new baby! Our Catholic Community joins you in thanking God for the gift of new life. As you are seeking the baptism of your child in the Catholic Church, the following guidelines are presented to help you embark upon this journey of faith with Christ and his Church.

Please review the below guidelines before filling in the forms available for download via the buttons further down this page. If you have any queries, please contact olemoffice@rcdea.org.uk

The Sanctifying Role of the Church
Through Baptism, God enables us to participate in his life in Jesus Christ and makes us his children. It is through this sacrament that we receive the Holy Spirit and become members of the People of God, of the Body of Christ, which is the Church. Baptism becomes our commitment to grow in this new life and to strive to acquire spiritual maturity. By baptism, God purifies us from sin.

Baptism is the sacrament of faith which has the Risen Christ as its source, and it is the offer of salvation for all people.  Intimately linked to Confirmation and to Eucharist, Baptism is, with these two sacraments, Christian Initiation. The child is baptized in the faith of his/her parents, of his/her godparents and of the Church.

Basic Guidelines and Information for Infant Baptism
Parents are responsible for bringing their child to the Sacrament of Baptism as soon after birth as possible. Except in case of necessity, the church is the usual place of baptism. In order that a child be baptised, it is necessary that:

• the parents consent, or at least one of them, or someone legally standing in their place,

• and that there is reasonable hope that the child will be brought up in the Catholic Faith.

Godparents
A person may only have one or two godparents (also called sponsors); if two are chosen, they must be male and female. In order for someone to be eligible as a godparent, they must:

• be chosen by the parents;

• have the ability and the intention to fulfil the role;

• be at least 16 years of age;

• be a confirmed Roman Catholic, who has already received the Most Holy Eucharist, be leading a life in harmony with the Catholic Faith (including Marriage), and will be a good role model for the one being baptized;

• and be neither the father nor the mother of the child;

A baptised person who belongs to another Christian community may be admitted only as a “Christian witness” (not a godparent) provided that there is at least one Roman Catholic godparent who fulfils the above criteria. A non-baptised person cannot be a witness.

Baptismal Preparation in our Parish
In order to respect your request for the baptism of your child, you are invited to follow closely the stages of preparation offered below:

• Contact the parish office and express your desire to have your child baptised.

• Introduce yourself to the parish priest if you do not already know him personally.

• Open yourself to the invitation to actively join the faith community of our parish. If you are not registered parishioners, please consider becoming involved in the prayer and celebration of the Sunday Eucharistic community.

It is extremely important to take your faith-life seriously because, before God, you have taken on an awesome responsibility for the salvation of another—your own child! Your commitment and openness to baptismal preparation will help develop the faith-life of your child as he/she matures.

All of the above information applies to INFANT Baptism only. If you have a child to be baptized who has reached catechetical age/the age of reason (7 years), you and they will receive different preparation. Having sufficient understanding, the preparation will now be for the full complement of the Sacraments of Initiation, ie. baptism, confirmation, and Eucharist.

May God richly bless and guide you in your journey of faith!

When you are ready, please make your initial contact with our Parish Office email olemoffice@rcdea.org.uk or telephone 01223 350787.

Your information will be passed on to one of the priests who will arrange a meeting with you at the Rectory. If this is your first child, you will also be asked to attend a Baptism Course with our Pastoral Assistant.

Other Information

Are you living in a parish other than the one in which you wish to have your child baptised?
You are required to take your Baptismal Preparation in the parish in which you reside and then receive a testimonial letter from your Parish Priest to have your child baptized in another parish. This requirement respects the reality that pastors normally have sacramental jurisdiction only over their own parishioners. Therefore, when one seeks a sacrament outside of one’s parish, the proper pastor’s permission is necessary. Furthermore, the invitation to connect with one’s own proper parish first is founded on the hope that the faith-life of the family and of the one(s) to be baptized will be lived in community and not in isolation.

Marital Status
Your marital status will be clarified during the baptismal preparation process. Baptism is not denied if the parents are unmarried or not married in the Roman Catholic Church. However, there may be reason to postpone Baptism if parents are not practicing the Faith, or have no intention of living a Catholic life in harmony with the Gospel. If your status is not in harmony with the Roman Catholic understanding of sacramental marriage, please inquire as to how we may help you enter into proper sacramental marriage or, if need be, seek a declaration of nullity by the Church.

When the Celebrant is a Visiting Priest
If a priest other than one of those assigned to the parish where your baptism will take place, he must receive permission from the parish priest of the parish in order to officiate at the ceremony if he is already exercising his ministry within the Bishops Conference of England and Wales.

In addition, a priest from outside the Bishops Conference of England and Wales will require permission from the Bishop of East Anglia. The visiting priest will be required to contact the Curia Offices of East Anglia in good time before the baptism in order that all the necessary checks and paperwork are completed that will allow him to function as a priest in this Diocese.

You should discuss this with your priest at the beginning of your preparation.