Part 4 - For your child's Godparents
Godparents
Choosing Godparents for your baby can be
a sensitive matter! It is a great honour to be asked to be a Godparent. When you
ask someone to take on this responsibility you are inviting that person to share
the life of your family in a very special and important way.
When you are thinking about the people
you want to choose to be Godparents there are some important questions to ask
but they could all be summed up in one basic question:
What is a Godparent?
A Godparent is someone who represents
the family of the church, which is welcoming this baby as a new member.
Because the Godparents represent the
family of the church they should:
-
Be members of the Catholic Church
and should be baptised, have been confirmed and have received Holy Communion
-
Be over 16 years old, unless a
different age has been established by the Diocesan Bishop
A Godparent is someone who should be an
example to your child of what it means to be a follower of Jesus.
Because Godparents are meant to be an
example to their godchild they should:
-
Be able to show, by the quality of
their lives, what it means to be a member of God’s family
-
Be people who are prepared to pray
for their Godchild.
A Godparent is meant to be a friend and
support for you in helping your baby to grow as child of God. Because of this
the Godparents should:
-
Be able to take an active interest
in your baby’s life and particularly in his/her growth in faith.
While there must be a least one
Godparent who is a Catholic, some families may wish to invite other members of
family or friends to be ‘Christian witnesses’ to the baptism.
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