Christening....which religion.....

digitalphase

If you're not religious, I don't see the the appeal to getting your child christened, at all.

I won't be getting my baby christened - if he decides later in life he wants to be a part of a faith, then he can get baptised later. I am leaving that decision to him.

I was christened, not sure why as my parents aren't/weren't religious at all, I just think it was the 'done thing' which is quite shameful really.

I'm sorry, but I think a lot of people do it purely for the gift aspect and as a sort of family get together. I don't see why you can't have the get together/gifts without doing it in church and standing by making fake promises to a priest. Just my opinion :cool:

diable

If you have to ask then you don't know and don't believe so it's not for you.

Torry_Quine

pelirocco wrote: »

Surely there is only one Religion you can be christened in? ............and that's Christianity .

Ok , I know I am being pedantic , but it does bug me when people refer to different churches as being different religions

Totally agree here, it is one of my pet hates.

pelirocco wrote: »

As i said I was being pedantic , the question was what religion should they be Christened in .........they are all the same religion ie Christianity

Actually you can get married in an RC church if one of you isnt a RC , and I got married in a CE church even though I had been 'christened ' a Baptist ( obviously they use a different term)

They are just different denominations of the same Religion

Baptist churches don't christen babies though they only baptise usually by full immersion believers.

OP - if you yourself are not a Christian then I agree with those who think that you would be getting your child christened for the wrong reasons. Have a welcome party, naming ceremony or something similar.

neverdespairgirl

meritaten wrote: »

so you dont know that being christened Roman Catholic would not count in a Church of England? and to get married in COE you would have to convert and vice versa?
then there is Baptist, Presbeterian, and other offshoots. None of which impresses the Church of England!

There is one religion, Christianity, of which all those you mention (and more) are denominations. That's the point which was being made.

I was Christened, as were my siblings. But when my parents said during the ceremony that I was going to be brought up in the faith, they meant it - I attended church weekly during my childhood and adolescence, and went to a C of E school, too.

If you can't even decide which denomination, OP, I can't see how you mean it at all. Just have a party.

neverdespairgirl

Torry_Quine wrote: »

OP - if you yourself are not a Christian then I agree with those who think that you would be getting your child christened for the wrong reasons. Have a welcome party, naming ceremony or something similar.

Or a Brit / Bris - that involves bits being chopped off, though (-:

Kay_Peel

I recently went to a baptism in a Roman Catholic Church, where the parents were merely following family traditions.

They went along with baby to see the Parish Priest and set a date. They had two short sessions with a member of the parish (not the priest) to explain the whys and wherefores - I think they took place at their house, for convenience sake. The godparents were welcome to attend and one was able to make one of the sessions. A week before the christening they were invited to attend a Mass where the baby was introduced to the parish and the family were given a round of applause!

The following week the baptism took place during Mass and the church was packed. The music and flowers were fantastic. My friends intend to send baby to the local RC primary school and two of his future classmates were baptised on the same Sunday and they all had their photographs taken together, which was really nice. There were loud cheers and more applause at the end of it and we went on to have a mega-party after putting baby to bed.

The whole thing was really lovely - the couple knew some faces before they entered and they knew what to expect. They felt part of a community, they said, even though they won't be going to Church until the next rite of passage.

Are they hyprocrites? I don't know and I don't care - it's their business, I was just a bystander.

*max*

Kay_Peel wrote: »

Are they hyprocrites?

Yes...Unless they are commited to a particular faith, having their kids baptised so they can then get into a "nice" school is awful, and shameful. It's showing disrespect to the people who actually believe in that religion, and are welcoming them in good faith. It's using perks they are not entitled to to their own selfish ends, basically (a nice school, a nice party, a sense of belonging?) - while making a mockery of the system providing those perks.

And I'm a complete atheist. It's about respect, really.

peachyprice

I haven't read through the replies, but OP, do you even know what a Christening is for?

It's not about having a family do, it's not about easing your conscience, it's about committing your child into a religion in which you fully intend to raise it.

To get your child christened for the reasons you state is an insult to the members of the church you choose, using them for your own means when you are not and have no intention of becoming a regular member of the congregation is frankly disgraceful.

Oh, and I'm an atheist but I still have respect for other peoples belief, shame on you for not.

margaretclare

I agree with all the others. You have no understanding of what baptism/christening is all about, and to describe the different branches of Christianity as 'different religions' shows this. OK, so you feel guilty because you didn't do as much as you could have done for your late grandmother. That's part of life, I'm afraid. I feel extreme regret at things I did/said or didn't do/didn't say to people who are no longer here. There is absolutely nothing I can do about it. Some things we just do not appreciate when we're growing up, about the previous generation(s).

I could write a lot on this particular topic. However, the weekend before last we were in Wensleydale and we visited the beautiful historic old church at Bedale, decided to go on Sunday morning instead of to the Methodist church where we normally go. The morning service included a christening. The whole congregation was involved, took part in the prayers and everyone renewed their baptismal vows. The next part of the service was where everyone went to receive Communion. The point is, that baby was welcomed into a living community and everyone took part. It wasn't just a private thing between parents and vicar. It was everyone there. Have a look at the wording of a baptism service and see if you can actually say those words, and mean them.

DH was baptised, from his own choice, in his 70th year. He was brought up Jewish. He chose to become a Christian, and we're in the Methodist Church because they were the only church that would marry us - I was a widow but he was twice-divorced. His baptism was in our own home, just us and our minister.

newcook

If its because you feel you let your grandmother down in your teens and want to make it up to her, why not have the babys middle name as your grandmothers (if it’s a girl).

I think the main thing is, is that your grandmothers knew you loved her, and despite you being a stroppy teen many years ago she loved you until the day she died!
Keep her memory alive by telling your kids about the wonderful great-grandmother they sadly never got to meet, show pictures, tell stories etc. Im sure your grandmother would prefer this to you christening your children into a faith that you don’t believe in and don’t have much time for.