Christening

[Briswegian]

I left it up to my husband to organise Jacobs christening...he's now 2.5 years old and baby is 8 weeks so I've been looking into it myself.

I am catholic but have not been a part of a parish for a number of years now and have never had to organise a christening, I also live away from where I used to go.

I was wondering if anyone had advice of what I need to do. There are a few catholic churches in the area...do I just ring up to organise it or are there other things I need to to...ie attend church....make a donation etc.

Thanks in advance.

[misskittyfantastico]

You are able to just ring up and make an appt with any Priest you choose, but you may want to scout around a bit to find someone you feel comfortable with.

As for a donation, it's usually about $50-$100 given in an envelope after the Baptism.

Good Luck with it all:)

[sare]

Yep...you just have to ring around and make an appointment. Some parishes require you to attend a meeting to go through the baptism ceremony and what you need to organise beforehand (candle, stole, godparents etc). I actually am one of the people who run these meetings in my parish and they are nothing stressful, most people just tend to sit and listen and ask questions if they have any. As for donations, we tell people that they are just that and it's up to you how much you give, although the majority of people give about $50 (given to the priest in an envelope before the baptism).
I know at our meetings the priest encourages people to attend mass (that's just a priest's job I guess) and stresses the point that children are welcome and not to worry about the kids behaviour (My dd regularly heads for the altar during mass and he says hello to her and just walks/sends her back).
Hope that helps.

[Briswegian]

Thanks both for your replies. I think I will also attend mass at a few of the churches near us as that will give me an idea of the parish also...I guess I'm not only thinking of the christening but also of the community and also the schools. Then I can ask questions in person also while I'm there.

[iluvmeboyz]

hi im getting my two boy's christened tomorrow and i had to just fill out a form that the father gave me i go to st lukes in revesby i go to church nearly every week and then all i did was go to the church like a few days b4 hand on the week end it was last sat and they present the two boys to the church saying that they are getting baptised on sun 7/5/06 and that was it then i had to go on tues to a preperation course about what is going on b4 the day and the father went through it for us ,and ive got a 2 god parants for boy boys that all i did and we are haveing a bbq after that .

[Briswegian]

Thanks heaps, it's good to know what to expect.