Why are we christened

Christening , though looked at the same as baptism, in the eyes of the Church of England, has a similar purpose to a baby dedication. You want the very best for them, and so does God. You want them to make right choices in life, for themselves and for others. A christening is just the beginning of this and so much more. Praying for your child through the ups and downs of their faith journey.

Showing them practically how to make those good choices in life. Helping them to learn more about their Christian faith, through their church and in other ways. Christenings share other similarities with baby dedications: during a christening, the children are prayed for by members of their family and family friends. The promises made in the ceremony to care for the child as he or she grows up, especially with respect to faith, are also similar to baby dedications.

Some protestant churches do not agree with the idea of infant baptism , such as credo-baptists. They believe that people should be baptized when they are old enough to understand, to make the decision to follow Christ, forsaking the world, that baptism is a sign of a commitment to follow Christ.

Baptism reflects the newness of life that God has given to us in Christ. Others, called paedo-baptists , believe christening is starting a new life in Christ:. In the Bible , there are instances in the New Testament where households were baptized.

The whole household heard the word and the whole household was baptized. In any case, there is no mention of infants in any of these three instances of household baptisms, and it is an argument from silence to say that there must have been small children. Another common scripture noted, with regard to infant baptism , is Acts And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.

And yet, whilst regular churchgoing numbers are not huge, six in ten people also believe in god or a spirit or a life force. Many parents put the decision in the too-hard basket — but are left with a nagging feeling that it would have been nice to have some kind of ceremony to welcome the arrival of their child.

Traditionally, parents held a christening for their new baby to mark the beginning of their upbringing in the Christian faith. However, many parents now choose to christen their child for other reasons.

Pressure from religious family members is often a factor in holding a christening for your baby. Some parents also christen their child to ensure their registration in a local Christian school, such as the Catholic Systemic Schools or an Independent religious school in Australia. In some families, a traditional christening gown handed down through generations is the impetus for having a christening — and for holding the ceremony when the baby is small enough to fit into the gown.

Finally, a christening might be a formal and religious ceremony, but it is also a very legitimate reason to hold a party to celebrate the arrival of your baby. A christening is a Christian blessing which usually involves baptism. And baptism refers to a ritual where a person in this case a baby is initiated into the Church congregation when water is sprinkled or poured over the head of a baby — or, in some cases, when the baby is immersed in water for a second or two.

Baptism usually represents the cleansing of original sin from the baby, and the initiation of the baby into the first of various sacraments of the church in which they are christened.

Baptism of adults is a very old ritual that has existed in various forms in such religions as Judaism for many centuries. While it became part of Christian ritual in the very early days of the church, other religious groups in the first and second century that used baptism included Gnostic spiritualists, rabbinic Jews and Essene sectarians.

However the first mention of infant baptism comes from the early Christian writer Tertullian, circa AD, so most scholars believe infant christenings started during the second century AD. The terms of christening and baptism overlap and are used interchangeably.

Christening, or baptizing, of the entire family originated around the time of Christ. Before this, adults were baptized until the teachings of the Book of Acts, which encouraged whole families to be baptized together.

As persecution in the church decreased and ceremonies were no longer performed secretly in homes, infant baptism grew to be a common public ceremony. Churches are more liberal than they were in the past regarding whose baby they will baptize. Many churches will provide christening services to single-parent families, same-sex parent families and families with unmarried parents.

Traditionally, during a christening, water is poured over the top of a baby's head. If an adult is being christened or baptized, their entire body may be submerged in a baptizing pool called a baptismal. The water symbolizes being purified after being born into the sin of humankind.

Historically, christenings took place at the church to which the family belonged. You no longer have to be a member to have your baby baptized at most churches. Christenings can also take place in the home or outdoors.