Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Had my daughter baptised earlier this year CoE at St Giles in Camberwell and the stipulations were the same as those outlined by Trinity - we are outside the boundaries but they were happy to book us in for the christening after a couple of months attendance (this was not stipulated by them, my choice to attend to get a sense of the church having no experience of CoE). I found them very welcoming and the fact that we are unmarried was never brought up as I feared it would be in a catholic church (I was brought up catholic). Still attending and quite enjoy it - its a really friendly church.

The position of the Catholic Church and the CoE are quite different. Because it is the "established church" the C of E is obliged to do weddings, baptisms etc. for anyone living within the parish. They also will often do a "Ceremony of thanksgiving" for lukewarm believers who want a nice "hello baby" type of event. I've been to a few of these and they've been lovely events that were right for the families in question.


When a baby is baptised in the Catholic faith the parents and God parents are taking on a responsibility to bring the child up as a Catholic -- this means weekly church attendance, and adherence to Catholic belief. At least one of the God parents has to be a Catholic in good standing. It's not a naming ceremony as is often believed, but a sacrament in which the child is reborn in Christ and becomes a member of the body of the Church. Clearly, if you're not a believer this isn't for you!


Asking about Church attendance is a shortcut to finding out if you're actually a practising Catholic: Catholics are obliged to attend Mass at least weekly, and seek absolution and receive Holy Communion at least once a year. It's pretty straightforward - it's a choice, you're either in or you're out. I can't really understand why anyone who isn't a Catholic would want to make promises they won't be able to keep and profess things in which they don't believe. It's also rather disrespectful to want a sacrament in which they have no belief, but I suspect that most non-church-goers asking for Catholic baptisms do not realise this.


On the other hand, if you really wish for your child to be baptised as a Catholic then by all means join the parish: you will be welcomed. Many people find that having children makes them think about their faith again, ask themselves some of the big questions, try going back to church and find that it's a good thing for them and their family. St. Thomas More is a friendly and busy parish, filled with young families (and no, they aren't just there for the school -- many are at local non-Catholic state or independent schools, others home educate, etc.). It's a great and varied parish community. Even the daily Mass is busy - from young mums to older couples, there's at least 50+ every morning at 9:30. For those interested - there's tea and coffee after the 9am and 10:30 Sunday Masses which is a good way to meet others.


For parents who want a loosely Christian ceremony of thanksgiving, welcome and naming, the C of E Ceremony of Thanksgiving seems to make a lot more sense, won't offend anyone, won't require any changes of belief or lifestyle, and will probably be more to most people's liking if they're not church attenders already.


Different strokes for different folks!

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Latest Discussions

    • What was he doing on the stage at Glastonbury? Or on the stage at the other concert in Finsbury Park? Grinning like a Cheshire cat whilst pissed and stoned 20 somethings on the promise of free internet sung-- Oh Jeremy Corbyn---  What were his policies for Northern mining towns with no jobs or infrastructure? Free Internet and university places for youngsters. What were his other manifesto pledges? Why all the ambiguity over Brexit?  I didn't like Thatcher, Blair or May or Tony but I respected them as politicians because they stood by what they believed in. I respect all politicians across the board that stick to their principles. Corbyn didn't and its why he got  annihilated at the polls. A socialist, anti imperialist and anti capitalist that said he voted for an imperialist and pro capitalist cabal. He refused to say how he'd vote over and over again until the last knockings. He did so to appease the Islington elite and middle class students he was courting. The same people that were screaming that Brexit was racist. At the same time the EU were holding black and Asian immigrants in refugee camps overseas but not a word on that! Corbyn created and courted a student union protest movement that screamed at and shouted down anyone not on the left . They claimed Starmer and the centre right of labour were tories. He didn't get elected  because he, his movement and policies were unelectable, twice. He turned out not to have the convictions of his politics and died on his own sword.    Reform won't win an election. All the idiots that voted for them to keep out Labour actually enabled Labour. They'll be back voting tory next time.    Farage wouldn't be able to make his millions if he was in power. He's a very devious shyster but I very much doubt he'd actually want the responsibility that governance requires.
    • The purge of hard left members that were part of Corbyn's, Mcdonnel's and Lansmans momentum that purged the party of right wing and centrist members. That's politics. It's what Blair did to win, its what Starmer had to do to win. This country doesn't vote in extreme left or right governments. That's partly why Corbyn lost  We're pretty much a centrist bunch.  It doesn't make it false either. It's an opinion based on the voting patterns, demography and statistics. Can you explain then why former mining constituencies that despise the tories voted for them or abstained rather than vote for Corbyns Labour?  What is the truth then? But he never got elected!!! Why? He should have been binned off there and then. Why he was allowed to hang about is an outrage. I hold him party responsible for the shit show that we've had to endure since. 
    • Depends on what the Barista says doesnt it? There was no physical confrontation with the driver, OP thinks she is being targetted when she isnt. These guys work min wage under strict schedules so give them a break unless they damage your stuff
    • CPR Dave, attendance records are available on Southwark's website. Maggie Browning has attended 100% of meetings. Jon Hartley has attended 65%.
Home
Events
Sign In

Sign In



Or sign in with one of these services

Search
×
    Search In
×
×
  • Create New...