Sacrament of Baptism
Baptism marks the beginning of our faith life. Parents want to pass on their own faith to their child with all the values, love, and wisdom that flows from that faith. Someone might ask, “Wouldn’t it be better to wait until my child is older and they can make their own decision about their faith before baptizing them?”
The Church does teach that it is important for each one of us to make our own decision to follow Christ. In fact, God has no grandchildren. We must each eventually make our own personal decision to be a son or daughter of God. Yet just as the Jewish people entered into a covenant with God through family and circumcision, so now, as St. Paul reminds us, we have received “the circumcision of Christ” when we “were buried with him in baptism” (Colossians 2:11–12).
St. Paul notes that Baptism joins us to Christ, he writes, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27). As the Catechism notes, “Baptism is the first and chief sacrament of the forgiveness of sins: it unites us to Christ, who died and rose, and gives us the Holy Spirit” (CCC 985).
Receiving the grace of this Sacrament does not interfere with our ability to later make our own decisions--enhances it. Our faith is not something we should leave to chance; we need the graces found in Baptism to deliberately foster our faith later in life.
Beginning the Process
If you are a registered parishioner, and are looking to baptize a child ages 0 - 7 1/2 years, use the form below to begin the baptism process.
Baptism For Children
(0 - 7.5 Years)
Contact: Dcn. Scott McKellar
Baptism for Adults
(8 + Years)
Contact: Dcn. Doug Warrens
Register for a Baptism
Are you a member of the parish?
If you haven't officially registered as a parishioner, you will need to sign up using the form below
Are you visiting from another parish?
If you are registered in a different parish you will need to obtain a letter of permission from the pastor of that parish and send it here to St. Therese. You can do this after you have registered for the baptism online.
The Baptism Registration Process
Baptisms at St. Therese Parish are normally conducted Saturday’s after the 4:30 PM Mass and Sunday’s after the Noon Mass. The priest or deacon presiding at the Baptism is normally not chosen until the week of the Baptism, but it is possible to make requests.
Baptism Preparation Class
If you have not already taken a Baptism Preparation Class in the past three years you will need to sign up for a free one-evening class (6:30-8:00PM). Choosing a sign up date for this class will be part of the online registration below. You must complete this class before your child’s Baptism.
Baptism Sponsors
During the registration process you will be asked to choose sponsors or godparents for your child. Please see the parish requirements below. We do not require a Godparent training course, but your sponsors are welcome to join the parents at our free Baptism Preparation Class if they wish.
Parish Requirements for Sponsors (godparents)
The choice of godparents is an important one that requires some thought given the role they are supposed to play in your child’s faith life. They will have a spiritual relationship with your child. Rather than simply the nearest relative, they are people who you will be holding up to your children as role models, as living examples of the Catholic Christian life. To be a godparent, one must be:
-
Over the age of 16
-
have received the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and First Communion
-
be a practicing Catholic, including regular Sunday Mass attendance, if married, to be married in the Catholic Church and to not be in an irregular situation such as cohabitation, etc.
There need only be one godparent but if there are two, they are to be gender specific, one godfather, one godmother.
Sometimes it happens that there is a friend or special relative who parents would like to have as a godparent who is not Catholic. Provided that one godparent is a Catholic who meets the requirements, the other may be filled in by a non-Catholic who is a baptized Christian. This person is known as a Christian witness but essentially fills in the role of the second godparent.
Can I register for a Baptism if I am still expecting?
There is no problem planning for your child’s Baptism in advance. You can provisionally register for a Baptism online using the ‘first name’ --“Baby boy/ Baby girl/ Baby and your last name. You may temporarily use the Due Date as their date of birth. This can easily be updated after your child is born. You may even take the preparation class months in advance, if you wish to plan ahead.
