All those who live in the parishes (geographical area covered by the churches) of Saint Philip and Saint Matthew have a right to be baptized at Saint Matthew's. Others with an established connexion with the life of the Church here are also baptized in our church.
Usually, others are encouraged to go to their own parish church. There are occasionally exceptions to this rule, every such request is dealt with individually.
Before you decide to ask for Baptism, you should ask yourself whether you can make the commitments included in the service (see the Rite of Baptism). It is always a good idea to come along to the Mass on Sunday a couple of times to get the feel of the Church.
In short, you contact the Vicar. He will give you an application form for each person, which you complete and return to him.
You will need to choose at least three Godparents for babies and infants. These three people should all have been baptized themselves (not necessarily in the Anglican Church) and one should be a communicant member of their church (again, not necessarily an Anglican). If you have problems with this, you should mention it to the Vicar. Traditionally (though it is not required), two godparents are of the same sex as the child and one of the other sex.
Usually, once someone has reached the age of ten, we would expect her or him to be confirmed at the same time as the Baptism. This involves a course of preparation: you need to speak to the Vicar about this.
Do not book the party until you have agreed a date with the Vicar . Baptisms are normally celebrated at a service at 9am on Sunday mornings. Sometimes people ask to have the Baptism included in the High Mass at 10.30am; but this is a much longer service and more appropriate for people who are used to going to church.
If someone who is seriously ill asks to be baptized (or the parents of a very sick child ask for the child to be baptized), the service will happen at the earliest opportunity. If she or he is in hospital, the chaplain there will normally be responsible for administering the Sacrament.
Anybody who wants to.
Please speak to the Vicar before making any arrangements for photos or a video.
Baptisms are free. However, we are grateful for any contribution to the large cost of running Saint Matthew's.
The Baptism will be recorded in the parish register, which is a legal document and a certificate will be issued. For these reasons, it is important that the information you put on the application form is accurate.
Home page: http://www.stmatthewsnewcastle.org.uk/