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Saint Paul Catholic Church
POLICY ON BAPTISM OF CHILDREN
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1.
All families of children to be Baptized must be members of St.
Paul’s Parish. This means that they must live within the
boundaries of our parish, or if they do not live within the
boundaries of our parish, they must have been registered in the
parish for at least one year prior to the date of Baptism.
2. A
parent must fill out the Baptism information application and
provide the required documents before a child can be baptized.
Grandparents or other relatives may not arrange for the Baptism
of the child.
A) A parent must fill out an application for Baptism during
office hours.
B) Parent is to bring a copy to the office of the birth certificate
to be stapled
to the application.
C) Parent is to bring a letter stating that (at least one) of the
Godparents is
registered and practicing their faith in a
Catholic church.
D) Once all this information is gathered, the parents can register
for the Baptism
class and for the Baptism.
3.
If a child is to be Baptized as an infant, he/she must be five
(5) years old or younger. Children age six (6) or older must
receive religious instruction prior to Baptism. They should
normally attend the R.C.I.A. Adapted for Children. Refer parents
of children age six or older to our Director of Religious
Education.
4.
Parents and sponsors (God-parents) of children who are to be
Baptized must attend a Baptism preparation class. They may
attend a class at St. Paul’s or at any other Catholic parish. If
they attend a class at a parish other than St. Paul’s, they must
bring a letter or other notice from that parish stating the date
they attended the class.
5.
At least one sponsor must be a practicing Catholic. That is,
they must be 16 years old or older and if they are married,
their marriage must be valid according to Catholic Church law,
and they must be attending Sunday Mass regularly. A letter from
their pastor substantiating these requirements will be
necessary.
6.
All Baptisms will take place at a pre-scheduled time – normally
on Sunday mornings. Private Baptisms are not allowed unless the
Pastor has given explicit permission. This permission will not
be given unless there are extremely compelling circumstances.
PRINT a copy of the
Policy on Baptisms of Children
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