Baptism
Baptism, or Christening as it is sometimes known, is the beginning of an exciting journey of faith. It is a special celebration in which we thank God for his gift of life and we publicly thank God for his love. Baptism is also the service through which a child or adult becomes a member of the Christian family of the Church. Together with the godparents, and in the case of children parents/carers are invited to make promises on their child’s behalf, which involve turning away from selfishness and all that is evil, in order to turn towards Christ. Baptism is not only for infants, however, teenagers and adults can also be baptised which we warmly welcome at both our churches.
It is the custom to have up to three godparents (two male and one female for a boy; two female and one male for a girl) but this is not a strict rule. The only requirement is that godparents must have been baptised themselves. If they haven’t, we are very happy to baptise prospective godparents as well!
Once your (child’s) baptism has been arranged, one of the clergy team will arrange to see you at the church or your home at your convenience, in order to explain the service and its meaning.
Confirmation
Confirmation is an exciting stage of the Christian journey. It is a special service, celebrated by the bishop, in which we affirm for ourselves the promises that were made on our behalf at our baptism.
In being confirmed we renew our commitment to Christ and receive the Holy Spirit more fully. It is our confirmation that enables us to receive Holy Communion, in which Christ feeds and sustains us with the gift of his body and blood, made present for us upon the altar, under the appearance of bread and wine. Candidates for confirmation are usually given a brief period of teaching over the course of a few weeks (known as confirmation classes) so that they may be better prepared for their Christian discipleship.
Marriage
Your wedding day is a very special occasion indeed. It is a time of great rejoicing as well as of solemn commitment. In the Bible, we read that Jesus himself was once a wedding guest as he gave to us a sign of new beginnings.
By getting married in church, a relationship is blessed by God as he enables husband and wife to love and support one another, through the good times and the bad. We would be delighted to see you married at either of our beautiful churches, and would love to chat with you about the possibilities and your hopes and dreams ahead of the big day – and the life that follows!
Bereavement
The love of God extends over the whole of creation. It is the firm Christian belief that every life is precious to God. As Christians, we believe that there is hope in death as in life, and that after death there is the Easter promise of new life in Christ.
Whatever the circumstances may be, the death of a loved one is immensely painful. Even those with the strongest belief in the resurrection will experience a sense of loss that is very real. Those who mourn need the utmost sensitivity, support and consolation. Each of us will have had our ownexperiences of the life and death of those we have loved, each with our own memories of love, grief and respect.
In a funeral service, we come to express our feelings as we gather to pay our respects and to say farewell. We gather to remember our loved one before God, to give thanks for their life, to commend them to God’s infinite mercy, and to comfort one another in our grief.
A funeral service may take place in church, in a cemetery or in a crematorium. To arrange the funeral service of a loved one please contact your local funeral director, and they will guide you through the process in conjunction with us as best we can.