October 10, 2020
Good day, everyone. This is @Eirolfeam2 once again.
So I'm writing this article to share to all of you that I attended a baby Christening today. It was a Christening day of my High School ex crush's son. Haha! It's no big deal tho.
What is Christening?
Christening is a type of baptism, traditional in the Catholic or Anglican Church. Commonly baptizing babies and young children, it includes an ordered ceremony and frequently, the child is christened with a new, Christian name, in a gathering of family and friends. Children obtain godparents to help them grow in their faith and life and are welcomed into the Church. Christening is an important moment for these young Christians, as baptism is a vital element to the Christian faith.
Christening is described as “a Christian sacrament signifying spiritual cleansing and rebirth.” The christening tradition, normally given to small children and babies, and most common in Catholic and Episcopal churches, goes beyond simply infant baptism. The christening ritual involves giving the baby their “Christian” name, sprinkling water on the head of the child, and welcoming them into the Church fellowship.
Last Tuesday, October 6, 2020, he came to my house and handed me this invitation. I was so excited to see all of the names written who will be the godparents of the child, and I found the name of my High School ex boyfriend for 3 weeks, that is written next to my name. Haha! Again, it's no big deal. 😬
The occasion was held at the St. Lawrence Parish church in Bangui, Ilocos Norte. The event started at around 10:00 am and ended at around 10:30 in the morning. It was attended by not more than 50 people, but there were 60 official godparents of the child. And the reception followed at their family's residence.
What is the significance of Christening?
The significance of Christening, beyond the spiritual meaning of baptism, is the receiving of a new Christian name and godparents to encourage and strengthen the faith of the christened baby in their life.
During a christening, it is customary for the family to choose a godmother and/or godfather to aid in guiding the child and helping them in the faith.
After the ceremony, we had picture taking with the baby and their parents. This first picture is a photo with the "ninangs" or god mothers. Feel free to find me if you can. 😁 We were wearing face masks for safety protocols. 😷
Here is a photo of the "ninongs" or godfathers of baby Chris Xian with his parents.
Who are Godparents?
A godparent (also known as a sponsor), in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who bears witness to a child's Christening and later is willing to help in their cathecism, as well as their lifelong spiritual formation. In the past, in some countries, the role carried some legal obligations as well as religious responsibilities. In both religious and civil views, a godparent tends to be an individual chosen by the parents to take an interest in the child's upbringing and personal development, to offer mentorship or claim legal guardianship of the child if anything should happen to the parents.
What is the importance of Godparents?
A christening gives parents the opportunity to formally involve other significant adults in their child’s upbringing, for advice, protection, support and encouragement.
What is the role of a Godparent?
Godparents are among the most important people at a christening, who make big promises to encourage their godchild to grow in faith and commit to helping them understand how to live their life in a Christian way.
Alongside the godchild’s parents, the godparent will:
Give your time to your godchild to talk to about the bigger questions of life – questions about hope, faith and love.
Model and encourage them to develop Christian values – being kind and compassionate towards others, being generous towards others in need with time or money and standing against things in the world that cause injustice and suffering.
Pray for your godchild through the ups and downs of their life and their faith journey.
Show them practically how to make good choices in life, for themselves and for others. This might mean talking to them about how to stay healthy, how to resist temptations that can harm us and other people, how to care for God’s amazing world and how to handle peer pressure as they grow older.
Help them to learn more about the Christian faith, through their church and in other ways. Going to church with them, talking about what the Bible shows us and helping them learn how to pray are all brilliant ways to support your godchild.
At the end of the event, we received these mugs as a souvenir of the Christening.
As of today, I already have 5 grandchildren. And of all the roles and responsibilities of a grandparent, I don't think I am being a good one. Aha!
How about you, how many grandchild do you have now? Are you close to them? Do they also ask for your presents every occasion like birthdays, Christmas, and New Year? Or are you like a typical grandparent who don't believe that money should be involved? Haha!
That's all for today. I've had a great day, and a new experience again. 😸
looks like a chapel here in zamboanga