I joined the Church of England in 2013, whilst working at Heythrop and served my curacy at the parish of St Mary and St Eanswythe with St Saviour in Folkestone, where I was married in 2015. Following the closure of Heythrop in 2018, I took up a new position teaching theology and organizing social and pastoral and placements for students at the College of the Resurrection in Mirfield, which trains women and men for ordained ministry.
– all ages to be baptised.
– all ages to be baptised.
Baptism / Christening
We welcome individuals, families, children – all ages to be baptised.
Whoever is baptised (=christened) is dedicated to God, begins a new journey of faith, joins the largest faith community the world has ever seen and God’s Spirit rests, in a new and special way on the individual. If it is a child being baptised then parents and godparents formally take on the responsibility for the spiritual development of the child and make significant Christian promises.
Jesus was baptised, by John the Baptist. It was a beautiful moment when Jesus realised what his life was to be about and it was the beginning of his three-year ministry in the Middle East. You can read about it here.
Baptism normally takes place during the worship of the church (Sotogrande at midday or San Pedro at 10 am) on a Sunday. Being in with the rest of the church is important as the church community joyfully welcomes the newly baptised into its family.
For the baptised, this is a start of a new journey in faith, so baptism here, and in most other churches, involves some preparation to help the first steps through the purpose and promises. If possible we will arrange a preparation time for you/parents/godparents to attend. We will invite you to worship with us in the church in the weeks before your baptism.
Do I(we) need to have been baptised/christened or confirmed?
If you want your child christened at least one of your parents and all god-parents need to have been baptised/christened yourselves, after all you are making big Christian promises and baptism is a mark of membership and acceptance of the Christian faith. If some of you are not baptised, then either we can arrange for you to be baptised at the same time (see the picture) or if, for example, someone you would like to be a god-parent is an atheist or a member of another religion, then they can be ‘sponsors’ instead, in which case they do not make the same godly promises, but different ones.
What about photographs?
Of course, you must take photographs, and we will arrange to pose with everyone after the service itself. This is a special and very holy moment so we discourage everyone from getting out their phones and snapping. If you can identify one individual who will be discrete with photography during the ceremony, that’s fine, but lots of good pictures afterwards are absolutely best.
How much does it cost?
It is free. God’s grace in baptism has been free for 2000 years, and we are not charging now! Donations to the work of the Chaplaincy and the charities it supports are always welcome though.
The baptism and testing of Jesus
Mark 1:9-11
Bible Gateway9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised by John in the Jordan. 10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: ‘You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.’