Baptism Information
Baptism is a ritual of initiation that indicates our desire to enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ and the Church.In the ritual of Baptism, the priest pours water on the head of the candidate three times, and says, “[Name], I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” The candidate is also anointed with oil, called Chrism, that has been blessed by the bishop. This is a sign and a symbol that the candidate is “sealed with the Holy Spirit and marked as Christ’s own for ever.”
Following the practice of the early church, we baptize both infants and adults in the Episcopal Church in the belief that God’s love extends to everyone regardless of their age or understanding of doctrine. Any baptismal candidate is encouraged to have godparents or sponsors, who will pledge to encourage the newly-baptized to follow the Christian faith.
Baptism normally takes place within the Sunday Eucharist because the community pledges to support the baptized in the development of their faith. There are four traditional times for the celebration of Baptism. The traditional dates for baptisms are the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord in January, the Easter Vigil or Easter Sunday, the feast of Pentecost (50 days after Easter), and the feast of All Saints (November 1).
The sacrament of baptism is available at any time of the year, however, we typically do not offer Baptism during Lent. We have 2 Sundays open in February for Baptism before the Lenten season begins- February 20 & 27. If you or a loved one would like to be baptized, ask the Vestry Person of the Week (the person with the clipboard as you exit the Sunday morning services).