It
is a rule of the Orthodox Faith that every person, child or adult, should have
a Godparent at Baptism. To serve as a Godparent is both a special honor and
imposes responsibilities which last a lifetime.
Through Baptism we receive forgiveness of all sin,
whether original or actual; we "put on Christ," becoming members of
His Body which is the Church. The Godparent, along with the parents and guided
by the Church, should assist the newly baptized child throughout his/her
life. Just as natural parents care and
nurture their children, so do the Godparents, however, their focus is on the
spiritual development of the child. Every Godparent becomes accountable to God
as to whether or not he has discharged his duties to the child which he has
baptized.
The
early Church faced the problem that the majority of those who wanted to become
her members came from pagan families and therefore lacked even an elementary
Christian education and knowledge of the new faith. To remedy this, the Church
undertook the task of educating them before their baptism. The systematic instruction, which was a
preparatory stage for baptism was called catechism. During this stage, one
learned the simple elements of the Christian faith and morals and later in the
fourth century one was also given an education of the more profound Christian
mysteries, as is made clear in the Fourth Prebaptismal Catechesis of Cyril of
Jerusalem. The candidate had to be introduced by one of the faithful, (called
anadochos) and be examined by the "doctors" who were in charge of the
catechumens, to ensure that clear spiritual motives led him to enter the
Church. The "anadochos" which means one who receives, were
responsible for the candidate and played a very important role during the
process of his catechesis and even after the candidate had been baptized.
Eventually, infant baptism became the norm rather than the exception in the
Church and the "anadochos" or Godparent was called upon to be the
spokesperson for the infant.
The Godparent is the representative of the infant.
He speaks for the infant and vows that he will do all he can to assure that the
child will be a true soldier of Christ and a devoted member of His Church. He
accepts the sacred responsibility of assisting the child to understand the
practices and teachings of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. The Godparent makes a public profession of
the Nicene Creed during the baptism. His renunciation of the devil is made on
behalf of the candidate for baptism. The Godparent pledges himself to help his
Godchild through problems he may encounter during life’s journey, especially in
the child’s spiritual development. The
Church encourages the Godparent to bring the child regularly for Holy
Communion. The Godparent should also prepare to receive Holy Communion. A
faithful Godparent will be a friend In Christ and maintain close contact with
his Godchild. The relationship between the Godparent and the baptized is so
important and so close that the Church forbids marriage between the Godparent
and the Godchild.
Remember
Your Godchild
Remember
your Godchild on the date of Baptism along with birthday anniversaries,
Christmas, etc. The greatest gift you can give your Godchild is the spiritual
and emotional relationship you build with them by spending time together. By now you have to come to realize that the
most important quality for a Godparent is to live a Christ-filled life and that
he demonstrate his faith as a light-bearer devoted to receiving salvation for
himself and his Godchild. The Godparent is called upon to accept the Divine
Commandment read from the Holy Gospel at the service of baptism, "Teach
them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to
the close of the age."
Use this check list
to prepare for the Baptism:
Spiritual
Preparation:
Pray about the day and read the
bible.
Reflective
Preparation:
Familiarize yourself and
understand the
spiritual and theological meaning of
Baptism, as well as
the order of the service and your
participation,
therein.
Items Needed:
White baptismal
outfit
Baptismal cross
2 baptismal candles
1 large white towel