Who can be a child’s godfather: how to make the right choice

Prayer for the baptism of a child for godparents

There are three main, ritual appeals to God, which, at the baptism of a girl, are read by the godmother and godfather (at the initiation of a boy). In this ritual, they are basic, so you will have to learn them first:

"Our Father".
“Virgin Mother of God, Rejoice!”
"Symbol of faith".

Examples of prayer for godchildren

Advice. In addition to the above, it is advisable to read the canons to the Mother of God, Guardian Angel and Savior for communion.

About worldly superstitions: breaking down age-old myths

Our ancestors, and we ourselves, are quite superstitious. Even with such a pure, holy matter as the sacrament of baptism, we have our own myths. Here are some of them:

1. A woman must baptize the first boy, since the first goddaughter, a girl, will become an obstacle to marriage. There is no Orthodox basis for this statement. Perhaps, in the old days, such “fate” was not accepted, since everyone builds their own life on their own.

3. Pregnant women cannot baptize their children, since in this case they shorten the life of the baby. This is an unfounded judgment. A pregnant woman can be a godmother; you can read more about this in the topic “Is it possible or not for a pregnant woman to baptize a child?”

4. One of the godparents must be a family member and also have children, so as not to condemn the child to loneliness. Again, a tradition from the past, based on the fact that family godparents are already established, and if necessary, they will always help the godson.

Revealing the essence of the problem - how to choose godparents?
We can say the following: listen to your heart, pray, go to church. God will help you make the right choice. Author of the publication: Victoria Teterina

Who can be a child’s godfather: how to choose them

When choosing future godfathers, the attitude of strangers towards my child is of paramount importance. Here you cannot be guided by mercantile considerations and count on the wealth of the named father and mother or their high social status.

It is the godparents who are responsible for the spiritual development of the child. Who should be taken as parents in Christ, the church tells:

Not all Orthodox Christians know whether it is possible to baptize a child without godparents . On this issue, priests have disagreements regarding the canon; in our church I was allowed to perform such a ceremony without strangers. If this seems somehow unacceptable to you, invite your godfather to be your godfather. According to his purpose, he is obliged to lead the baptized to faith and obedience to God. And it certainly won’t teach your baby anything bad.
Siblings, siblings, cousins can also baptize a child . They must be old enough, since now they will have to be responsible not only for themselves, but also for their ward. Grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts and uncles can also be participants in the ceremony, the main thing is that they are of the Orthodox faith. A child can also become a godfather, although it is unlikely that anyone will entrust such an important mission to a minor Christian.
Can a child have one godparent when mom and dad were unable to find a suitable match for him? Of course it can. After all, calling a person to be a godfather just to perform a ceremony is fundamentally wrong. Our priest allowed my colleague to hold the event under these conditions, having previously stipulated that the gender of the baby and the named parent must match.
whether it is possible to baptize a child with a pregnant godmother, often refusing the opportunity to become related to a good person precisely for this reason. When a woman feels great and there are no health problems, pleasant communication with the child and people around her does not threaten her. But pregnancy does not free her from her responsibilities to her godson.

Excursion into history

The question of why and why godparents are needed has never been asked before. Because they had a clear purpose and list of responsibilities.

The tradition of the church is that children are usually baptized in infancy - on the eighth or fortieth day. It is clear that at this age, demanding that a person observe the canons of the church would be, to put it mildly, strange. That's why godparents were needed.

Of course, these should only be Orthodox Christians. Moreover, for a boy only a godfather is enough, and for a girl - a godmother. But in most cases both are invited. “Second” parents are called adoptive parents. This name was born from the ritual itself, when the godfather accepts the baby from the hands of the priest. Accordingly, she or he takes responsibility for him and undertakes to teach the child the basics of the Orthodox faith. It is believed that the godparents will also have to answer for the sins of the godson.

You accepted the baby from the hands of a priest - a new Christian has come under your spiritual care.

Try to teach him something that you know yourself. Don’t forget to congratulate your godson not only on his birthday and Happy New Year, but also on the day of the angel, the child’s heavenly patron!

Before baptism

Why does a child need a godfather?

The parents of a child in Christ must instill faith in him from a very early age, support humility and hard work in his godson, and keep his ward from doing bad things. Therefore, the role of a godfather in a child’s life is incredibly important and honorable.

The godfathers strengthen the authority of the father and mother, and when their named children grow up, they bless the marriage of their charges. They give useful advice and give the named offspring icons and spiritual books.

Their responsibility in raising a child is no less significant than that of blood relatives. Therefore, before agreeing to an honorary proposal from relatives or friends, you should think about what godparents do throughout their lives for their named baby. If the wards are orphaned, further care for them falls on the shoulders of the godfathers.

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Responsibilities of godparents

At what age can you receive the sacrament of baptism?

Baptism is one of the main Christian rites, which marks the spiritual birth of a person. After performing this sacrament, every Christian gains the protection of higher powers - heavenly angels who will protect him from everything bad in life.

Many parents now want to baptize their child in infancy. The Orthodox Church allows the ceremony to be performed only after the baby reaches 40 days after birth. An exception is made only for very sick and weak children.

All babies must have godparents at baptism. These are those people who voluntarily take upon themselves the obligation to be spiritual mentors and trustees of a newly minted Christian.

The role of godparents is not limited only to the baptismal ceremony itself; they must take care of their godson for the rest of his life - teach him to be a kind, moral and loving Christian, help in difficult moments of life, and give wise advice. If a person’s blood parents for some reason cannot be with him, then his spiritual mentor takes on this responsibility.

What is needed for a child's baptism

To know how to prepare godparents for the ceremony, you need to choose a temple and contact the priest to explain important points in the upcoming event. Standard set of necessary items:

pectoral cross made of durable material . A gold attribute would be ideal, but you should not amaze future relatives in Christ with the size of your wallet. The event should bring joy and spiritual enlightenment to all participants. And the value of the metal does not matter much;
thick terry towels . Symbolic bathing in a special container means the second birth of the baby, so it will need to be wiped;
baptismal shirts, special bedspreads . Once upon a time, godmothers knew that they would soon have to carry the baby to the altar, so they embroidered beautiful patterns in advance with church symbols woven into the ornament. This clothing was only used once in its life. Then it was kept until the death of the initiate. Now you can just get by with a light new thing, preferably white;
candles for all participants of the event - both adults and children;
an icon of the saint who will give his name to the baby, according to the list in the Temple. After the ceremony, the godmother or godfather gives the image to the child.

What does a child need for christening?

Important. The duties of godmothers also include helping parents with preparations for the holiday.

Who should not be chosen as a spiritual guide?

Like everywhere else, the church has its own unspoken rules. Before choosing godparents, you need to get acquainted with them.

1. Holy Scripture says that a couple who baptize one child becomes spiritual relatives between whom there can be no intimacy, therefore a married couple or people planning to get married do not have the right to baptize one baby.

2. Atheists or people professing other religions cannot be chosen as godparents.

3. People with an unworthy lifestyle, as well as mentally ill people (who do not know what they are doing) cannot be chosen as spiritual mentors for a child.

4. Blood father and mother cannot be re-enlisted as the child’s mentors. They cannot baptize their child.

Who should you not take as godparents to your child?

There is a whole category of people who cannot participate in the sacrament. On this matter, the priests of all churches are unanimous in their opinions and attitudes:

A Catholic or Muslim, an atheist or a Buddhist cannot dedicate a baby to the faith of Christ. Since the main duty of godfathers remains to introduce the ward to the Orthodox canons, a representative of another concession is not suitable as a church mentor;
It is not recommended to perform the ceremony if the godmother is having her period. This rule has been fixed in the minds of believers since the time when women did not have underwear and could dirty the floor in the temple. Now the abbots are more democratic in this regard, however, many women during this period are experiencing poor health, and they are physically unable to devote themselves entirely to the process of baptizing the baby. Therefore, it is better to first talk with the priest and godfather about whether it is possible to baptize a child during menstruation with the godmother.
You cannot take your ex-husband as godparent to your child. The head of a family who has failed to improve relationships in his own home is unlikely to be able to teach the right things to your son. In addition, such a person will not fully fulfill his duties - various problems that often accompany divorce will interfere. This will be another psychological trauma for the child;
a father or mother cannot be godparents to their child. This rule was established long ago, since it is the responsibility of all believers to spread God's word throughout the world. Moreover, in the event of the premature departure of the biological father and mother to another world, there will be no one to further introduce the offspring to the Christian faith and guide him on the righteous path;
Priests also do not allow a married couple to be godmothers to one child. The husband and wife may separate in the future, and the godson will have to choose who to invite to his birthday or wedding. This will be difficult, especially if, as a result of the divorce, the former spouses did not maintain friendly relations. For the same reason, you should refuse to choose young people who are connected by close relationships and intend to start a family in the future;
Priests do not have a consensus on whether it is possible to baptize a child by a godfather or mother. Some Orthodox abbots prohibit holding the sacrament between established relatives in Christ, others do not see anything wrong with this. For example, I asked our parish priest if the godfather could be my child’s godmother. Father answered in the affirmative, considering that she is a very pious woman, she treats my children well and we have been friends for decades;
to become a godfather for several children or not - everyone decides for themselves. It must be remembered that this is a big load and lifelong responsibilities, so priests do not advise spreading yourself thin.

Is it possible to change godparents?

Sometimes parents want to change the godparents of the child's mother or father. I also turned to the priest about this when the named parents simply forgot about their youngest daughter, in fact, immediately after the ceremony. Unfortunately, the priest’s answer was categorical - this cannot be done.

For example, if you replace your mother, you get a stepmother; if you replace your godfather, you get a mentor and a mentor. Therefore, it is impossible to baptize a child with other godparents or change one of the godfathers; you can only pray for negligent relatives in Christ.

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Responsibilities of Spiritual Directors

The assigned “position” of a godparent obliges a person to replenish the spiritual life of the godson, and not just give gifts for the holidays.

The role of godparents is very important, because they are entrusted with:

prays every day for the salvation of his godson's soul
tell the godson about the Kingdom of God, teach him to pray
teach him by your example virtue, mercy
teach your godson to love God and go to church