Boris Johnson's son baptised at Westminster Cathedral

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EmilyAlexandra

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https://catholicherald.co.uk/boris-johnsons-son-baptised-at-westminster-cathedral/

In their coverage of the event, MailOnline manages to get Westminster Cathedral confused with Westminster Abbey. 🤣

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A quick question for anyone who cares to answer: in the comments on the MailOnline, a lot of people are saying that Catholics baptise rather than christen. I had always understood that ‘baptise’ and ‘christen’ were synonymous. ‘Baptise’ sounds like a more formal term, whereas ‘christen’ sounds like a more colloquial term which is perhaps used more by people who are not actually very religious. Possibly these are the same people who are always on hand to volunteer the insight that, ‘The Church of England doesn’t have priests, it has vicars’!
 
Boris is Catholic? I didn’t know that.

I wish baby well.
 
I believe Johnson was baptised in a Catholic church but later chose to be confirmed in the Church of England. His fiancee Carrie Symonds is Catholic.
 
EmilyAlexandra said:
in the comments on the MailOnline , a lot of people are saying that Catholics baptise rather than christen. I had always understood that ‘baptise’ and ‘christen’ were synonymous. ‘Baptise’ sounds like a more formal term, whereas ‘christen’ sounds like a more colloquial term which is perhaps used more by people who are not actually very religious.
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It’s complicated. I think St John Paul II talked about this somewhere, but I cannot find it right now. (Polish for baptism is Chrzest) Or actually he commented on Jesus and Baptism in a way that made no sense if you did not know the usual Polish word for Baptism is based on chrzest, from Christ.

The rite makes you into a Christian, incorporates you into the Body of Christ. Taking on the identity of Christ in this manner is called Christening. This can probably be traced to the post baptismal chrismation, or anointing with chrism, that may or may not be confirmation.

Anointing fell out of favor before the Reformation, and was dropped entirely in some places. In English Christening then shifted to taking on a new identity, as in being given a new name. This happens at Baptism, or the commissioning of a ship, or other analogous meanings.
 
Thanks, that’s interesting. So when people say that Catholics baptise but do not christen, they would be wrong.
 
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