Do you HAVE To Have 2 Godparents?

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dailey

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I am suppose to baptize my cousin this weekend but now the church is saying we need two godparents?? My husband has to work so he is not able to go but I know I only had one godparent for my own kids. My question is can a church decide not to do a baptism based on only one godparent? 🤷 I need to call them tomorrow so I wanted to be properly informed, thanks!
 
dailey said:
I am suppose to baptize my cousin this weekend but now the church is saying we need two godparents?? My husband has to work so he is not able to go but I know I only had one godparent for my own kids. My question is can a church decide not to do a baptism based on only one godparent? 🤷 I need to call them tomorrow so I wanted to be properly informed, thanks!
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1 godparent is sufficient, 2 is the max, and if there are two they have to be of opposite sexes.

The two don’t have to be a couple, just be one man and one woman
 
Thank you for the reply! So just so I am understanding correctly, individual churches cannot deny a godparent if there is only one?
 
Here is the canon law on baptismal sponsors.
PONSORS
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Can. 872 Insofar as possible, a person to be baptized is to be given a sponsor who assists an adult in Christian initiation or together with the parents presents an infant for baptism. A sponsor also helps the baptized person to lead a Christian life in keeping with baptism and to fulfill faithfully the obligations inherent in it.
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Can. 873 There is to be only one male sponsor or one female sponsor or one of each.
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Can. 874 §1. To be permitted to take on the function of sponsor a person must:
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1/ be designated by the one to be baptized, by the parents or the person who takes their place, or in their absence by the pastor or minister and have the aptitude and intention of fulfilling this function;
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2/ have completed the sixteenth year of age, unless the diocesan bishop has established another age, or the pastor or minister has granted an exception for a just cause;
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3/ be a Catholic who has been confirmed and has already received the most holy sacrament of the Eucharist and who leads a life of faith in keeping with the function to be taken on;
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4/ not be bound by any canonical penalty legitimately imposed or declared;
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5/ not be the father or mother of the one to be baptized.
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§2. A baptized person who belongs to a non-Catholic ecclesial community is not to participate except together with a Catholic sponsor and then only as a witness of the baptism.
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vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/_P2Y.HTM
 
You might want to be prepared. It’s not unheard of that individual parishes (pastors) set policies regardless of what canon law may say.:sad_yes:
 
Make sure you talk to the priest. If he says you need two, just politely ask “Why? Canon Law says I need one but may have two.”

The other option is for your husband to be the godfather (if he meets the requirements) and appoint someone to stand in for him as his proxy. My baby brother’s godmother and godfather were both represented by proxies at his Baptism.
 
Your question has already been answered but another thing I want to warn you about is that some dioceses have stricter requirements than others about who can be a godparent. My (arch)diocese requires the godparent(s) to be practicing Catholics in good standing with the church (i.e., attending mass weekly, if married must be in a valid marriage recognized by the church, and meet other requirements in canon law) and must provide a letter from their parish priest as proof of this.

This might or might not apply for where you live as some dioceses are a bit more lax about the requirements but just wanted to throw that out there just in case…
 
tseleehw said:
Your question has already been answered but another thing I want to warn you about is that some dioceses have stricter requirements than others about who can be a godparent. My (arch)diocese requires the godparent(s) to be practicing Catholics in good standing with the church (i.e., attending mass weekly, if married must be in a valid marriage recognized by the church, and meet other requirements in canon law) and must provide a letter from their parish priest as proof of this.

This might or might not apply for where you live as some dioceses are a bit more lax about the requirements but just wanted to throw that out there just in case…
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Your archdiocese is only following Canon Law on the requirements to be godparents. That law has been in place for centuries, sadly it hasn’t been applied evenly.

As one responsible for preparing the parents for their child’s Baptism, I’m sick of standing there and watching, among other things, cohabiting godparents, and godparents who never darken the door of the church except at Christmas, maybe.

My two worse cases were
  1. the parents and godparents who, while standing around the font in front of the Tabernacle, joked about living in sin as I was going over the Renunciation of Sin and Renewal of Baptismal Promises as I was walking them through the ceremony the night before, and,
  2. the godfather who tried to maintain at least 6’ between himself and the godmother, as she was his estranged wife and aunt of the baby being baptized, and she’d shown up with the married lover she’d left him for in tow.
 
Phemie said:
  1. the godfather who tried to maintain at least 6’ between himself and the godmother, as she was his estranged wife and aunt of the baby being baptized, and she’d shown up with the married lover she’d left him for in tow.
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I’m not sure if this godmother was really appropriate, considering that history.

But it isn’t necessary for the 2 godparents to really know each other, my godparents now both deceased were barely acquainted- they may have met at my parents wedding I guess.
 
Kielbasi said:
I’m not sure if this godmother was really appropriate, considering that history.

But it isn’t necessary for the 2 godparents to really know each other, my godparents now both deceased were barely acquainted- they may have met at my parents wedding I guess.
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No, of course it isn’t necessary. My youngest’s godparents have never met. The godfather was represented by a proxy.

In my second case neither godparent was appropriate. Godfather because he really didn’t want to be a sponsor but felt put on the spot, godmother because she wasn’t fit to be a godmother. Since that time the family approached me to see if they could have someone else put on the record as the godfather but that’s not possible.
 
Dmitri77 said:
Why would you want two sponsors?
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Adults being baptized usually only have one sponsor, but traditionally both a godfather and a godmother have been chosen for children. It’s rare, at least in the parishes where I’ve been and in the baptismal registers I’ve seen, for a child to only have one sponsor.

This may have stemmed from a belief that sponsors were responsible for raising the child if anything happened to the parents. Two made that easier than one. While that may have traditionally been the case in some places, it’s not something that is legally recognized where I live. We advise our parents that, if they chose the godparents based on their belief that they’ll become legal guardians should anything happen, they had better go to a lawyer to have papers drawn up to that effect. Family members would have higher standing in court than unrelated godparents if it came to a custody dispute.
 
SMHW said:
I believe 1ke was referring to the requirements in Can. 874 (stated earlier in this thread.)
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Ah yeah when I read their post I thought they were replying to the OP. Should pay closer attention I suppose.
 
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