Godparent ?

[mkipp]

We are having our first baby in July. And we are thinking of Godparents. My family is not Catholic. We only know two people that we could use as Godparents my brother-in-law and sister-in-law as they are Catholic. My wife’s family is Catholic. What are we supposed to do? Also, none of our friends are Catholic.

 

[puzzleannie]

wise to think of this now.
family members are good because there is a better chance they will be around while the child grows up, but it is not required. Time to get active in your parish, which you should do anyhow because now is the time to take the parent preparation for baptism. This will be a gold mine because you will meet other young parents through this class, and you may even find good godparents there, but you will be able with a bit of initiative and creativity do some networking. Get active in your parish in other ways–CCD is one of the best ways to meet other families and doable now and even after the baby comes. If when the time comes to baptize you still have not identified anyone, tell the pastor as he may appoint someone.

 

[mkipp]

I am in RCIA and my wife is Catholic and I am new to the Church and do not really know anyone. Do both Godparents need to be Catholic?

 

[kevinsgirl]

I am in RCIA and my wife is Catholic and I am new to the Church and do not really know anyone. Do both Godparents need to be Catholic?

Check with the requirements of your parish. At ours, the requirement is that one of the godparents must be Catholic and the other must at least be baptized. Also, now would be a good time to check up on baptism preparations at your parish as some parishes ask the parents to contact them up to 6 months before the anticipated baptism (so you’d need to contact them before the baby is born).

 

[Lil_M]

This might make things easier…you only need to have one godparent, 2 is optional. So if your brother and sister in law are faithful and practicing either or both might be your best bet.

 

[Phemie]

I am in RCIA and my wife is Catholic and I am new to the Church and do not really know anyone. Do both Godparents need to be Catholic?

First let’s get terms clear.

Godparents are always Catholic. You only need one.

With a godparent (remember, always a Catholic) you may have a Christian witness – that is a non-Catholic who has been baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. That mean some people are automatically excluded even if they identify themselves as Christian (Mormons, Salvation Army, many Pentecostals, etc).

While in the ceremony itself you will not see a differentiation between the godparent and the Christian witness, rest assured that the Church sees a great difference. The CW has no role except to be a witness of the Baptism and to testify to it having taken place if the need should ever arise. The godparent, OTOH, should be aiding the parents in their duty to raise the child Catholic.

If you want to call that Christian witness a godparent within the family is up to you.

 

[SourGrape]

My husband and I moved from Chicago to California ONE month before our son was due in August 2008. My parents-in-law are recent converts to the Church but as they would not be able to fly out by us, we just asked my dad, a practicing Catholic, to be Godfather. A close relative who is not a practicing Catholic or practicing Christian, was hurt that we did not ask her to be Godmother, but that’s the way the cookie crumbles sometimes…

 

[kevinsgirl]

First let’s get terms clear.

Godparents are always Catholic. You only need one.

With a godparent (remember, always a Catholic) you may have a Christian witness – that is a non-Catholic who has been baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. That mean some people are automatically excluded even if they identify themselves as Christian (Mormons, Salvation Army, many Pentecostals, etc).

While in the ceremony itself you will not see a differentiation between the godparent and the Christian witness, rest assured that the Church sees a great difference. The CW has no role except to be a witness of the Baptism and to testify to it having taken place if the need should ever arise. The godparent, OTOH, should be aiding the parents in their duty to raise the child Catholic.

If you want to call that Christian witness a godparent within the family is up to you.

Much better explanation here than I gave–I meant Christian witness for the non-Catholic but baptized other person.