Baptism Guidelines
In the Order for Holy Baptism, the Pastor addresses parents and spouses of young children to be baptized: “In Christian love you have presented these children for Holy Baptism. You should, therefore, faithfully bring them to the services of God’s house, and teach them the Lord’s Prayer, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments. As they grow in years, you should place in their hands the Holy Scriptures and provide for their instruction in the Christian faith, that living in the covenant of their Baptism and in communion with the Church, they may lead godly lives until the day of Jesus Christ. Do you promise to fulfill these obligations? (Response:)
“ I Do” (Lutheran Book of Worship, page 121)
To assist parents in fulfilling these obligations, St. John’s Lutheran Church adopts the following guidelines by the authority of the church council.
1. When an infant or child is baptized, one or both parents shall be voting members of this congregation, or shall be in the process of becoming so. In the absense of such membership or pending membership, the pastor in consultation with the parents will appoint sponsors who are members in good standing.
2. Except in cases of dire emergency, all baptisms in this parish will take place within a worship service involving the gathered congregation. A private baptism occurs only in emergency, and requires a public affirmation of the baptism at a congregational worship service as soon thereafter as possible, with the newly baptized, parents, and/or sponsors present.
3. Adult baptism will be preceded by a period of instruction provided by the pastor, involving as many as six 2-hour sessions. Infant baptisms will be preceded by at least one instructional session for both parents, provided by the pastor.
4. If parents of an infant child to be baptized do not reside within reasonable distance of the parish, the pastor will encourage them to join a congregation close to their residence and have their child baptized there. Should the parent(s) persist, and meet guideline no. 1 above, the pastor shall include a letter of transfer for the newly baptized and the parent(s) with the certificate of baptism, enabling the parent(s) to transfer the membership and thereby reasonably fulfill the promises they made on the child’s behalf during the baptismal liturgy.
5. Baptisms shall normally be scheduled for the third Sunday of a month. The pastor may deny a particular day on practical grounds, such as conflicting observances or his own absence from the parish for vacation or church business.
6. Exceptions to the above guidelines may occur at the discretion of the pastor and with approval of Worship Team/church council.
