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Two things occur in Baptism. First, God through the Holy Spirit makes a person a new creation. In spiritual terms, he or she is born again. Baptism acknowledges the person as a child of God. At baptism person becomes a member of the Christian church. Baptism is the initiation rite of the church. We welcome all who seek baptism into God's church. To enquire further about baptism of adults or children:
Consider the information on this page.
Consider who you might ask to be sponsors or Godparents.
Contact a member of the clergy team to discuss baptism.
Negotiate times and dates with the clergy.
Print the form available here.Complete it and forward it Holy Trinity. Only when we process the form can we book the time & date.
Arrange a meeting with a member of the clergy team
Ensure that baptismal party (candidate and sponsors) are at the church 15 minutes before the service for orientation and rehearsal.
There is no fee for baptism but a donation of $100 is suggested.
Sponsors present persons to be baptised. In the case of a child or infant, the sponsors are the parents and godparents. Sponsors must be baptised members of church. They need to be well prepared to make an enthusiastic response reflecting their preparedness to support their child or godchild. The presentation is made in response to this invitation:
I invite the sponsors of these persons to present them for baptism.
We present names) to be baptised.
The Decision Adults choosing to be baptised are asked to affirm their decision by responding to a series of questions. In the case of infants, sponsors make this decision on their behalf:
Before God and this congregation, you must affirm that you turn to Christ and reject all that is evil:
Do you turn to Christ?
I turn to Christ.
Do you repent of your sins?
I repent of my sins.
Do you reject selfish living, and all that is false and unjust?
I reject them all.
Do you renounce Satan and all that is evil?
I renounce all that is evil.
The Symbols Baptism is one of the sacraments entrusted to the church. A sacrament consists of special words and symbols that signify the activity of God's grace in our lives. Grace is the unconditional and undeserved love that God offers us. Such love is a gift, we cannot earn or buy it, only accept it. The primary symbol of baptism is water. We need only think of the cleansing and life giving qualities of water to understand why it is a sign of God's life giving activity in baptism. The process of being immersed in the waters of baptism (we do this symbolically by pouring water on the person's forehead) is a participation in Jesus' death and resurrection. We share in Christ's crucifixion by going under the water and in his resurrection by coming out again. Water is poured over the person three times. The special words signifying baptism are:
Name, I baptise you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Several other important symbols help signify our welcoming of a person into the church. The sign of the cross, made with holy oil on the forehead, is an invisible 'badge' signifying taking up the cross of Christ. The holy oil signifies acknowledgement of Christ as king. The lighted candle signifies the resurrected Christ as the light of the world.
Welcoming Those Newly Baptised Following the giving of these symbols the baptised person is welcomed into the church, the place where Christians come to hear the scriptures, to pray, sing and enjoy each other’s fellowship and encouragement. The newly baptised person is welcomed with the words: God has called you into his Church:
We therefore receive and welcome you as a member with us of the body of Christ, as a child of the one heavenly Father, and as an inheritor of the kingdom of God.