Baptisms at St Mary and All Saints
Baptism marks the start of a journey of faith, which involves becoming a member of the local and worldwide Christian family.
As a parent of a child being baptised, you are thanking God for the gift of your child’s life and making a decision to start him or her on the journey of faith with the support of the Church.
We baptise many children and adults at St Mary’s and hope that these answers to questions will help you decide whether or not to bring your own child to baptism.
What's the difference between a baptism and christening?
Nothing! They are simply two words for the same event.
If I live in Beaconsfield, can I get my child baptised at St Mary’s?
Probably. If you live in the parish of Beaconsfield, your child can be baptised in any of the three Church of England churches in Beaconsfield – St Mary’s, St Michael’s, or St Thomas’s. Each of the three is very different – why not look at each one to decide which suits you best?
Do I have to come to church to have my child baptised?
It is not a legal requirement. However, you are promising to bring your child up in the faith of God, and sometimes we need the support of other Christians to do that – why not find out how the church can support you in that journey?
Can my child be baptised privately, or does it have to be in a main service with the normal congregation present?
We baptise children twice a month – once at 10am in the Family Service with the rest of the congregation and once at 12 noon on the 3rd Sunday of the month. A child is baptised in the family of the church so it is good to have the rest of the church there to welcome them into God’s family.
Will the baptism take place on its own, or will there be other families having their children baptised too?
Because of the number of requests for baptism that we have, normally there are two or three other families having children baptised at once. The increased numbers of people only adds to the sense of celebration! Occasionally, there is only one child being baptised, but we can never guarantee this.
If you need a hall to hire for the celebration after the baptism, why not think about using the Fitzwilliams Centre?
For more information, contact or telephone the parish office on 01494 676690.