Monthly Baptism preparation programs in the Waterloo parishes are designed to help parents and Godparents understand and celebrate the baptism of infants and children in a meaningful and intentional way. More importantly, they are designed to help parents and Godparents more deeply understand and fulfill their responsibility for the faith formation of infants and children.
The preparation focuses on two critical questions:
• Why do I want to have my child/Godchild baptized?
• What difference do I believe baptism will make in their lives?
At the conclusion of the preparation, parents and Godparents are asked to address these questions by writing a letter to their child.
The preparation discussion includes the following components:
This component invites parents and Godparents to examine the role which faith has or hasn't played in their own lives. Couples are invited to share these insights with each other, and with the group if they are comfortable.
> The discussion is designed to help parents appreciate how faith addresses the mysteries in life which cannot be adequately explained by human knowledge or science alone -- what St. Paul calls "the assurance of what we hope for and the conviction of things not seen." These convictions, shaped and defined by the experience of the faith community, Scripture and church Tradition, help us identify fundamental values which guide how we live our lives. (See more here.)
This component examines how sacraments "work" in our lives as Catholic Christians.
> The discussion is designed to help parents appreciate how sacramental rituals acknowledge and validate real-life experiences which shape who we are and guide how we live our lives. Real experience, shaped by our participation in faith communities like the family and church, prepare individuals to live intentionally as disciples of Jesus; they depend first of all on the real-life experience, but also on an awareness of that experience, which is expressed by the individual (or parents) and the faith community in the sacramental ritual.
This component helps parents appreciate how they are responsible for the real-life experience which shapes a child's life, preparing them to live as disciples of Jesus Christ. Parents are asked to identify the characteristics of Jesus which identify the nature of the God incarnate in his person.
> The discussion is designed to help parents appreciate the primary responsibility they have to create a family environment in which their child experiences the Incarnate Jesus. Because they have both the ability and responsibility to do this, the church acknowledges them as the "first witnesses" or "first heralds" of faith to their child. (See more here and here.)
Parents fulfill this responsibility by first of all being good parents, whose natural role reflects the qualities of the nurturing God revealed to us in Jesus' life, death and resurrection. Later catechesis builds on this essential, fundamental experience.
Parents and Godparents are invited to identify which of these characteristics come most naturally to themselves or their partners, and who else they will depend upon to model these values for their child--family members, Godparents, and the broader faith community.
The final component of the preparation process explains how and when the parishes celebrate the Baptism of infants and children, expectations of the parents and Godparents, and how to schedule a Baptism in the parish where they participate.
> Parents are invited to accept and sign a "Baptism Covenant" (here) which outlines the mutual responsibilities and expectations of parents and parish in the faith formation of their child.
> See our principles for adult formation opportunities here.
Related Links
• Family Faith Environment Inventory
• How Parents Nurture Children's Faith
• Parent's Guide to Children's Religious Formation
• What Parents Should Know About Children's Faith
• What Children Should Understand About Their Faith (Age-Level Guidelines)
• Catholic Parent's Guide to Formation in Human Sexuality (Age-Level Guidelines)
• Information for Parents on this website
[Last Update: 03.24.21]