A church dictionary

by Walter Farquhar Hook

The next part of the preparation concerns the godfathers or sureties, who are, 1. encouraged in the gospel and its application, with the thanksgiving; 2. instructed in the preface before the covenant; 3. engaged in the questions and answers. The Jews had sureties at circumcision, who promised for the child till it came to age (Isaiah viii. 2); and the primitive Christians had sponsors to engage for such as were baptized, and since children cannot make a covenant themselves, it is charity to appoint (as the laws of men do) others to do it for them till they be of age; and this gives security to the Church, the child shall not be an apostate; provides a monitor both for the child and its parents, to mind them of this vow, and keep the memory of this new birth, by giving the child new and spiritual relations of godfathers and godmothers. Now to these the priest next addresseth, 1. in the Gospel (Mark x. 13–16); which shows how the Jews, believing that Christ’s blessing would be very beneficial to young children, brought them to him in their arms, and when the disciples checked them, Christ first declares that infants, and such as were like them, had the only right to the kingdom of heaven, and therefore they had good right to his love and his blessing, and to all means which might bring them to it, and accordingly he took them in his arms and blessed them. After this follows the explication, and applying this gospel to the sureties; for if they doubt, here they may see Christ’s love to infants, and their right to heaven and to this means, so that they may firmly believe he will pardon and sanctify this child, and grant it a title to his kingdom; and that he is well pleased with them, for bringing this child to his holy baptism; for he desires this infant, as well as we all, may come to know and believe in him. Wherefore, thirdly, here is a thanksgiving to be offered up by all, beginning with praising God for calling us into his Church, where we may know him and obtain the grace to believe, it being very proper for us to bless God for our being Christians, when a new Christian is to be made; and then follows a prayer, that we who are Christians may grow in grace, and that this infant may receive the Spirit in order to its regeneration and salvation. After which form of devotion, fourthly, there is a preface to the covenant, wherein the godfathers and godmothers are put in mind, first, what hath been done already, namely, they have brought the child to Christ, and begged of him in the collects to accept it, and Christ hath showed them in the Gospel that the child is capable to receive, and he willing to give it, salvation and the means thereof, upon the conditions required of all Christians, that is, repentance, faith, and new obedience. Secondly, therefore, they are required to engage in the name of this child, till it come of age, that it shall perform these conditions required on its part, that it may have a title to that which Christ doth promise, and will certainly perform on his part. Fifthly, the engagement itself follows, which is very necessary, since baptism is a mutual covenant between God and man, and therefore, in the beginning of Christianity, (when the Church consisted chiefly of such as were converted from the Jews and Heathens, after they came to age,) the parties baptized answered these very same questions, and entered into these very engagements, for themselves; which infants (who need the benefits of baptism as much as any) not being able to do, the Church lends them the feet of others to bring them, and the tongues of others to promise for them; and the priest stands in God’s stead to take this security in his name; he “demands,” therefore, of the sureties, first, if they in the name and stead of this child will renounce all sinful compliances with the devil, the world, and the flesh, which tempt us to all kinds of sin, and so are God’s enemies, and ours also, in so high a measure, that unless we vow never to follow and be led by them, we cannot be received into league and friendship with God: to this they reply in the singular number, as if the child spake by them, “I renounce them all.” Secondly, as Philip asked the eunuch if he did believe before he baptized him, (Acts viii. 37,) so the priest asks if they believe all the articles of the Christian faith, into which religion they are now to be entered; and therefore they must engage to hold all the fundamental principles thereof, revealed in Scripture and comprised in the Apostles’ Creed; and they are to answer, “All this I stedfastly believe.” Thirdly, that it may appear to be their own free act to admit themselves into this holy religion, they are asked if they will be baptized into this faith, and they answer, “That is my desire;” for who would not desire to be a child of God, a member of Christ, and an heir of heaven? But since these benefits of baptism are promised only to them who live holily, fourthly, it is demanded if they will keep God’s holy will and commandments as long as they live, since they now take Christ for their Lord and Master, and list themselves under his banner, and receive his grace in this sacrament, to renew and strengthen them to keep this vow? Upon these accounts they promise “they will” keep God’s commandments. And now the covenant is made between God and this infant, he hath promised it pardon, grace, and glory, and is willing to adopt it for his own child: and this child, by its sureties, hath engaged to forsake all evil ways, to believe all truth, and to practise all kind of virtue.—Dean Comber.

BAPTISM, REGISTRATION OF. When the minister has baptized the child he has a further duty to perform, in making an entry thereof in the parish register, which is a book in which formerly all christenings, marriages, and burials were recorded, and the use of which is enforced both by the canon law and by the statute.

The keeping of parochial registries of baptism, and also of burial, are, so far as regards the duties of clergymen in that respect, regulated by the statute 52 Geo. III. c. 146, whereby it is enacted that registers of public and private baptisms, marriages, and burials, solemnized according to the rites of our Church, shall be made and kept by the rector or other the officiating minister of every parish or chapelry, on books of parchment, or durable paper, to be provided by the king’s printer, at the expense of the parishes; and the particular form of the book, and of the manner of making the entries, are directed according to a form in the schedule to the act.

The register book is to be deemed the property of the parish; the custody of it is to be in the rector or other officiating minister, by whom it is to be kept in an iron chest provided by the parish, either in his own house, if he resides in the parish, or in the church, and the book is to be taken from the chest only for the purpose of making entries, being produced when necessary in evidence, or for some of the purposes mentioned in the act.

The act 6 & 7 W. IV., called the General Registration Act, provides that nothing therein contained shall affect the registration of baptisms or burials, as now by law established; so that whatever any parishioner, incumbent, or curate had respectively a right to insist upon, with regard to the regulation of baptisms, may be equally insisted upon by either party now. There are, however, enactments of 6 & 7 W. IV. c. 86, which are to be observed in addition to those of 52 Geo. III. c. 146.

If any child born in England, whose birth shall have been registered according to the provisions of 6 & 7 W. IV. c. 86, shall, within six calendar months after it has been so registered, have any name given to it in baptism, the parents or persons so procuring such name to be given may, within seven days afterwards, procure and deliver to the registrar a certificate according to a prescribed form, signed by the minister who shall have performed the rite of baptism, which certificate the minister is required to deliver immediately after the baptism, whenever it shall then be demanded, on payment of the fee of 1s., which he shall be entitled to receive for the same; and the registrar, or superintendant registrar, upon the receipt of that certificate, and upon payment of a fee of 1s., shall, without any erasure of the original entry, forthwith register that the child was baptized by such a name; and such registrar, or superintendant registrar, shall thereupon certify upon the certificate the additional entry so made, and forthwith send the certificate through the post to the registrar-general. Every rector, &c., and every registrar, &c., who shall have the keeping for the time being of any register book, shall, at all reasonable times, allow searches to be made, and shall give a copy certified under his hand of any entry or entries in the same, upon payment of a fee of 1s., for every search extending over a period of not more than one year, and 6d. additional for every half year, and 2s. 6d. for every single certificate.

BAPTISTERY. Properly a separate, or special, building for the administration of holy baptism. In this sense, a baptistery, originally intended and used for the purpose, does not occur in England; for that which is called the baptistery at Canterbury, and contains the font, was never so called, or so furnished, till the last century. The remains of an ancient baptistery chapel have lately been discovered in Ely cathedral; and the chapel is now in the course of restoration.

One of the most ancient baptisteries now existing is that of St. John Lateran at Rome, erected by Constantine. It is a detached building, and octagonal. In the centre is a large font of green basalt, into which the persons to be baptized descended by the four steps which still remain. It has two side chapels or exedræ. (See Eustace, Classical Tour in Italy.)

Detached baptisteries still exist in many cities in Italy: the most famous are those at Florence and Pisa. These served for the whole city; anciently no town churches but the cathedral church having fonts. (See Bingham, book viii. ch. 7, § 6.)

Sometimes the canopy to the font grows to so great amplitude as to be supported by its own pillars, and to receive persons within it at the baptismal service, and then it may be called a baptistery. This is the case at Trunch and at Aylsham, both in Norfolk. (See Font.)