Secular Baby Naming Ceremonies- a very real and extremely welcome alternative.
So, I'm going to drag my soapbox out on this one. On this topic, I speak from a wealth of personal experience...I've played along with the rollercoaster parenting game for over 22 years.
My family has strong Christian faith. We are all believers and as regular Churchgoers as we can be. We have been blessed with 4 fabulous children and were keen to arrange for them each to be baptised soon after their births. I felt completely comfortable with their Christening ceremonies since that marries up personally with my beliefs. Godparents were approached after careful consideration. We took care to ensure that each had clear underlying faith and considered respect for Christianity at least. They were asked to make some fairly heavy-duty promises on behalf of our tiny treasures and we didn't want them to feel in any way uncomfortable with this.
So for us, a Christian Baptism was the most appropriate way to welcome our children into the community and into the Church family.
We also attended Christenings for the babies of friends. These lovely folk would describe themselves as basically not religious but wanted a way to celebrate their new arrival with the same joy and excitement that we did. They found their local church, met the vicar and made the same promises that we did on behalf of their treasures. However, they were naming their child before a God that they didn't believe in and welcoming their baby into a church that they didn't belong to...the line that struck me in each ceremony was 'welcoming the world's newest Christian'. This didn't sit comfortably witha lot of them. They selected Godparents that they wanted to play a significant role in their baby's life...but discovered that the role of a Godparent in a Christian ceremony involves making very solemn and serious promises and commitments on behalf of a small poppet rather than just the great cute photo opportunities they had imagined.
Others accepted that they were not believers so would not be holding a welcome celebration for their new arrival. They admit, even many years later, that they wished they could have had some kind of party or ritual to welcome their much longed-for babies into their family and community, sharing their joy and delight at their newest addition and making special memories.
So, in training to be a Celebrant, I absolutely loved investigating the options for secular Naming Ceremonies. Through devising a highly personalised unique ceremony, I could work with new (and not so new!) parents to create the celebratory welcome to their family that they craved whilst avoiding the specifics of promising a life ahead in a faith that they did not themselves subscribe to.
Godparents, freed from the traditional Christian roles and responses, are empowered to make personal pledges and promises to the child. We have had nominated Supporters commit to taking the child on the scary rollercoasters in place of their nervous parents. One adult wished to be known as a Moral Compass, playing a key role in the baby's life as they grew and pledging to guide their path and help them in maing their choices to become the best version of themselves. A third read extracts from their own favourite children's book and promised to share their love of reading with their young friend throughout their life. All of these significant adults have gone on to play valued and treasured parts in the lives of the young ones to whom they made those early, secular promises.
As always with my ceremonies, the only limit is your imagination and I can suggest bright ideas aplenty. In removing the religious element, your precious treasure can be welcomed in exactly the way you would like, sending them off into the world surrounded by the love of the community and the universe. Some will, of course, still be keen to enjoy a traditional Christian Baptism. But it's great to have the option of a Celebrant-led Naming Ceremony. It's a great alternative...and certainly food for thought...
It's a Celebrant Thing...
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