Can a non Catholic be a God Parent to a child being Christened?

-- (mg_comm@hotmail.com), January 10, 2003

Answers

Yes, with some provisions.

-- jake (jake1@pngusa.net), January 10, 2003.

a non-Catholic can sometimes act as a Godparent, but only if there is a practising Catholic Godparent also. In the case of Confirmation the sponsor must be a practising Catholic. As the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation are closely linked it is encouraged that the sponsor of a person being Confirmed would be one of his/her Godparents if possible, and this should also be considered.

-- (caritas.christi@btopenworld.com), January 10, 2003.

While I agree with everything Caritas wrote, I would like to elaborate or qualify something she said. She said, “a non-Catholic can sometimes act as a Godparent, ...” This is only partly correct. The point I would like to clarify here is that the non-Catholic who stands as a witness must be a baptized Christian. A non-Christian is not permitted to stand as a sponsor or a witness. That is why the witness is most often referred to as a “Christian” witness. It may be worth also noting that a Catholic, not in good standing, cannot act in the capacity of a Christian witness. In other words, a Catholic can never be a “Christian” witness at a Catholic baptism, but rather must stand as a full-fledged sponsor, if he/she qualifies or not stand at all. (Any Catholic however is permitted by the Church, to be a “Christian” witness to a non-catholic baptism.) Additionally, catechumen cannot be sponsors at Catholic baptisms.

It is also useful to know that Godparents are designated for life and cannot be changed at a later date. Proxies are accepted for sponsors who cannot be physically present at the baptism. (continued...)

-- Ed Lauzon (grader@accglobal.net), January 11, 2003.

.Very recently, John Gecik posted a portion of Canon Law that dealt with this very subject in another thread. So, with John’s indulgence I shall re-post it here for everyone’s benefit: Canon 874 §§1 -- To be admitted to undertake the office of sponsor, a person must: 1°̊ be appointed by the candidate for baptism, or by the parents or whoever stands in their place, or failing these, by the parish priest or the minister; to be appointed the person must be suitable for this role and have the intention of fulfilling it; 2°̊ be not less than sixteen years of age, unless a different age has been stipulated by the diocesan bishop, or unless the parish priest or the minister considers that there is a just reason for an exception to be made; 3°̊ be a catholic who has been confirmed and has received the blessed Eucharist, and who lives a life of faith which befits the role to be undertaken; 4°̊ not labor under a canonical penalty, whether imposed or declared; 5°̊ not be either the father or the mother of the person to be baptized. §§2 A baptized person who belongs to a non-Catholic ecclesial community may be admitted only in company with a Catholic sponsor, and then simply as a witness to the baptism.

Sponsors for baptism in the Archdiocese of New York can be fourteen years of age or older. (Our Lady’s Guild Sacred Heart Church, Suffern, New York, have published this fact on the Internet). If this is correct, I am not quite sure how this came about. Maybe someone who is “in the know” and from this archdiocese could shed some light on this variance from the norms established by canon law.

-- Ed Lauzon (grader@accglobal.net), January 11, 2003.

Ed, you will always have my "indulgence." You honor me. JFG

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), January 11, 2003.

What a coincidence - the priest at Mass yesterday used the occasion of it being the Baptism of Our Lord to reiterate the Church's rules about baptism.

One of the things he stressed is that a godparent MUST be a practicing Catholic who has received all the sacraments of initiation (Baptism, Confirmation and First Communion). The reason for this is that the godparents are expected to take an active role in making sure the child is brought up as a Catholic.

-- Christine L. :-) (christine_lehman@hotmail.com), January 13, 2003.

Is it okay for a Catholic and a baptized Episcopalian to be godparents in a Catholic baptism?

-- V. Smith (prontoro@msn.com), February 13, 2003.

The Catholic, yes; the Episcopalian, no. (See post above for the reason.)

-- Christine L. :-) (christine_lehman@hotmail.com), February 13, 2003.

I guess let me rephrase that -- can the Catholic be a godparent and the baptized Episcopalian be a witness to the baptism but both stand with the parents and child for the baptism.

-- V. Smith (prontoro@msn.com), February 14, 2003.

Dear V. Smith,

YES!

-- Paul (PaulCyp@cox.net), February 14, 2003.