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Brian
Kelso
wrote:
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Hi, guys —
My due date for my baby is October 26, 2010.
I want my seventeen year old nephew to be
the godfather but he never made his Confirmation.
- I was wondering does he have to make it
and, if so, how long would it take him?
I want to get the baby baptized ASAP so any
information would be great.
Thank you,
Brian
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Does
my 17-year-old nephew have to make his Confirmation
to be a Godfather for our new baby? }
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John
replied:
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Hi, Brian —
Thanks for your question.
I'm not sure if he needs to be confirmed,
but if he does, he needs to go through
an RCIA program. Typically they start
in September and he would be confirmed
in the Spring.
All that said, I would ask you to consider:
- Why you would want someone that young
who is not properly catechized or
confirmed to take on the responsibility
of bringing up your child as a Catholic,
should something happen to you?
Picking a Godparent is not about
making a relative feel good or about
picking a close friend.
It's about picking someone who:
- is well
versed in the faith
- is living the faith
- is interested in sharing the
faith, and
- is capable of :
- transmitting the
faith to a child in the absence
of parents, and
- helping the parents
to do so in their presence.
Baptism and Confirmation are sacraments;
they aren't just ceremonies. Spiritual
things actually happen. Those who
participate in them should do so
knowing what they are getting themselves
into. By asking the Church to baptize
your child, you are making a commitment
to bring the child up as a practicing
Catholic. That includes picking a
godfather who also:
- knows what is happening at the
Sacrament
- believes what is happening, and
- is capable of bringing up
a child in the faith.
Typically a 17-year-old is not capable of doing this,
let alone, one who has not been confirmed.
John
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Eric
replied:
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Hi, Brian —
Yes, a godparent must be confirmed; Canon 874 §1.3:
Part 1: The Sacraments
Title 1: Baptism
Chapter IV. Sponsors for Baptism.
Canon 874
§1. To be permitted
to take on the function of sponsor
a person must:
1. be designated by the one
to be baptized, by the parents
or the person who takes their
place, or in their absence
by the pastor or minister and
have the aptitude and intention
of fulfilling this function;
2. have completed the sixteenth
year of age, unless the diocesan
bishop has established another
age, or the pastor or minister
has granted an exception for
a just cause;
3. be a Catholic who has been
confirmed and has already received
the most holy sacrament of
the Eucharist and who leads
a life of faith in keeping
with the function to be taken
on;
4. not be bound by any canonical
penalty legitimately imposed
or declared;
5. not be the father or mother
of the one to be baptized.
§2. A baptized person who
belongs to a non-Catholic ecclesial
community is not to participate
except together with a Catholic
sponsor and then only as a witness
of the baptism. |
Eric
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