Baptism is a public declaration of your faith in Jesus Christ. It is a symbolic act that represents your death to your old, sinful life and your resurrection to a new life in Christ. It’s a way of saying to the world, “I have chosen to follow Jesus.”

In our tradition, adult baptism is done by full immersion in water, which physically represents being buried with Christ and rising again with Him. It’s an act of obedience to Jesus’ command and a picture of the spiritual transformation that has already taken place in your heart.

We welcome all those new to faith, whatever the age to be baptised.

Do you have any questions? Interested? Please email paddy.donovan@chanctonbury.org.uk

Infant Baptism and Thanksgiving

Maybe you are thinking of baptising (Christening) your infant? We believe that this a way to welcome this child into the Christian community. Parents and godparents will speak on the child’s behalf, making promises to raise the child in the Christian faith. Although normally not by full immersion, the water in this context symbolises God’s grace and commitment to the child.

You might decide that a dedication is a more suitable option for your child. In this service the parents publicly dedicate their child to God and commit to raising them in a home that honours Jesus. The church community, in turn, commits to supporting and praying for the child and family. When the child is old enough to understand and make a personal decision for Christ, they will then be baptised.

We warmly congratulate you if you have recently welcomed a precious one to the world! Like many people at this wonderful stage of life, you may be looking for a way to thank God for giving you such an amazing gift, and start them on an amazing journey of faith. Over the years it is a journey you will share with your child by praying for them, teaching them more about the Christian faith and helping them to make Godly choices in their life.

Here at Chanctonbury Church, we count it as a privilege to offer you the opportunity to do just that, by Baptism or Dedication of a child during one of our Sunday services, as part of our corporate worship as a church family.

We would encourage you to come along and introduce yourself by joining us on a Sunday morning at one of our services and we can start to explore this with you. You can also fill out the form below to let us know your interest.

On a practical note, we generally baptise children using a font, but offer the opportunity for full immersion in our baptism pool several times a year for those who would like to renew their baptism vows or to be baptised for the first time. Please complete the form below if you would like to find out more about this.

We look forward to seeing you!

Adult Baptism and Confirmation

If you are a teenager or adult, and you have put your whole trust in Jesus, we would love to explore with you what it means and what is involved in being baptised.

If you are already baptised, being confirmed is an important next stage in the Christian faith. It is a moment to confirm your baptismal vows, to confirm your participation in church life – and for the Bishop to confirm to the whole community that your faith is real!

We usually have an opportunity for confirmation once a year – do get in touch by filling out the form below for the latest information.