Baptism Requirements
Initiation into the Christian Life
What is a Sponsor?
To be baptized, you need a sponsor. A sponsor helps you to live the Christian life and grow into it. There are several requirements for sponsors:
- Is practicing Roman Catholic
- Is 16 years or older
- Has received baptism, confirmation, and first communion in the Catholic Church
- Attends Mass every Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation
- Goes to confession regularly
- Is not the parent of the person to be baptized
Baptism Preparation Process
To be baptized, you must make an appointment with one of our priests to discuss the sacarment and your readiness to receive it. Before making an appointment, you should gather a few documents.
How does Our Lady of the Hills track Mass attendance of parishioners?
Mass attendance is tracked by either weekly online giving or by envelopes dropped in the collection basket during Mass. If a parishioner is not in a financial position to be able to give weekly, he can mark his Mass attendance by dropping an empty envelope in the collection basket at Mass. To request envelopes, contact the office.
If the sponsor is not a parishioner of Our Lady of the Hills:
We need:
- A letter of good standing from the sponsor's parish stating that he fulfills the above-mentioned requirements for a sponsor (see the section "What is a Sponsor?").
- A baptismal certificate of the sponsor with notations for other sacraments received.
If the sponsor is a new parishioner of Our Lady of the Hills:
A new parishioner is defined as someone who has been registered in the last 6 months.
For new parishioners, we need:
- Record of 6 months of weekly Mass attendance (see the section "How does Our Lady of the Hills track Mass attendance of parishioners?").
- A baptismal certificate of the sponsor with notations for other sacraments received.
If the sponsor is an established parishioner of Our Lady of the Hills:
An established parishioner is defined as someone who has been registered for more than 6 months.
For established parishioners, we need:
- Record of 3 months of weekly Mass attendance.
- A baptismal certificate of the sponsor with notations for other sacraments received.
Questions?
If you have questions regarding the requirements for baptism, please contact the office.
Ready to talk to a priest?
Once you have the above documents for your sponsor, please set up an appointment with one of our priests to discuss the sacrament and your readiness to receive it.
Because appointments with our priests are taken quickly, we recommend calling the office to set up an appointment, but if you are responsive to your email, can try setting up an appointment by communicating over email.
If so, tell us that you are requesting baptism and some times in which you could meet with our priests. Please confirm any avaialbility we give you as soon as possible so that someone else doesn't reserve that appointment slot in the meantime.