Baby Naming and God Parents

While Godparents have always been synonymous with a religious christening or baptism, the term God does not exclude spiritual beliefs which have nothing to do with a specific religion. People, like the poet Wordsworth, for example, saw God in the grandeur of nature, while the early Egyptians worshipped the Sun, as God personified.

However, for those people who do see God as part of established religion, and who would like to substitute another term for their baby’s naming ceremony, there are many substitutes which are just as suitable.

Some of the popular terms used are Guideparents, Guardparents, Mentors and Sponsors. And, no doubt, other names will pop up as the celebration becomes more widely used throughout the world. At the moment, Australia leads the field for the celebration of this particular occasion.

Whatever the term used, the role of the substitute Godparent remains the same. This is the person, or persons, who undertake to assume the responsibility of looking after the child in the even that something happens to the parents.

It is stressed that this is not a religious ceremony where the child is inducted into a specific religious community. A naming ceremony doesn’t preclude the possibility that the parents will choose to have the child christened or that the child will, later in life, choose to be christened or baptized into a particular religion.

A naming ceremony is seen as a welcoming ceremony into the community of its family members, family friends, and by extension, into the wider community of humanity.

Naming ceremony is just that – a naming. It’s a way of saying, ‘Welcome to the world. We’re happy to have you amongst us.’