Emergency Baptism

For Notes, see here.

The following form is sufficient.

The minister pours water on the person to be baptized, saying

N, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

All   Amen.

The minister may then say the Lord’s Prayer and the Grace or a blessing.

If it is appropriate, some of the following may also be used.

Before the Baptism

Jesus says: I have come that you may have life

and have it in all its fullness.

John 10.10

All that the Father gives me will come to me;

and whoever comes to me I will not turn away.

John 6.37

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted

and will save those who are crushed in spirit.

Psalm 34.18

Heavenly Father,

grant that by your Holy Spirit

this child may be born again

and know your love in the new creation

given us in Jesus Christ our Lord.

All   Amen.

At the Signing with the Cross

N, may Christ protect and defend you.

Receive the sign of his cross.

Prayer over the Water

Heavenly Father,

bless this water,

that whoever is washed in it

may be made one with Christ

in the fellowship of your Church,

and be brought through every tribulation

to share the risen life

that is ours in Jesus Christ our Lord.

All   Amen.

After the Baptism

As our Saviour taught us, so we pray

All   Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins

as we forgive those who sin against us.

Lead us not into temptation

but deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power,

and the glory are yours

now and for ever.

Amen.

(or)

Let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us

All   Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name;

thy kingdom come;

thy will be done;

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation;

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom,

the power and the glory,

for ever and ever.

Amen.

Eternal God, our beginning and our end,

preserve in your people the new life of baptism;

as Christ receives us on earth,

so may he guide us through the trials of this world,

and enfold us in the joy of heaven,

where you live and reign,

one God for ever and ever.

All   Amen.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,

and the love of God,

and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit

be with us all evermore.

All   Amen.

(or)

May God almighty,

the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,

bless and keep you this day and for evermore.

All   Amen.

Notes

1  In an emergency, a lay person may be the minister of baptism, and should subsequently inform those who have the pastoral responsibility for the person so baptized.

2  Parents are responsible for requesting emergency baptism for an infant. They should be assured that questions of ultimate salvation or of the provision of a Christian funeral for an infant who dies do not depend upon whether or not the child has been baptized.

3  Before baptizing, the minister should ask the name of the person to be baptized. When, through the absence of parents or for some other reason, there is uncertainty as to the name of the person, the baptism can be properly administered without a name (so long as the identity of the person baptized can be duly recorded).

Service in Church

4  If the person lives, they shall afterwards come to church, or be brought to church, and the service for Holy Baptism followed, except that the Signing with the Cross, the Prayer over the Water and the Baptism are omitted.

5  It may be appropriate to use the prayer of thanksgiving for a child from Common Worship: Initiation Services or the President’s edition of Common Worship (page 50).

6  At the Presentation the president says

We welcome N, who has been baptized and now comes to take his/her place in the company of God’s people.

7  Oil mixed with fragrant spices (traditionally called chrism), expressing the blessings of the messianic era and the richness of the Holy Spirit, may be used to accompany the prayer after the baptism. It is appropriate that the oil should have been consecrated by the bishop.

Common Worship: Pastoral Services, material from which is included here,
is copyright © The Archbishops' Council 2000, 2005 and published by Church House Publishing.

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