Baptisms/Christenings

At St. Matthew’s we welcome those who would like to celebrate the birth of their baby with a service of baptism (christening) or thanksgiving. Baptism involves parents and godparents making a number of declarations about their own Christian faith and their intention to bring up the child in that faith. Some parents choose a thanksgiving service to celebrate the birth instead of baptism because they prefer not to make such promises at this point in their lives.

Baptisms and thanksgivings normally take place in one of our 10:30am services. We prefer not to arrange for baptisms to take place at other times, because baptism is all about joining God’s family. There are no fees for baptisms, although donations are welcome. A card certifying the baptism is given to the parents.

If you would like to enquire about having a service of baptism or thanksgiving please contact James, our vicar via james.elburtonchurch@gmail.com. You will need to visit us on a Sunday morning and discuss how you found it with James before any possible dates can be discussed.

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Weddings

Many people like to mark their intention for lifelong commitment to each other in the public ceremony of marriage, or a service of dedication after a civil marriage. We are pleased to support people in this, before, during and after the big day. The website yourchurchwedding.org answers most frequently-asked questions, such as ‘can I get married at this church?’ and ‘how much will it cost?’

Because of the solemn promises made in a wedding, we do require all couples to be willing to undergo some formal preparation, even if they’re already living together. (We currently use material from themarriagecourse.org.)

Regarding re-marriage, James, our vicar, holds to the traditional teaching of the Church of England, and does not feel able to marry those who have a former marriage partner still living. In some such cases, it may be possible for another minister to conduct such a services at St Matthew’s. If you would like to discuss this matter further, then please contact James directly. For other enquiries about weddings, please email elburtonchurch@gmail.com.

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Funerals

If you would like to hold a funeral at St. Matthew’s, or you would like one of our clergy to officiate at a crematorium or graveside service, please tell your funeral director who will then contact us to check our availability. If we have been asked to lead a service, the minister appointed will then arrange to visit those who have been bereaved to discuss the service together with them.