Parents who wish to baptize their child may have many questions regarding the rules for performing the ordinance. One of the most common questions is at what age a child can do this.
According to Orthodox rules, a child must be baptized in church on the fortieth day after birth. But few people who want to christen their baby adhere to the rules exactly. Basically, the decision about the time of baptism is made by the family based on their own notions of convenience.
Why choose a specific day for baptism
Those wishing to christen a child in the summer motivate the decision by the fact that in warm weather after bathing the child will not catch a cold. Sometimes the date of baptism is tried to coincide with another event - for example, when a child is one year old. Someone wants to plan a baptism for the weekend, when most of the relatives will be able to attend the church. There are also such parents who simply do not want to baptize a child in infancy.
Parents can independently choose at what age they should baptize their child. In case of difficulties in the decision, you can always simply consult with the priest.
There are no clearly defined rules in this matter. As for the fortieth day after birth, this is completely optional - you can baptize sooner or later, no matter how old the child is. You just should not postpone baptism, if a decision has already been made about it, unless absolutely necessary for a long time.
At baptism, before forty days have passed since the birth of the baby, there is one caveat - mothers are not always allowed to be present at the baptism of their own child. Some priests may insist that a woman not go to church - after giving birth, she has not yet had time to cleanse herself.
At what age can a child be christened
It is possible to baptize a child, starting from birth - in special cases for which there is a special prayer of Baptism of fear for the sake of a mortal. You can read this prayer over a child in danger yourself by sprinkling water on him - any will do. The sacrament thus accomplished will then need to be supplemented in the church.
It is possible to perform full baptism from the ninth day of life - this is not prohibited by the rules of the church, but priests may have their own point of view, so you should not rush at random into the first church that comes across.
It is believed that on the days of church holidays and on fasting, a child cannot be baptized. It is possible, but in the church it is necessary to agree on this in advance. It must be borne in mind that there are a lot of parishioners on holidays, and the child will feel better with a small number of people and a calm atmosphere during the sacrament of baptism.
It is believed that before baptism, a child does not have a Guardian Angel, and he is defenseless against any damage.
In any case, whenever you want to baptize a child, first you need to choose a church and talk to the priest. This can be done by parents, and someone from the family, and those who will be godparents. After the conversation, you will be given a memo, where it is written what you need to take with you for the ceremony, how to prepare your godfather and godmother.
