Choosing the Godparent

      Parents must exercise the greatest care in the selection of Godparents for their children. Certainly they will never select atheists or agnostics, or persons who are lukewarm toward the Church. The Godparent must bring godliness and holiness to the child. Godparents are parents representing God or parents on God's behalf. Jesus loved to have children come to Him. The Gospels tell of one such incident: "Some people brought their babies to have Jesus place His hands on them. The disciples saw them and scolded them for doing so. Jesus called the children to Him and said, 'Let the children come to me! Do not forbid them, because the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these'" (Matthew 19:13-14).

     The faith of the Godparent is significant. The person who confesses Jesus Christ as His Lord cannot ignore and violate in word and deed this faith. How can he promise God that he will make certain that the child will grow to be a true follower of Christ, when he himself lives a life of unbelief and disobedience!

     It goes without saying that the Godparent cannot be a non-Orthodox person. How could someone who is not Orthodox provide the proper religious education, example and inspiration to his Godchild? It should be noted that an Orthodox who has not had his marriage blessed in the Orthodox Church is also excluded from exercising the privilege of serving as a sponsor. The Church also cautions us to select a person who has reached the age of reason and moral responsibility (at least 12 years of age).