By Jenna Marie Cooper
OSV News Question Corner
Question: I wanted my aunt and uncle to be godparents for my new baby. Both my aunt and uncle went through 12 years of Catholic school. But the priest told us my uncle couldn't be godfather to my baby because he never received confirmation. This doesn't make sense to me because I'm sure my uncle knows the faith well. Couldn't he at least be part of the baptism as a Christian witness? (Winona, Minnesota)
Answer: Even while it might be disappointing for you in this instance, canon law does require that godparents be baptized and confirmed Catholics. Every priest is to obtain a currently issued certificate of baptism with all notations of other sacraments received in order to ensure that a person has been fully initiated in the Catholic faith before receiving certain sacraments or being appointed to serve in certain capacities in the Church.
For reference, canon 872 of the Code of Canon Law describes the role of a baptismal sponsor: "Insofar as possible, a person to be baptized is to be given a sponsor who assists an adult in Christian initiation or together with the parents presents an infant for baptism. A sponsor also helps the baptized person to lead a Christian life in keeping with baptism and to fulfill faithfully the obligations inherent in it." As noted, having a sponsor is not a requirement, though is desirable to assist in faith formation.
We often call baptismal sponsors for infants (i.e. below the age of seven) "godparents," as their role is to assist the parents in raising their children in the Catholic faith. Although this is not explicitly stated in our current canon law, a traditional understanding was that godparents would take over responsibility for their godchild's Catholic religious education if something happened to the parents that left them unable to attend to this themselves. Perhaps due to the custom of godparents serving as sort of "backup parents" specifically as far as faith formation is concerned, canon 873 allows for the possibility of two godparents, one female godmother and one male godfather, even though one godparent alone is fine.
Canon 874, Paragraph 1 lists the necessary qualifications of a godparent, including among other things that he or she is at least 16 years old (unless the local bishop has decided otherwise) and is someone other than the child's parents.
This same section also indicates that a prospective godparent must be someone who can serve as a good Catholic role model, noting that he or she cannot be "bound by any canonical penalty" and must "have the aptitude" for fulfilling the role of a godparent. But more significantly to your question here, canon 874 directly states that a godparent must "be a Catholic who has been confirmed and has already received the most holy sacrament of the Eucharist and who leads a life of faith in keeping with the function to be taken on." That one’s lifestyle is in harmony with Church teaching is important as a witness of the faith as well.
Logically, this does make sense. It would be difficult to guide anyone else through the process of Catholic initiation if you are not fully initiated yourself; and similarly, a godparent needs to love and actively practice the faith if he or she is going to hand it on effectively. While intellectual knowledge of Catholic teaching (such as the kind imparted by religion classes in Catholic schools) is important, ultimately it cannot be a substitute for the lived experience and expression of the faith.
Canon 874, Paragraph 2 does mention the possibility of a non-Catholic Christian serving as a formal "witness" to the baptism in conjunction with a Catholic godparent. But this is not an option for a baptized Catholic, even if the Catholic has not yet been confirmed. A non-Catholic witness does not take the place of a fully-initiated Catholic sponsor.
Of course, it is not possible to give specific advice based on limited second-hand information. Your uncle should begin preparation to receive the sacrament of Confirmation so that he becomes a fully initiated Catholic; this is not done simply to be a godparent but so that he receives the grace of the sacrament.
Many dioceses have sacramental preparation programs specifically designed for Catholic adults who missed Confirmation in their youth and are now seeking the sacrament.
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Jenna Marie Cooper, who holds a licentiate in canon law, is a consecrated virgin and a canonist whose column appears weekly at OSV News. Send your questions to [email protected].