Baptism
One of the great joys in life is the arrival of a new baby, either through birth or adoption. Most of us then want to gather our family and friends around to welcome the new baby. We all want to do the very best for our new baby and we want them to know that they are loved and belong.
Baptism is for many a great way to capture all of these feelings and desires. The Church has a passion to help people, especially little children, know they are loved by God. Baptism gives a depth to belonging that goes way beyond the immediate family to the whole people of God. As a celebration, baptism immerses us in the feasting of saints going back for millennia and looking forward to the great banquet of all God’s people.
Here in the Church of the Resurrection in the Anglican Parish of Aspley-Albany Creek we like to have three ‘workshops’ with people bringing their little ones for baptism. These workshops are designed to help us get to know the family and for the family to get to know some members of the local Church. We explore together the belief that God loves your little ones so much more than you can imagine. Ironically, even baptism won’t make God love them more. We understand baptism to bring us into the whole people of God and not merely the Anglican Church. We also reflect on the call to repentance which is central to Christian Baptism. What does it mean to say yes to Jesus and no to evil?
We prefer to have baptism in the context of our normal worship so that the whole congregation can welcome the new member. We encourage the family to join the congregation for a festive morning tea after the baptism.
We also encourage people to come along and participate in the life of the Church, its worship and fellowship before the baptism and we trust they will want to continue after the baptism.
Naming Ceremonies
Some people come with many of the same feelings and desires of those bring children for baptism but feel they are not ready to make the promises included in the baptism service. A lovely alternative is to celebrate the life of the child with a Naming Ceremony (Thanksgiving for a Child).
In this simple service we give thanks to God for the life of the child and ask God’s continued blessing on the whole family. The family have an opportunity to express something of their awe and wonder at the birth of the child. They also gather family and friends together for a celebration to welcome the new member.
Adult Baptism
Originally as people came to believe in the Good News of Jesus Christ they were baptised. Hence the vast majority of people baptised in the first few centuries of the Church were adults. Once again people are coming to faith in Jesus in adulthood. Their parents were not Christians and so they were never baptised as children or perhaps their parents made a decision to let them make up their own mind later in life.
It is a great joy to encourage new Christians to be baptised. Before baptism they are encouraged to participate in an introduction to the Christian faith. We also seek mentors for them to help prepare them for the great day of their baptism and beyond. New Christians are encouraged to ask questions, explore the faith and reflect on their experiences.
Adult baptism is almost always done during the Sunday worship so that the whole congregation can receive and welcome the new member of the Church.
Admission to Communion
It is with joy and sadness that we send our little ones to school for the first time.
Here at the Church of the Resurrection we like to support children in their growing years with our children’s programmes and invite them to participate more fully in church worship by receiving Holy Communion. Mums and Dads learn more with their children as they are prepared for Admission to Communion. Children and their families meet with Fr Nicholas three times during the process of preparing for Admission to Communion: once to start the process and then half way along to ask any question that has arisen and then finally to ask more questions and to have a practical rehearsal.
Confirmation
When children have been baptised , it is with the understanding that the parents and godparents will nurture them in the faith and practice of the Church. When the young people are old enough to make a commitment of faith they are encouraged to do so. This is usually from about the age of sixteen. It is not uncommon for people much older to be confirmed as well.
The important thing about confirmation is that the person being confirmed should make the decision themselves. It is not appropriate for mum and dad or someone else to emotionally pressure them into being confirmed.
Here at the Church of the Resurrection in the Parish of Aspley Albany Creek we generally use a mentoring approach called Making Disciples. The confirmees meet with their mentors for 13 sessions prior to the confirmation. Even commencing this process should not make the confirmee feel obliged to be confirmed. Even to the day of confirmation it is up to them to decide.
The mentors are encouraged to see the process as a journey of exploration and reflection. The confirmee is encouraged to read Luke’s Gospel and each week the confirmee is encouraged to bring questions and reflections to their discussion. Week by week the confirmee and the mentor discuss various aspects of the Church’s faith.
As confirmation is a very important step in a person’s life the regional bishop celebrates and leads the worship on that day. It is always a joy to see the Church packed as parents and Godparents come once again to support and encourage this adult commitment of faith.
We expect that once someone has been confirmed that they will enter fully into the life of the Church: worshiping regularly; developing their personal prayer life; giving generously to the local Church and to the wider work of God; discovering and using their gifts in a variety of ways for the ongoing mission of the Church.
Weddings
Getting married is one of the awesome moments in our lives. Weddings have a mixture of excitement and romance. Often ideas and hopes that have been growing for years come to fruition on the wedding day.
Human beings have for millennia recognised a spiritual dimension to marriage. Most religions play an important part in wedding ceremonies within their own cultural setting.
Here in the Church of the Resurrection we are delighted to help couples make this very exciting time an opportunity to enter into the grace of God.
As an Anglican Church we use the wedding service of the Church which has been developed and refined through the centuries. There are opportunities to add your own personal touches while holding onto the rich traditions. (see Supporting Documentation at bottom of page)
For Christians, marriage is a commitment between the couple as they stand before God. The Church believes God binds the couple together making them one. Jesus’ great love for the Church is seen as the model for Christian marriage.
Marriage Preparation
We provide marriage preparation for our couples using Prepare/Enrich material. http://www.prepare-enrich.com.au/for-couples/
Flowers
Our parish is happy to provide some beautiful flowers. These are incorporated in the fee for the wedding. If you would like to supplement the Church flowers with some from a florist feel free to do so.
Music
We have a gifted organist who is happy to provide traditional music for your wedding. Many couples like to bring CDs which can be used to complement the traditional music or provide an alternative.
If you have other musicians or vocalists that you would like to play or sing for your wedding please feel free to make the most of them. Any fees that they might charge would come outside the agreement for the Church.
Confetti
We discourage the use of confetti but are happy for couples to use flower petals or bubbles.
Photos
We are happy for photographers to take photos as long as they are sensitive to the sacredness of the day. Normally after the signing of the register we pause so that photographers can take some posed photos. There are a couple of good vantage spots with in the Church which enable photographers to take great photos without becoming intrusive.
Wedding Service
(Provide PDF of the wedding service for download)
Funerals
One of the hardest moments in our lives is when someone close to us has just died. On top of coping with our own grief we have the task of preparing a funeral that will give members of the family an opportunity to say farewell and to celebrate the loved one’s life.
Here at the Church of the Resurrection we have the sensitivity and graciousness to help you prepare a beautiful and reverent farewell. We listen carefully to you and to the stories of your loved one and enable you to celebrate their life with both tears and laughter. Please feel free to contact us on 07 3263 3518 or 0423 030 326.
We use the traditional funeral service that has been developed and refined over the centuries. There is plenty of scope within this service to express your loved one’s personality. The service will also give opportunity to affirm the faith, hope and love of Christian Church.
We are happy to have the funeral service in the Church or to use the chapel at a Crematorium. We can also lead a simple service at the graveside. The Church of the Resurrection at Bridgeman Downs is a large Church that seats 120 people comfortably.
Funeral Directors
There are a number of very fine Funeral Directors working in our nearby district. Generally they all provide a good service. It may be helpful to ring two or three to get an idea of the cost involved. The Funeral Directors will be able to help with the legal documents and advertising in local papers.
When you are arranging the funeral with the Funeral Directors it is helpful to contact the Church at the same time so that sufficient time can be given to careful preparation for the funeral.
Photos
At the Church of the Resurrection we have a data projector available if you would like to show some photos to celebrate the life of your loved one. Many of the crematorium chapels have similar facilities.
Music
We have a gifted organist who is happy to provide music as required.
There are a number of songs and hymns that are traditionally used at funerals. We are also happy to use other songs or CDs that express something of the deceased’s personality. When we meet to plan the funeral we can work out appropriate music. We have a good quality sound system to play your chosen music.
Catering
If you would like to have a gathering of friends in the hall after the funeral please talk to us about catering. We charge $7 per person. Our hall is air conditioned and makes an ideal venue for refreshments after a funeral.
Fees
Normally the funeral directors handle all fees for a funeral and the Church fees are included in their fees.
Garden of Memorial
The Church of the Resurrection in the Anglican Parish of Aspley-Albany Creek has a very beautiful Garden of Memorial. We provide it as a place to inter ashes of loved ones. We do not place any plaques in the garden but we do have a Memorial Book in the church. There is no cost for interment of the ashes but we charge a small one-off fee for the memorial book.