Life Events - Baptisms & Weddings 

Baptisms

“If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation. The old has passed away; the new has come.”
2 Corinthians 5.17
 Baptism (or christening) marks the start of a person’s Christian journey, a public profession that they want to live as followers of Jesus and as members of God’s family, the Church. The use of water in baptism symbolises not only the washing away of our sins but also the new life which has been made possible for us by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Many people are baptised as young children, but baptism is available to people of any age who want to make a personal commitment to follow Jesus and grow in love for God and their neighbours.

If you are interested in baptism for yourself or your child then we would be delighted to celebrate this significant moment at Holy Trinity if you live in our parish or have a particular link to our church. The first step in arranging a baptism is to come along to a service at Holy Trinity, so that you can meet us and begin to find out about our church family and the Christian faith we share. After this, we can arrange a meeting with our Vicar and a member of our baptism team to talk through the meaning of baptism and the promises you will be asked to make at the ceremony for yourself or your child.
 
At this point we can look to fix a date for the baptism, which would normally take place during one of our 10am Sunday services as we welcome the newly-baptised Christian into our church family. If required, we can discuss having the baptism as a private ceremony one Sunday afternoon. Your baptism contact will be your primary link to Holy Trinity as you prepare for the baptism and afterwards, on hand for guidance or simply a listening ear as you begin to explore what comes next.
 
For all initial enquiries about baptism please contact the Holy Trinity Office at churchoffice@horshamholytrinity.org.uk. We look forward to welcoming you to our church and celebrating with your family!

 Weddings

 “God is love, and those who live in love live in God and God lives in them.”
1 John 4.16
Marriage marks a significant moment in any relationship, when a couple make promises to each other to be together in loving commitment for the rest of their lives. A marriage is a ceremony with binding legal effects, but a church wedding is in addition an acknowledgement that God is the source of the love which brought the couple together, and will be a constant presence and support in their marriage through all the joys and upsets of life.

If you are planning for your forthcoming marriage then congratulations! We are delighted that you are considering celebrating your wedding at Holy Trinity. You will need to begin by first checking with us whether you are legally eligible to marry at Holy Trinity; we can then look to fix a date for your wedding in the church diary and then arrange a first meeting with our Vicar to help you prepare for your marriage and start planning the ceremony.
 
To be eligible to have your wedding at Holy Trinity you need to show a “qualifying connection” to our parish. There are several ways to do this, but the simplest connection is that you or your parents live here. We can talk through the full criteria for proving a qualifying connection when you contact us.
 
If either of you are divorced, you may be able to have either a second marriage in church or a Service of Blessing following Civil Marriage. This will be something to discuss with the Vicar once we have provisionally booked the date for your ceremony, as depending on the circumstances he may need to seek permission from the Bishop to conduct a church wedding.
 
Weddings in the parish are administered by St Mary’s Church Office, so for all initial enquiries please contact office@horshamstmarys.org.uk to confirm your qualifying connection and put you in touch with our Vicar.

Same-Sex Blessings

A selection of readings and prayers for same-sex couples who wish to mark and give thanks for their love and relationship before God was formally commended for use by the Church of England’s bishops in December 2023.
 
At Holy Trinity, we are pleased to offer these prayers of dedication, thanksgiving and asking for God’s blessing, and would be delighted to hear from same-sex couples who would like these prayers to be used with them within one of our services.