Hi, would just like to ask if anyone has any info about this subject and how it's done in Switzerland. Is it possible to have god parents for your own child without having a church christening or any other type of ceremony? can you just ask them privately or does it need to be recorded somewhere?

Hi,


We didn’t have a ceremony, just asked the potentialGodparents if they would like the job. Good Luck!

Take a look at this thread:

Godparents

Might give you some good information

ok thanks! So it's just a spoken agreement you have with them? I wasn't sure if that was acceptable as it seems to be the god parents' responsibility to take over should anything happen to us, but surely a god paarent wouldn't be legally responsible for my child? would that not go to a willing and able family member first? Sorry for questions, maybe you can tell me something new? There has been family pressure from the Swiss side to choose a sibling from my husband but i am opting more for a close friend.

What's the point of godparents?

Tom

Are you talking about religious godparents, or civil guardians?

Religious godparents are in general not guardians unless spefically written, which according to the link I gave you, does not happen in Switzerland. If you are talking about religious godparents, you need to give the name to the priest before the baptism, and the chosen godparents will have to sign their name on the church books. But they won't have any civil obligations, just moral/ religious ones.

In case of death of both parents *knock on wood* the child will be going (in theory) to the designated guardian, if there is one, or to the closest family member: grandparents/ uncles/ etc if none was previous designated.

Most of this info is writen on the Godparents thread.

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We just have a verbal agreement with my daughter's Godparents (one happens to be his swiss aunt and one is an friend). It is not a legal obligation at all. They give her a gift on birthdays and sometimes take her out on outings.

For a legal guardian in case of death, I believe you need a signed contract with your choosen person.

I think traditionally (in some cultures) they would be potential caregivers if the birth parents became upable (death etc..) to do so.

Religiously, they were also a third party overseer on proper religious upbringing.

In my experience, they were a source of presents at birthdays and christmas, and were also present at major life milestones (graduations, confirmations, birthdays and the like).