The Great Godparent Debate

With the second baby on the way, Mark and I have been discussing the issue of godparents and when I say "discussing," I mean debating...vehemently!

With Trent, and this is not to offend any friend or family member, picking godparents was a piece of cake! We chose my little brother Gabriel, whom I love and adore and as we've grown older, he's become one of my best friends. We also chose Mark's sister, Heather, who is perhaps the most caring and loving person I've ever seen with kids. She is a nanny by trade and a natural with kids so choosing her was a no-brainer. Mark and I both got "our pick" and there was no fighting.

This has not been the case with this bun in the oven! Being that we don't know if this will be our last child, there is an enormous amount of pressure to pick two people who we believe will be the best godparents. Mark and I seriously differ on our logic about this. His philosophy is to pick a family member, no questions asked. My philosophy on the other hand, is to choose someone who is both Catholic and who we are actually close to! I don't think we should pick a family member just because they are a family member. I take so many factors into consideration including whether someone took an active role in Trent's life (if they made no effort to see Trent or get to know him, why would they be any different with this kid?), whether they are Catholic and whether I really believe they would guide my child in the Catholic faith. Seeing as how a godparent has to swear that they would actually assist in raising a child in the Catholic religion, why would I choose someone who practices something else or who doesn't even practice Catholicism at all?

Some of you may be laughing because you know that I am not the most outstanding Catholic in the world. It's true that I don't go to church every Sunday but I still pray every night, believe in most of the religions principles (admittedly, I differ on its stance of gay marriage and abortion...I strongly believe that people should be able to marry whomever they want and I also believe in a woman's right to choose). Regardless, I still want to raise my children Catholic and they will still be forced to attend CCD and complete the various sacraments.

If this is our last child, I want to make the right choice! I don't really believe in "honorary godparents" with the exception of Heather. Perhaps Mark feels differently because he is an "honorary godparent." He isn't Catholic and even if I sound like a two-year old....I am Catholic so I think my vote should be the one that counts (I kid...I kid)!

Choosing godparents is important. Sex In the City even has an entire episode about it! If we have five kids, perhaps we would have the opportunity to choose everyone we want but since that isn't happening, the debate shall continue!