Thanks for the link. I’m sorry for your loss. You have my sympathies. I am sure your godson is proving to be a most powerful saint in Heaven.

Skippy

I would recommend writing letters to your godchild, as you say you’ve done, and include Holy Cards in with them. I would also suggest maybe adding your cards and gift-giving to the anniversary of their baptism. That makes them remember the day and find out what baptism is – in particular probably from their mother. It is always helpful to inject a bit of religion into an otherwise secular life. Have you tried sending them bibles or catechisms? Or including Luke chapter 2 in their Christmas cards? Just some ideas. You, of course, know your situation best.

Even though this position originates in Christianity, I think it’s important to note that there is a difference between religion and spirituality. The role of the Godfather is to help the child in a spiritual way. This does not mean an organized religion is required.

So, to Skippy, I would say… Lead (and teach) by example. Be the kind of man your Godchildren can look up to. Love them. Teach them to love, too. God is within each of us. Show them how to treat others as the spiritual beings they are.

They will love you for it.

You’d be surprised how many times postings from this blog show up on the New Advent web site. Check it out some time.

http://www.newadvent.org/

Skippy,

You’re in a difficult spot in that you are godfather to a friend’s children rather than a family member, so maintaining contact can be hard. I commend you for not letting go of your commitment. Have you tried to explain to your friend about the benefits of her children having a good spiritual foundation, how it can help them to make good decissions as adults? (i.e. Does she want to have to raise grandchildren on her own because her now-”adult” kids don’t have the maturity or interest to do it?) From what I’ve seen, she can invest the time in giving her children a good foundation now or invest the time in trying to clean up the mess when they are grown.

Explain to her how much it hurts you, as her best friend, to see her throwing away the gift of her Catholic faith.

Keep the lines of communication open to your godchildren though. It’s hard to be able to give them an example of what it means to live the Faith when you are so far away but do what you can. Pray to their guardian angles and especially the guardian angle of their mother that they may call her back to a renewed life in the Church. St. Padre Pio is another good source for help in situations like this.

God Bless,

Very cool.

As a Catholic who tries to take his faith seriously, I try to take my role as a godfather seriously, but it’s been difficult. Their mother, one of my best friends, stopped going to church not long after the younger one’s baptism. She has less than zero interest in her children having a “spiritual mentor”. But from my perspective, the promise be a godparent was primarily made to God, rather than to her. So my dilemma is how to balance my own responsibility against the wishes of their mother, who is after all their mother and has every right to raise them as she thinks best.

The way I have tried to resolve this– besides praying for them, of course– is to be a good example and overall mentor to them, and trying to let them know that if they ever want to learn about the faith they were born into, they can come to me. I was wondering if there are any other godfathers/mothers out there in similar situations, or any other ideas people might have?