But Quakers don't baptise or christen children. I'm afraid you will search in vain. >From Wikipedia: . Friends do not practice water baptism <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptism> , Christening <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infant_baptism> , or other initiation ceremonies to admit a new member or a newborn baby. Children are often welcomed into the meeting at their first attendance. Formerly, children born to Quaker parents automatically became members (sometimes called Birthright membership), but this is no longer the case in many areas. Some parents apply for membership on behalf of their children, while others allow the child to decide whether to become a member when they are ready, and older in age. Some meetings adopt a policy that children, some time after becoming young adults, must apply independently for membership. You will find a gentle explanation here: http://www.hitchin.plus.com/Quakers/Newkids.htm Ruth

Hi Ruth, Thanks for the information. I'm curious about the timing though. Thomas was born in 1639, and his brothers perhaps 2-5 years after that. Was the Quaker faith active in Cheshire by then? I don't know the timing of the spread of that faith in England. I had been operating under the assumption that all three brothers would have been baptized under the C of E, perhaps that is a faulty assumption if their father was an early Friend? Thanks, Tony On Tue, Nov 25, 2014 at 3:47 AM, Ruth Genda <ruthgenda@btinternet.com> wrote: > But Quakers don’t baptise or christen children. I’m afraid you will > search in vain. > > From Wikipedia: … Friends do not practice water baptism > <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptism>, Christening > <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infant_baptism>, or other initiation > ceremonies to admit a new member or a newborn baby. Children are often > welcomed into the meeting at their first attendance. Formerly, children > born to Quaker parents automatically became members (sometimes called *Birthright > membership*), but this is no longer the case in many areas. Some parents > apply for membership on behalf of their children, while others allow the > child to decide whether to become a member when they are ready, and older > in age. Some meetings adopt a policy that children, some time after > becoming young adults, must apply independently for membership. > > You will find a gentle explanation here: > > http://www.hitchin.plus.com/Quakers/Newkids.htm > > Ruth > > >

Hello, As a follow-on to the Quaker choice to not baptise or christen, does anyone know when they went away from that practice? In Hinshaw's index in the U.S., there are birth records recorded, but I have been unable to find a birth record for an ancestor presumed born in 1799 so am wondering if that lack of documentation is due to this practice, or something else like leaving the faith. Thanks! Tony On Tue, Nov 25, 2014 at 3:47 AM, Ruth Genda <ruthgenda@btinternet.com> wrote: > But Quakers don’t baptise or christen children. I’m afraid you will > search in vain. > > From Wikipedia: … Friends do not practice water baptism > <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptism>, Christening > <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infant_baptism>, or other initiation > ceremonies to admit a new member or a newborn baby. Children are often > welcomed into the meeting at their first attendance. Formerly, children > born to Quaker parents automatically became members (sometimes called *Birthright > membership*), but this is no longer the case in many areas. Some parents > apply for membership on behalf of their children, while others allow the > child to decide whether to become a member when they are ready, and older > in age. Some meetings adopt a policy that children, some time after > becoming young adults, must apply independently for membership. > > You will find a gentle explanation here: > > http://www.hitchin.plus.com/Quakers/Newkids.htm > > Ruth > > >