Why the Friend You Want as Godparent Might Not Qualify
If you're planning a baptism in Munich and want a close friend or relative to be a godparent (Pate), it's worth checking their church status before you ask, because both major churches have a real, non-negotiable membership requirement. In the Catholic Church, a godparent must be baptized, confirmed, and a current member of the Roman Catholic Church specifically. In the Protestant Church, a godparent must be a baptized and confirmed member of the Evangelical Church, or a member of another church belonging to the ACK (the Working Group of Christian Churches in Germany), which covers Catholic and Orthodox denominations too. Someone who was never a church member, or who formally left through Kirchenaustritt, cannot serve as an official godparent, full stop, regardless of how close they are to your family. The proof required is a Patenschein (godparent certificate), issued for free by the godparent's own home parish, not the child's, so anyone living outside Munich needs to request it from wherever they're actually registered.
The Official Rule
Choosing godparents for a baptism in Munich often starts as a purely emotional decision, who do you trust to be part of your childâs life, and only later runs into a hard legal wall: both major churches in Germany require a godparent to actually be a qualifying member of a Christian church, and this isnât flexible.
In the Catholic Church, the requirement is specific and layered. According to Erzbistum MĂźnchen und Freising, a godparent must be baptized, confirmed, and a current member of the Roman Catholic Church specifically, not just any Christian denomination. This can genuinely narrow the field for expat families whose close circle isnât uniformly Catholic, finding someone who fulfills every part of this requirement is explicitly acknowledged as a real challenge for some families.
In the Protestant Church, the requirement is slightly broader but equally firm. evangelisch.de, the German Evangelical Churchâs own public guidance, states that a godparent must belong to the Evangelical Church and be admitted to communion, in practice meaning baptized and confirmed, or be a member of another church belonging to the ACK (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Christlicher Kirchen), the working group covering Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox churches together. The guidance is direct about the disqualifying case too: someone who was never a church member, or who has formally left, cannot become a godparent.
| Church | Who qualifies | Minimum number |
|---|---|---|
| Catholic | Baptized, confirmed, current Roman Catholic Church member | At least one |
| Protestant | Baptized and confirmed Evangelical member, or member of another ACK church | At least one (2 to 3 common) |
The proof itself, a Patenschein (godparent certificate), has one detail that trips people up. Itâs issued by the godparentâs own home parish, wherever theyâre personally registered as a member, not by the parish handling your childâs baptism. For families whose chosen godparent lives elsewhere in Germany or abroad, this means requesting the certificate by phone or mail well ahead of the baptism date, since it typically needs to be mailed and can take a few days. According to Protestant church guidance, the certificate itself is free and generally just requires the godparent to show an ID card at their home parish office.
If your first-choice godparent doesnât qualify, youâre not necessarily out of options entirely. Practice on this varies by parish, but itâs often possible for a non-qualifying friend or relative to participate as a Taufzeuge (baptismal witness) instead, taking part in the ceremony and the childâs life without holding the formal, membership-dependent Pate role itself. This is worth raising directly with whoever is conducting the baptism rather than assuming itâs off the table.
What Real People Say
Parenting and church forums covering this topic show a consistent pattern: families are often surprised mid-planning to learn that a beloved friend, sometimes someone who was baptized as a child but never confirmed, or who left the church years ago without much thought, doesnât qualify for the formal role theyâd assumed was just a matter of asking. The recurring practical thread in these discussions is that parish practice on alternatives like the Taufzeuge role genuinely varies, some parishes are accommodating about it, others are stricter, so a direct conversation with the priest or pastor early in the planning process avoids a last-minute scramble.
Step by Step
- Check each prospective godparentâs actual church status before asking them, baptized, confirmed, and currently a member, not just raised in the faith as a child.
- Confirm which church youâre baptizing in, Catholic requires Roman Catholic Church membership specifically, Protestant accepts any ACK member church.
- Have each qualifying godparent request their Patenschein from their own home parish, not the parish handling your childâs baptism, and do this well before the baptism date if they live elsewhere.
- If someone you want involved doesnât qualify, ask the priest or pastor directly whether a Taufzeuge role is possible at that specific parish.
- Donât assume Confirmation needs a sponsor the same way baptism needs a godparent. Catholic guidance confirms Confirmation can proceed without one if it comes to that.
Compliance Note
This page explains general Catholic and Protestant church requirements and Munich parish practice, but individual parishes can apply local discretion, particularly around alternatives like the Taufzeuge role. Confirm specifics directly with the parish handling your childâs baptism.
FAQ & Common Pitfalls
My best friend would be a perfect godparent but left the church years ago. Are we out of options?
Not entirely, though they can't hold the official Pate role itself. Both churches are explicit that someone who formally left through Kirchenaustritt cannot serve as a godparent, this isn't a matter of local interpretation. What's often still possible, depending on the parish, is including that person as a Taufzeuge, a baptismal witness, someone who takes part in the ceremony and the child's life without holding the formal, church-membership-dependent godparent role. Practice on this varies by parish, so it's worth raising directly with the priest or pastor handling the baptism.
Do I need more than one godparent, and can they be from different denominations?
Requirements vary slightly by church, but a Munich Protestant parish's own guidance suggests at least one godparent is required, with two or three being common in practice. On denomination, both major German churches accept godparents from any church belonging to the ACK, the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Christlicher Kirchen, which includes Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox churches, so a mixed-denomination godparent lineup within Christian churches is generally fine, it's specifically non-membership or having left that disqualifies someone.
How do I actually get the Patenschein, and does it cost anything?
You (or the prospective godparent) request it from their own home parish, the one where they're personally registered as a member, not the parish handling your child's baptism. According to official Protestant church guidance, this typically just requires showing an ID card at the parish office, and the certificate itself is free. The one thing worth planning around is timing: if the godparent lives elsewhere and the certificate needs to be mailed, requesting it at the last minute is the most common way this step causes avoidable stress.
Does Confirmation (Firmung) require a godparent the same way baptism does?
No, and this surprises some families. According to official Catholic archdiocese guidance, Confirmation is possible without a godparent at all, it isn't a hard requirement the way it is for baptism. If a young person wants a sponsor figure for Confirmation, the same church-membership rules generally apply to that role too, but the absence of a qualifying sponsor doesn't block Confirmation itself the way it would block filling the formal godparent role at a baptism.