Betsey Trotwood is a fictional character from Charles Dickens ' 1850 novel David Copperfield .
61-400: Betsey Trotwood is David Copperfield's great-aunt on his father's side, and has an unfavourable view of men and boys, having been ill-used and abandoned by a worthless husband earlier in life. She appears in the novel's first chapter, where she demonstrates her uncommon personality and her dislike of boys when she storms out of the house after hearing that David's mother has had a son, rather than
122-424: A godparent or sponsor is someone who bears witness to a child's baptism (christening) and later is willing to help in their catechesis , as well as their lifelong spiritual formation . In the past, in some countries, the role carried some legal obligations as well as religious responsibilities. In both religious and civil views, a godparent tends to be an individual chosen by the parents to take an interest in
183-585: A council. Yet when he proposed the idea to his cardinals , it was almost unanimously opposed. Nonetheless, he sent nuncios throughout Europe to propose the idea. Paul III issued a decree for a general council to be held in Mantua , Italy, to begin on 23 May 1537. Martin Luther wrote the Smalcald Articles in preparation for the general council. The Smalcald Articles were designed to sharply define where
244-518: A couple's wedding. Godparents are noted features of fairy tales and folklore written from the 17th century onwards, and by extension, have found their way into many modern works of fiction. In Godfather Death , presented by the Brothers Grimm , the archetype is, unusually, a supernatural godfather. However, most are a fairy godmother as in versions of Cinderella , Sleeping Beauty , and The Blue Bird . This feature may simply reflect
305-486: A godfather and his goddaughter, and these barriers continued to multiply until the 11th century, forbidding marriage between natural and spiritual parents, or those directly related to them. As confirmation emerged as a separate rite from baptism from the 8th century, a second set of sponsors, with similar prohibitions, also emerged. The exact extent of these spiritual relationships as a bar to marriage in Catholicism
366-452: A godparent during forty-seven baptisms. The Reformed Church in Geneva , in order to ensure confessional orthodoxy, "expected parents to select Reformed godparents." Today, many Reformed churches invite parents to select godparents for their prospective neophyte, while other parishes entrust this responsibility to the whole congregation . The Catholic institution of godparenthood survived
427-524: A godparent to the first or all children of the marriage. In some instances, the godfather is responsible for naming the child. A godparent to a child will then act as a sponsor at the child's wedding. Godparents are expected to be in good standing in the Orthodox church, including its rulings on divorce, and aware of the meaning and responsibilities of their role. In the Reformed tradition that includes
488-629: A number of reform proposals (on the selection of bishops, taxation, censorship and preaching) but not on the new major problems that confronted the Church in Germany and other parts of Europe. A few months later, on 31 October 1517, Martin Luther issued his 95 Theses in Wittenberg . Luther's position on ecumenical councils shifted over time, but in 1520 he appealed to the German princes to oppose
549-582: A plague failed to take effect and the council was indefinitely prorogued on 17 September 1549. None of the three popes reigning over the duration of the council ever attended, which had been a condition of Charles V. Papal legates were appointed to represent the Papacy. Reopened at Trent on 1 May 1551 by the convocation of Pope Julius III (1550–1555), it was broken up by the sudden victory of Maurice, Elector of Saxony over Emperor Charles V and his march into surrounding state of Tirol on 28 April 1552. There
610-744: A schism over conciliarism ; partly because Lutherans demanded the exclusion of the papacy from the council; partly because of ongoing political rivalries between France and the Holy Roman Empire ; and partly due to the Turkish dangers in the Mediterranean. Under Pope Clement VII (1523–34), mutinous troops many of whom were Lutheran belonging to the Catholic Holy Roman Emperor Charles V sacked Papal Rome in 1527, "raping, killing, burning, stealing,
671-520: A similar theology of godparents as Catholics. They believe that godparents "help [children] with their Christian upbringing, especially if they should lose their parents". Lutherans, like Catholics, believe that a godparent must be both a baptized and confirmed Christian. Some Lutherans also follow the Catholic tradition that a Christian who is not affiliated with the Lutheran denomination may serve as
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#1732772935825732-627: A single child. In England, the Synod of Worcester (1240) stipulated three sponsors (two of the same sex and one of the opposite), and this has remained the norm in the Church of England . The Council of Trent attempted to limit the numbers of godparents to one or two, but practice has differed across the Catholic world. The Church of England , the mother Church of the Anglican Communion , retained godparents in baptism, formally removing
793-502: A witness rather than a godparent. The Book of Discipline stipulates that it is the duty of a godparent, also known as a sponsor, "to provide training for the children of the Church throughout their childhood that will lead to a personal commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior , to an understanding of the Christian faith, and to an appreciation of the privileges and obligations of baptism and membership (¶ 225.4)." John Wesley ,
854-620: Is based on Miss Mary Pearson Strong who lived at Broadstairs , Kent , and who died on 14 January 1855; she is buried in the St. Peter's-in-Thanet churchyard. Her sister Ann married Stephen Nuckell, who was a prominent bookseller in Broadstairs from around 1796 to 1822. Mary Pearson Strong's former home now hosts Broadstairs' Dickens House Museum. There is a public house in Clerkenwell , Central London, called The Betsey Trotwood. It adopted
915-431: Is no requirement for clergy to baptise those from outside their parishes, and baptism can be reasonably delayed so that the conditions, including suitable godparents, can be met. As a result, individual clergy have considerable discretion over the qualifications of godparents. Many "contemporary Anglican rites likewise require parents and godparents to respond on behalf of infant [baptismal] candidates." Lutherans follow
976-422: Is some evidence that the restored institution had lost some of its social importance as well as its universality. At present, in the Church of England, relatives can stand as godparents, and although it is not clear that parents can be godparents, they sometimes are. Godparents should be both baptised and confirmed (although it is not clear in which Church), but the requirement for confirmation can be waived. There
1037-557: The Continental Reformed , Congregationalist and Presbyterian Churches, the godparents are more often referred to as sponsors , who have the role of standing with the child during infant baptism and pledging to instruct the child in the faith. In the baptismal liturgy of Reformed Geneva , "the traditional presence of godparents was retained". John Calvin , the progenitor of the Reformed tradition, himself served as
1098-651: The Creed , the Lord's Prayer , and the Ten Commandments , and all other things which a Christian ought to know and believe to his soul's health; and that this child be virtuously brought up, to lead a godly and a Christian life." As such, the Book of Worship states that godparents/sponsors should be "selected carefully" and "should be members of Christ's holy Church; and it is the duty of pastors to instruct them concerning
1159-554: The French marraine and parrain , and the archaic meaning of the English word gossip (from godsib, "godsibling"), describe these relationships. The Spanish and Portuguese words for the godparent roles are used for members of the wedding party — padrino/padrinho meaning "godfather" or " best man " and madrina/madrinha meaning "godmother" or " matron of honor ", reflecting the custom of baptismal sponsors acting in this role in
1220-634: The French Wars of Religion had occurred earlier in the year and the French Church, facing a significant and powerful Protestant minority in France, experienced iconoclasm violence regarding the use of sacred images. Such concerns were not primary in the Italian and Spanish Churches. The last-minute inclusion of a decree on sacred images was a French initiative, and the text, never discussed on
1281-518: The Jewish circumcision ceremony that are sometimes translated as godparent . The sandek , in Orthodox Judaism a man, sits on a specially designated chair, and holds the baby boy while he is circumcised. Among Orthodox Ashkenazi , the kvater is the married couple who bring the child from his mother to where the circumcision is performed. The mother gives the baby to the woman, who gives
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#17327729358251342-454: The Mass , and the veneration of saints and also issued condemnations of what it defined to be heresies committed by proponents of Protestantism . The consequences of the council were also significant with regard to the Church's liturgy and censorship. The Council met for twenty-five sessions between 13 December 1545 and 4 December 1563. Pope Paul III , who convoked the council, oversaw
1403-556: The Reformation largely unchanged. A godparent must normally be an appropriate person, at least sixteen years of age, a confirmed Catholic who has received the Eucharist , not under any canonical penalty, and may not be the parent of the child. Someone who belongs to another Christian church cannot become a godparent but can be a 'witness' in conjunction with a Catholic sponsor. A witness does not have any religious role recognized by
1464-587: The University of Cologne (1463), had set aside the theory of the supremacy of general councils laid down by the Council of Constance , which had also called for frequent ecumenical councils every ten years to cope with the backlog of reform and heresies. Martin Luther had appealed for a general council, in response to the Papal bull Exsurge Domine of Pope Leo X (1520). In 1522 German diets joined in
1525-669: The Catholic milieu in which most fairy tales were created, or at least recorded, and the accepted role of godparents as helpers from outside the family, but English historian Marina Warner suggests that they may be a form of wish fulfilment by female narrators. In the Yoruba religion Santería , godparents must have completed their santo or their Ifá . A person gets his Madrina and Yubona (co-godmother) or his Padrino and Yubon (co-godfather). A santero, aside from his co-godparents, may have an oluo (babalawo, initiate of ifa) who consults him with an ekuele (divining chain). There are two roles in
1586-455: The Church. In 2015, the Vatican declared that transgender Catholics cannot become godparents, stating in response to a transgender man's query that transgender status "reveals in a public way an attitude opposite to the moral imperative of solving the problem of sexual identity according to the truth of one's own sexuality" and that, "[t]herefore it is evident that this person does not possess
1647-649: The Lutherans could and could not compromise. The council was ordered by the Emperor and Pope Paul III to convene in Mantua on 23 May 1537. It failed to convene after another war broke out between France and Charles V, resulting in a non-attendance of French prelates . Protestants refused to attend as well. Financial difficulties in Mantua led the Pope in the autumn of 1537 to move the council to Vicenza , where participation
1708-585: The Popes who had convoked the council, the emperor and the kings who had supported it, the papal legates, the cardinals, the ambassadors present, and the bishops, followed by acclamations of acceptance of the faith of the council and its decrees, and of anathema for all heretics. The French monarchy boycotted the entire council until the last minute when a delegation led by Charles de Guise, Cardinal of Lorraine finally arrived in November 1562. The first outbreak of
1769-606: The Protestant cause within France. Charles' younger brother Ferdinand of Austria , who ruled a huge swath of territory in central Europe, agreed in 1532 to the Nuremberg Religious Peace granting religious liberty to the Protestants, and in 1533 he further complicated matters when suggesting a general council to include both Catholic and Protestant rulers of Europe that would devise a compromise between
1830-401: The appeal, with Charles V seconding and pressing for a council as a means of reunifying the Church and settling the Reformation controversies. Pope Clement VII (1523–34) was vehemently against the idea of a council, agreeing with Francis I of France . The history of the council is divided into three distinct periods: 1545–1549, 1551–1552 and 1562–1563. The number of attending members in
1891-505: The baby to her husband, who then carries the baby the rest of the way. The announcement " Kvatter " is the signal for the man to walk to where he will get the baby, and also for that man's wife to walk to the lady holding the baby (usually the mother), if she is not already standing there. Kvater is etymologically derived from the archaic German Gevatter ("godfather"). Historically, the Jewish ‘Godfather’ bears responsibility for seeing that
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1952-614: The boy's parents become kirîv s in relation to each other. Kirvelik / kirîvahî comes with particular duties, responsibilities and traditions. It has been compared to compadrazgo in Latin America and kumstvo in the Balkans . Council of Trent Artists Clergy Monarchs Popes The Council of Trent ( Latin : Concilium Tridentinum ), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy ,
2013-536: The child is properly raised, if both parents die young. Amongst the Kvater's many responsibilities, he is also obligated to ensure that the Godmother (should one be appointed) is fully capable of discharging her duties. Should he deem her irresponsible, he can revoke her status as Godmother by proclamation. Humanists use the term guideparent for a similar concept in that worldview. Some Chinese communities practise
2074-417: The child's upbringing and personal development, to offer mentorship or claim legal guardianship of the child if anything should happen to the parents. A male godparent is a godfather , and a female godparent is a godmother . The child is a godchild (i.e., godson for boys and goddaughter for girls). As early as the 2nd century AD , infant baptism had begun to gain acceptance among Christians for
2135-467: The council was delayed until 1545 and, as it happened, convened right before Luther's death. Unable, however, to resist the urging of Charles V, the pope, after proposing Mantua as the place of meeting, convened the council at Trent (at that time ruled by a prince-bishop under the Holy Roman Empire ), on 13 December 1545; the Pope's decision to transfer it to Bologna in March 1547 on the pretext of avoiding
2196-406: The custom of matching a child with a relative or family friend who becomes the godmother ( yimu / ganma 義母/乾媽) or godfather ( yifu / gandie 義父/乾爹). This practice is largely non-religious in nature, but commonly done to strengthen ties or to fulfil the wish of a childless adult to have a "son/daughter". In most circumstances, an auspicious day is selected on which a ceremony takes place, involving
2257-703: The daughter to whom Trotwood intended to be the godmother . Betsey plays a bigger role in David's later life by taking him in after he has run away from labelling wine bottles in the factory in Blackfriars where his stepfather, Edward Murdstone , had placed him to work after the death of David's mother. She provides him with a place at a good school in Canterbury and opportunities for a career in Doctors' Commons , thus showing her complex character. The character
2318-590: The first eight sessions (1545–1547), while the twelfth to sixteenth sessions (1551–52) were overseen by Pope Julius III and the seventeenth to twenty-fifth sessions (1562–63) by Pope Pius IV . More than three hundred years passed until the next ecumenical council, the First Vatican Council , was convened in 1869. On 15 March 1517, the Fifth Council of the Lateran closed its activities with
2379-518: The floor of the council or referred to council theologians, was based on a French draft. Jus novum ( c. 1140 -1563) Jus novissimum ( c. 1563 -1918) Jus codicis (1918-present) Other Sacraments Sacramentals Sacred places Sacred times Supra-diocesan/eparchal structures Particular churches Juridic persons Philosophy, theology, and fundamental theory of Catholic canon law Clerics Office Juridic and physical persons Associations of
2440-661: The forms of prayers and belief, and instruct them sufficiently therein, so that they understand the same: In the early church, one sponsor seems to have been the norm, but in the early Middle Ages, there seems to have been two, one of each sex, and this practice has been largely maintained in Orthodox Christianity . In 888, the Catholic Council of Metz attempted to limit the number to one, but this limit seems not to have been observed. In early 14th-century Spain, as many as 20 godparents were being chosen for
2501-575: The founder of the Methodist Church , wrote a homily titled "Serious Thoughts Concerning Godfathers and Godmothers" in which he stated that godparents are "spiritual parents to the baptized, whether they were infants or [adults]; and were expected to supply whatever spiritual helps were wanting either through the death or neglect of the natural parents." He described the role of godparents, instructing that they should call upon their godchild "to hear sermons, and shall provide that he(/she) may learn
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2562-497: The godchild paying his/her respects to his new godfather/godmother in the presence of relatives or friends. Alternatively, as it is already common in Chinese kinship to use kinship terms among people that are not related (e.g. addressing a respected coworker as "brother" or one's father's friend may be referred to as "uncle"), an older friend or family friend with a deep friendship and a sufficient age gap will also informally address
2623-521: The like had not been seen since the Vandals ". Saint Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel were used for horses. Pope Clement, fearful of the potential for more violence, delayed calling the council. Charles V strongly favoured a council but needed the support of King Francis I of France, who attacked him militarily. Francis I generally opposed a general council due to partial support of
2684-741: The marriage barriers in 1540, but the issue of the role and status of godparents continued to be debated in the English Church. They were abolished in 1644 by the Directory of Public Worship promulgated by the English Civil War Parliamentary regime, but continued to be used in some parishes in the north of England. After the Restoration in 1660, they were reintroduced to Anglicanism, with occasional objections, but dropped by almost every dissenting church. There
2745-411: The name in 1983, having previously been The Butcher's Arms . The city of Trotwood, Ohio is named after the character. This article about a fictional character from a novel is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . See guidelines for writing about novels . Further suggestions might be found on the article's talk page . Godparent In denominations of Christianity ,
2806-465: The other as his godparent or godchild, a gesture often initiated by the older person. In some parts of Turkey , mainly in the eastern, Kurdish-majority regions, a kind of fictive kinship relationship called kirvelik exists connected with the Islamic ritual of circumcision . The man who holds a male child who is being circumcised becomes the kirîv of the child; at the same time, the kirîv and
2867-525: The papal Church at the time, if necessary with a council in Germany, open and free of the Papacy. After the Pope condemned in Exsurge Domine fifty-two of Luther's theses as heresy , German opinion considered a council the best method to reconcile existing differences. German Catholics, diminished in number, hoped for a council to clarify matters. It took a generation for the council to materialise, partly due to papal fears over potentially renewing
2928-526: The passage of the most important decrees, not more than sixty prelates were present. Although most Protestants did not attend, ambassadors and theologians of Brandenburg, Württemberg, and Strasbourg attended having been granted an improved safe conduct . Pope Paul III (1534–1549), seeing that the Protestant Reformation was no longer confined to a few preachers, but had won over various princes, especially in Germany, to its ideas, desired
2989-734: The requirement of leading a life according to the faith and in the position of godfather and is therefore unable to be admitted to the position of godfather or godmother." In some Catholic and Orthodox countries, particularly in southern Europe, Latin America, and the Philippines, the relationship between parents and godparents or co-godparents has been seen as particularly important and distinctive. These relationships create mutual obligations and responsibilities that may be socially useful for participants. The Portuguese and Spanish compadre (literally, "co-father") and comadre ("co-mother"),
3050-415: The significance of Holy Baptism, their responsibilities for the Christian training of the baptized child, and how these obligations may be fulfilled." The Orthodox institution of godparenthood has been the least affected of the major traditions by change. In some Orthodox churches ( Serbian , Greek ) usually the best man (kum, кум, koumbaros) or bridesmaid (kuma, кума, koumbara) at a couple's wedding act as
3111-497: The spiritual purification and social initiation of infants. Normally, these sponsors were the birth parents of a child, as emphasized in 408 by St. Augustine who suggested that the sponsors could be other individuals in exceptional circumstances. Within a century, the Corpus Juris Civilis indicates that parents had been replaced in this role almost completely by those who were not the child's birth parents. This
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#17327729358253172-666: The three periods varied considerably. The council was small to begin with, opening with only about 30 bishops. It increased toward the close, but never reached the number of the First Council of Nicaea (which had 318 members) nor of the First Vatican Council (which numbered 744). The decrees were signed in 1563 by 255 members, the highest attendance of the whole council, including four papal legates, two cardinals, three patriarchs, twenty-five archbishops, and 168 bishops, two-thirds of whom were Italians. The Italian and Spanish prelates were vastly preponderant in power and numbers. At
3233-576: The two theological systems. This proposal met the opposition of the Pope for it gave recognition to Protestants and also elevated the secular Princes of Europe above the clergy on church matters. Faced with a Turkish attack, Charles held the support of the Protestant German rulers, all of whom delayed the opening of the Council of Trent. In the to-and-fro of medieval politics , Pope Pius II , in his bull Execrabilis (1460) and his reply to
3294-417: Was begun especially as an attempt to prevent the formation of a general council including Protestants , as had been demanded by some in France. The council was reconvened by Pope Pius IV (1559–1565) for the last time, meeting from 18 January 1562 at Santa Maria Maggiore , and continued until its final adjournment on 4 December 1563. It closed with a series of ritual acclamations honouring the reigning Pope,
3355-573: Was clarified in 813 when the Synod of Mainz prohibited natural parents from acting as godparents to their own children. By the 5th century, male sponsors were referred to as "spiritual fathers", and by the end of the 6th century, they were being referred to as "compaters" and "commaters", suggesting that these were being seen as spiritual co-parents. Around the same time, laws intended to prevent marriage between family members were extended to include marriage between god-parents and god-children. A decree of Justinian, dated to 530, outlawed marriage between
3416-478: Was no hope of reassembling the council while the very anti-Protestant Paul IV was Pope. During the second period, the Protestants present asked for a renewed discussion on points already defined and for bishops to be released from their oaths of allegiance to the Pope. When the last period began, all intentions of conciliating the Protestants was gone and the Jesuits had become a strong force. This last period
3477-613: Was opposed to the prohibition of marriage between god-parents and -children, Zwingli placed more emphasis on the role played by the parents and pastors, and Calvin preferred the birth parents serving as sponsors. Among French Calvinists and the residents of Geneva, it became the norm to have one godparent; other Calvinists, most notably in Scotland and the English colonies in America, did away with them entirely. The customary obligation of godfathers for Catholics (at least in Scotland)
3538-638: Was poor. The council was postponed indefinitely on 21 May 1539. Pope Paul III then initiated several internal Church reforms while Emperor Charles V convened with Protestants and Cardinal Gasparo Contarini at the Diet of Regensburg , to reconcile differences. Mediating and conciliatory formulations were developed on certain topics. In particular, a two-part doctrine of justification was formulated that would later be rejected at Trent. Unity failed between Catholic and Protestant representatives "because of different concepts of Church and Justification ". However,
3599-524: Was stated in Nicol Burne's Of the praying in Latine (1581) in relation to Latin public prayers in church: ...if any man pray in any other tongue (i.e. than his own), it is also expedient that he understand the meaning of the words at the least. For the which cause in the catholic church the parents or godfathers are obliged to learn them (i.e. to make sure they have learned) whom they held in baptism
3660-545: Was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church . Prompted by the Protestant Reformation at the time, it has been described as the embodiment of the Counter-Reformation . The Council issued key statements and clarifications of the Church's doctrine and teachings, including scripture , the biblical canon , sacred tradition , original sin , justification , salvation , the sacraments ,
3721-450: Was unclear until the Council of Trent , which limited it to relationships between the godparents, the child, and the parents. Luther , Zwingli , and Calvin preserved infant baptism (and the accompanying baptismal sponsors) in their respective Protestant denominations despite opposition from more radical reformers such as Anabaptists . Their respective visions of the role played by godparents differed from mainstream Catholicism. Luther
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