Does China have a godparent custom?

[johnmck]

I think the traditional religious role of the god-parent is supposed to be assuming the sins of the child until they get confirmed. Which raises the question of what happens if they don't.

From a Christian point of view the role of the god-parent is to help the parents bring-up the child in the Christian faith (even though very few people actually fulfil this function).

What is the traditional purpose of 干爹干妈 in Chinese culture?

[muyongshi]

就像爸爸和妈妈。

This is what one of my friends told me when I asked. Very specific answer huh?

I asked more about it and the told me basically the god parents (干爹干妈) serve a few basic functions and that is to help the parents raise the children but there is no obligation to take the child if the parents, well you know, kicked the can:cry: .

But another big difference is that they are not usually picked it's just that the people like the child and then "希望成为孩子的父母" (hope to become the child's parents).