In the Orthodox tradition, all children under the age of seven who receive the sacrament of baptism must have godparents. However, physiological dads and mothers do not always manage to choose godparents for their baby.
The godparents are responsible before God for the spiritual upbringing and churching of an infant receiving holy baptism. That is why physiological parents should be attentive to the choice of godparents for their baby. Of course, every mom and dad wants their children to have good godparents. This means that the latter must themselves understand the foundations of the Orthodox faith. And this, unfortunately, does not always happen. Therefore, finding godparents for your child is sometimes very difficult. So, for example, a question may arise before mom and dad: what if there are no worthy godparents among friends? In this case, is it possible to baptize a child under the age of seven?
The Orthodox Church advises every infant to have godparents. However, Orthodox canons do not prohibit, in the absence of godparents, to perform the sacrament of baptism over an infant. Therefore, it is necessary to state with confidence the fact that baptism over an infant can be performed in Orthodox churches in the absence of godparents. The child himself is not to blame for the fact that he does not have worthy godparents. Therefore, the Church has no right to deprive a baby of the opportunity to receive the holy sacrament and unite with Christ.
Therefore, you should not despair for those parents who have serious questions when choosing their godparents. Even if there are no worthy recipients of the baby, the baptism will be completed. In this case, the priest who performs the sacrament will formally be considered the godparent.
Some representatives of the clergy even advise to bring a child to baptism without godparents, rather than with godparents, who are completely unaware of the Orthodox faith.
