Smachen-
Being baptized is a requirement for becoming a member of a church. However, you need to proceed cautiously.
Many mainstream denominations require baptism as a prerequisite for membership, but don't recognize it as granting the person who is baptized full membership in their particular denomination. Instead, they require that the person take catechetical classes, where they learn the full fundamentals of Christianity. This enables them to become a member of that church 'with their eyes open', knowing exactly what that church teaches.
But there are other denominations, mostly located in the radical sector or in sects, which teach that baptism is required not only for membership in that particular denomination, but also for salvation. And the only baptism which they recognize as legitimate is baptism by full immersion. Some even go so far as to condemn all who have not been baptized in this manner as not having achieved salvation, and therefore as being condemned. This includes all Christians of other denominations that do not practise baptism by full immersion.
These denominations/sects use baptism by immersion as the means of obtaining new members. From the moment that the person who has been baptized comes up out of the water, that person is a full member of that particular church, even if the person did not realize that by permitting them to baptize them in this manner they were becoming members. If they were members of another denomination at the time of their baptism by immersion, the church secretary of the denomination that 'dunked' them will send a letter to that other church informing them that the person baptized has left it in order to become a member of the baptism-by-immersion church. And since many of them do not recognize any other denomination except for their own as a legitimate church, they will refuse to transfer the membership of the person who was baptized by immersion back to his original church denomination.
Also, the true goal of these denominations/sects is to instill a mindset in the person that causes them to always see salvation as just out of reach. I personally call them 'salvation on a stick' denominations/sects. Following the baptism the people are confronted with a neverending list of Do's and Don't's, many 'laws' of which are designed primarily to give the heirarchy of that church ever-increasing power and authority over all their actions, including their interrelationship with other members of their own family.
Since you live in England, I would suggest that you contact either a Church of England or a Methodist pastor. They are willing to answer your questions, and give you sound advice as to how you should proceed on your journey as a Christian. But stay away from those denominations that proclaim themselves to be the only 'true church', while trying to convince people that their particular heirarchy must be obeyed absolutely, or else the people are lost. In every case where I've seen that tactic used (and I've seen it used a lot in my 66 years), it's been used as a manipulative device in order to bully and intimidate others into acccepting their leadership as their virtual masters.
