Confirmation

Confirmation, along with Baptism and Eucharist, is one of the three sacraments of initiation. At Confirmation, the Holy Spirit strengthens the baptized Christian and endows her or him with gifts to enable us to carry out our mission to be Christ in the world and to continue building God’s kingdom. To be fully a member of the Catholic Church, one needs to be baptized, confirmed and receive First Communion (Eucharist). The essential rite of the sacrament is conferred through anointing with chrism on the forehead and the words: “Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit.” The sign of peace follows the anointing.

Often the sacrament is conferred upon teenagers, although some receive it closer to their baptismal age. The practice in much of this country is to confirm during the middle school years, letting confirmation come as the mark of a more mature decision for membership in the church where the young person is invited to choose to follow Christ teachings as a Catholic.

If you are a baptized Catholic, age 21 or older, have received First Holy Communion and wish to complete your initiation into the Catholic faith, the Adult Confirmation process is the right one for you.

A bishop usually confers the sacrament. Those receiving the sacrament often take a “confirmation name,” although there is no requirement to do so. A “sponsor” promises to guide the young person in faith much like the “godparent” they had at Baptism.

Before Jesus ascended into heaven, he told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem so that they could be baptized by the Holy Spirit. When about 120 of Jesus’ disciples were gathered the Holy Spirit came in the form of wind and fire. Filled with the Holy Spirit, the disciples understood that God was anointing them for a special mission .

The early Christians made sure, then, that whenever they brought people into the Church, they would baptize them with water and then anoint them with oil. Why oil? Oil had been used in the Old Testaments to anoint priests, prophets, and kings. The early Christians realized that their community was “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation” . Each new member was anointed with oil after being baptized with water.

Catholics believe that when you receive the Sacrament of Confirmation, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit—wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord— are strengthened in you. And if that is true, then it should be obvious to anyone who encounters you, because you should be exhibiting the fruits of those gifts. They should see in you  a special kind of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.

At Epiphany, school children receive Confirmation in seventh grade, after completing a program on the Sacrament that is offered by the Epiphany School or by our Religious Education Program by the Director of Faith Formation. At Epiphany, children are usually confirmed in May or June. Adults receive Confirmation after completing our Order of Christian Initiation for Adults program, which is offered by our Director of Faith Formation.  Traditionally, adult Confirmation is conferred during Epiphany’s Easter Vigil Mass on Holy Saturday.

For more information, contact Tadhg Malone faithformation@epiphanychurch.nyc