Florida Catholic | Confirmation: Continuation Of The Catholic Journey

CONFIRMATION: Part 2

The continuation of the journey

FATHER JOHN J. LUDDEN | SPECIAL TO THE FLORIDA CATHOLIC

Published: 06.06.08

From late March to early June, nearly 3,000 young people at 41 parishes in the Diocese of Venice received the sacrament of confirmation from Bishop Frank J. Dewane. Another 185 will receive the sacrament at seven more ceremonies in the fall. The following is the second of two parts of a column about the sacred rite of confirmation.

The rite of confirmation contains many signs of the sacred which point to the importance of this sacrament. The ordinary minister of the sacrament of confirmation in the Latin Rite is the bishop. “Bishops are the successors of the apostles. They have received the fullness of the sacrament of holy orders. The administration of this sacrament by them demonstrates clearly that its effect is to unite those who receive it more closely to the church, to her apostolic origins, and to her mission of bearing witness to Christ” (CCC 1313).

The presence of the bishop reminds the candidates that they belong to a wider community, which encompasses the universal church. The very presence of the bishop as a successor of the apostles, reminds the candidates they are part of the same reality experienced in the early church. The bishop asks the candidates to renew their baptismal promises as a sign of their personal assent to the faith. This is the candidates’ “yes” to their belief in Christ and his universal church.

The bishop also extends his hands over the candidates during the rite. This action is called “the laying on of hands.” Here, the bishop imparts the Holy Spirit upon the candidates, completing the grace of their baptism. This practice, as well as the imposition of the Holy Spirit upon Christians was commonly experienced in the early church. Peter invites people to be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). The apostles Peter and John come to lay their hands on the people of Samaria after they have received baptism from Philip (Acts 8:5-17).

In this action the sevenfold gifts of the Spirit are bestowed upon the candidates. The bishop prays: “Send your Holy Spirit upon them to be their helper and guide. Give them the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgment and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence. Fill them with the spirit of wonder and awe in your presence” (Rite of Confirmation). Just as the Spirit gave birth to the early church and ignited the early Christians with an energy that became explosive in giving witness to the message of Christ, the Spirit infuses the confirmandi with a newfound confidence to courageously proclaim Jesus’ message to a world filled with signs that are contrary to the Gospel.

After the laying on of hands, each candidate stands before the bishop. The bishop calls each candidate by name and anoints the forehead with sacred chrism. It is the custom of the West to choose the name of a saint or to use the name given in baptism, presuming that is a saint’s name. A name points to a special identity. When the name of a saint is used in this rite, the earnest desire of the church is that the candidate will in some way emulate the qualities of this saintly example in their own life. The sacred chrism reminds us of the sweet fragrance of Christ’s presence offering us grace.

In biblical times, anointing was seen as a symbol of strengthening someone. As the bishop anoints the candidate, he says, “Be sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit.” The seal is the indelible mark imprinted upon the candidate’s soul. The confirmandi are marked out with a special dignity and anointed to share in Christ’s mission. As St. Ambrose writes to the confirmed Christians, “Recall then that you have received the spiritual seal. … Guard what you have received. God the Father has marked you with his sign; Christ the Lord has confirmed you and place his pledge, the Spirit, in your hearts” (De Mysteriis: 7, 42).

Confirmation is a sacrament in which the candidate completes the grace given in baptism. It is a sacrament in which we recall our great heritage of faith and receive the same Holy Spirit gifted to the disciples at Pentecost. During the celebration of the sacrament of confirmation we are endowed with the gifts of the Spirit, which empower us to spread and defend our faith.

We are gifted with wisdom and understanding to help us discern God’s will in our everyday experiences. The spirit of right judgment and courage are gifted in confirmation to enable us to read the signs of the time and to respond courageously as Jesus would respond especially in difficult situations.

Through knowledge and reverence, we are gifted with knowledge of the sacred in those created realities around us and in the dignity of every human person, responding to these realities with the utmost reverence and respect. In confirmation we are filled with a spirit and awe of God. In this gift we realize it was God who has created us, shaped us and called us to salvation as his sons and daughters. In this sacrament we are asked to look at the ordinary and discover what is extraordinary.

Confirmation reminds all those who have been fully initiated into the church that they are all entrusted with the priestly, prophetic and kingly office of Jesus Christ. In this sense, confirmation is not to be seen as the end of our journey of faith. It is rather a continuation of the journey that leads us deeper into the reality of God. We are strengthened by the Holy Spirit to courageously give witness to our faith in word and deed.

Father Ludden is pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Port Charlotte. Part 2 will appear in the June 6-19 issue.

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CONFIRMATION: Part 2

The continuation of the journey

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