Programs
Confirmation Program
About the Confirmation Program
Our emphasis is and will continue to be focused on the Mass. Coming together as a faith community to share in the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist is essential to living our Catholic faith and we encourage families to attend whichever Mass best fits into your schedule. Again, there are four options: Saturday Vigil Mass at 4 p.m., and Sunday Masses at 8 a.m., 9:30 a.m., and 11:15 a.m.
- Teens in Grades 9 & 10 will meet twice per month Sunday evenings beginning in October (4:30 p.m. – 5:45 p.m. for grade 9 and 6 p.m. – 7:15 p.m. for grade 10). The Confirmation Program is a two-year program, and like other sacramental programs, it is very important that your teen attends every session. Excessive absences will require additional preparation on the part of the family in coordination with the Faith Formation Office in order for your child to celebrate the sacrament.
The sacrament of Confirmation is one of the three sacraments of Christian initiation, together with Baptism and the Eucharist. One is confirmed after a long period of reflection, fellowship, and formation, which at our parish extends over two years. In the Sacrament of Confirmation, we as Catholics believe that the one confirmed is rooted more deeply in an awareness of being a child of God the Father, united more closely with Jesus Christ and his Church, and granted more fully what we call the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, discernment, courage, knowledge, reverence, and wonder.
Confirmation is sometimes called “the sacrament of Christian maturity.” Through it, candidates are prepared to be full, adult members of our Catholic Christian community and participate fully in the life of the Church. As the Catechism states, Confirmation also strengthens the one confirmed to share his or her faith openly with others, to stand by it and defend it, and never to feel ashamed of it, even if this means swimming against the currents of the time.
Confirmation Sponsors
A beautiful part of Confirmation is that each candidate selects a person to be his or her sponsor. Ideally this is someone the candidate is comfortable with and with whom he or she can talk about the life of faith, both during the preparation process and in years to come. Sponsors are invited and encouraged to take part in any activity in the Confirmation program, though we know that many are from out of town and may be unable to do so. The only time when a candidate’s Sponsor is required to be at the parish is at the Confirmation ceremony itself. A Sponsor must meet several criteria, according to Canon Law:
- he or she cannot be the candidate’s parent,
- must be at least sixteen years of age,
- must have received Sacraments of Baptism, Eucharist, Reconciliation, and Confirmation
- must be a member of a parish and attend Mass regularly
- if he or she is married, his or her marriage must be recognized by the Catholic Church
The Archdiocese requires that what is called a Sponsor Certificate Form be submitted for each candidate. This is a solemn affirmation — signed by the Sponsor — that the Sponsor meets these criteria. Sponsor Certificate Forms will be provided to candidates in class and are available on our website. Candidates should make sure their Sponsor gets the form and completes it. Sponsors may download the form from our website, then print, sign, and mail it to us. Forms are valid for one year and may be used for only one candidate. They are submitted in a candidate’s second year.