The Sacrament of confirmation:
Sometime after baptism, the Church confers a sacrament of strengthening. The word “firm” stands at the centeThe Sacrament of confirmation:
Sometime after baptism, the Church confers a sacrament of strengthening. The word “firm” stands at the center of confirmation, and it is a “firming up” of the Christian. By baptism we are born into family. Through confirmation, God gives us the grace to reach Christian maturity within the family.
The Father sent the Son to give us the Spirit. Christ gives us new life in baptism, but baptism is only the beginning. “Confirmation is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace” (ccc,# 1285). In confirmation, we receive the fullness of the gift of the Holy Spirit.
In the east, this sacrament is called “chrismation” after the oil of chrism that is applied the rite. “Chrism” comes from the same word as “Christ” Christos is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew “Messiah.” Both words mean “anointed one.” When we receive the chrism, we are anointed; we become like Christ; we become Christ.
Christ Himself received his “anointing” from the Father, signified by the descent of the Holy Spirit (Jn 1:32). Afterword Christ confirmed his disciples by giving them the Holy Spirit. (Jn 20:22).
Anointing symbolizes the passing on the power. The Old and New Testament are full of stories of anointing. Kings are anointed as they take the throne. Prophets receive anointing at the beginning of their ministry. Priests anoint successors for their work at the altar.
For our biblical ancestors, olive oil held many powers; it was nourishing in food, a staple of the Mediterranean diet; it fueled the lamps that lit up family homes; it was the base of most medicines; moistened skin dried out by desert climates; it soothed and loosened the limbs of athletes and soldiers. In God’s family the oils of the sacraments do all these things supernaturally. They give strength, light, nourishment and healing.
The early Christians loved the sacrament of confirmation and called it by many poetic names; the laying on of hands, the seal of the Lord; the stamp of the Lord. These are all images of fatherly love for a child reaching maturity.
It is as, if, on confirming us, God imprints us with the signet of the family.
St. Paul said; “but it is God who established us with you in Christ, and has commissioned us, He has put His seal upon us and given us His Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee” (1 Cor 1: 21).
If we are confirmed, then the Holy Spirit dwells within us. We are his temple (1 Cor 6:19).
Tradition describe confirmation as the “seal” of the Holy Spirit. In the ancient world, to bear someone’s seal, or wear it, was to be identified with that person, to be known as that person’s child or servant.
Confirmation marks us as God’s own children. It confers a certain maturity upon us and empowers us to witness to the faith, defend the faith, and live responsibly within the Church.
What we need to do is recognize that confirmation is a once-for-a- lifetime gift, and we can still call upon its grace every day of our lives. We have received all we need to reach spiritual maturity.
We receive what Christian tradition calls the “gifts of the Holy Spirit” wisdom, understanding, knowledge, counsel, piety, fortitude, and fear of the Lord.
We also receive the fruits of the Holy Spirit, charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self control, and chastity.
Do we pray to the Holy Spirit as we pray to the Father and the Son?
Do we pray to him personally? Because he is a person, not a force or an operation or an instrument.
The Spirit’s essential work is to reproduce Christ’s life, suffering, death, and resurrection in each and all of us. If we neglect the spirit, then we are neglecting Christ, too.
