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See Reform Judaism article about its Confirmation ceremony administering Confirmation. Rogier Van Der Weyden , ''The Seven Sacraments'', 15th Century .]] Confirmation is a Rite in many Christian Church es. Roman Catholics , Eastern Orthodox , Oriental Orthodox Churches, and Anglicans , view it as a Sacrament , which in the East is conferred on infants immediately after Baptism , but in the West is usually administered later at the Age Of Reason or in early adolescence. According to Canon Law for the Latin Or Western Catholic Church, the Sacrament is to be conferred on the faithful at about the Age Of Discretion (generally taken to be about 7), unless the Episcopal Conference has decided on a different age, or there is danger of death or, in the judgement of the minister, a grave reason suggests otherwise (canon 891 of the Code of Canon Law). The number of Episcopal Conferences that have set a later age, usually between 14 and 16 years of age, has diminished in recent decades, and even in those countries a bishop may not refuse to confer the sacrament on younger children who request it, provided they are baptized, have the use of reason, are suitably instructed and are properly disposed and able to renew the baptismal promises (letter of the Congregation For Divine Worship And The Discipline Of The Sacraments published in its 1999 bulletin, pages 537-540). In Protestant Churches, the rite tends to be seen rather as a mature statement of Faith by an already Baptised person, usually an Adolescent , and thus as a Rite Of Passage , which, though not as big a change as a Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah , holds a similar meaning. Several secular, mainly Humanist , organizations direct " Civil Confirmation s" for older children, as a statement of their Life Stance , an equivalent alternative to traditional religious ceremonies for children of that age. Some regimes have as a matter of policy fostered the replacement of Christian rituals such as confirmation with non-religious ones. In the historically mainly Protestant , a concept that first appeared in 1852, is described as "a solemn initiation marking the transition from youth to adulthood that was developed in opposition to Protestant and Catholic Churches' Confirmation." {Link without Title} ROMAN CATHOLIC VIEW See Also: Confirmation (Catholic Church) In the teaching of the instituted by Christ for the conferral of sanctifying grace and the strengthening of the union between individual souls and God. The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' in its paragraphs 1302-1303 states: It is evident from its celebration that the effect of the sacrament of Confirmation is the special outpouring of the Holy Spirit as once granted to the Apostles on the day of Pentecost . From this fact, Confirmation brings an increase and deepening of baptismal grace: :- ''it roots us more deeply in the divine filiation which makes us cry, "Abba! Father!" (Romans 8:15);'' :- ''it unites us more firmly to Christ;'' :- ''it increases the gifts of the Holy Spirit in us;'' :- ''it renders our bond with the Church more perfect;'' :- ''it gives us a special strength of the Holy Spirit to spread and defend the faith by word and action as true witnesses of Christ, to confess the name of Christ boldly, and never to be ashamed of the Cross: ::''Recall then that you have received the spiritual seal, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgment and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence, the spirit of holy fear in God's presence. Guard what you have received. God the Father has marked you with his sign; Christ the Lord has confirmed you and has placed his pledge, the Spirit, in your hearts.'' The roots of confirmation are found in , chapter 14 where Christ speaks of the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles. In the Latin-Rite (i.e., Western) Catholic Church, the sacrament is customarily conferred only on persons old enough to understand it, and the ordinary minister of confirmation is a Bishop . Only for a serious reason may the diocesan bishop delegate a Priest to administer the sacrament (canon 884 of the Code of Canon Law). However, a priest is not only by law empowered (canon 883), but, in the absence of a bishop, is obliged"According to the ancient practice maintained in the Roman liturgy, an adult is not to be baptized unless he receives confirmation immediately afterward, provided no serious obstacles exist" (''Christian Initiation of Adults'', 34) to confer the sacrament, if he baptizes someone who is no longer an infant or admits a person already baptized to full Communion , or if the person (adult or child) to be confirmed is in danger of death. Baptism and confirmation of an adult would normally occur at the Easter Vigil . In Eastern Catholic Churches , the usual minister of this sacrament is the parish priest, using olive oil consecrated by a bishop (i.e., '' Chrism ''), and administering the sacrament immediately after Baptism . This corresponds exactly to the practice of the Early Church and the non-Catholic Eastern Churches. "The practice of the Eastern Churches gives greater emphasis to the unity of Christian initiation. That of the Latin Church more clearly expresses the communion of the new Christian with the bishop as guarantor and servant of the unity, catholicity and apostolicity of his Church, and hence the connection with the apostolic origins of Christ's Church."''Catechism of the Catholic Church'', 1292 History of Latin-Rite practice The main reason why the West separated the sacrament of Confirmation from that of Baptism was to reestablish direct contact between the person being initiated with the Bishop. In the early Church, the Bishop administered all three sacraments of initiation (Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist), assisted by the priests and deacons and, where they existed, by deaconesses for women's Baptism. The post-baptismal chrismation in particular was reserved to the Bishop. When adults no longer formed the majority of those being baptised, this chrismation was delayed until the Bishop could confer it. Until the twelfth century, priests often continued to confer Confirmation before giving Communion to very young children.Ronald Minnerath, ''L'ordine dei Sacramenti dell'iniziazione, in L'Osservatore Romano , 23 May 2007 After the 1932 was official permission given to change the traditional order of the three sacraments of Christian initiation: the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments then allowed, where necessary, that Confirmation be administered ''after'' first Holy Communion. This novelty, originally seen as exceptional, became more and more the accepted practice. In the mid-twentieth century, Confirmation thus began to be seen as an occasion for professing personal commitment to the faith on the part of someone approaching adulthood. However, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1308 warns: "Although Confirmation is sometimes called the 'sacrament of Christian maturity,' we must not confuse adult faith with the adult age of natural growth, nor forget that the baptismal grace is a grace of free, unmerited election and does not need 'ratification' to become effective." ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'', 1208 The present (1983) Code of Canon Law maintains the rule in the 1917 Code, stating that the sacrament is to be conferred on the faithful at about the age of discretion (generally taken to be about 7), unless the Episcopal Conference has decided on a different age, or there is danger of death or, in the judgement of the minister, a grave reason suggests otherwise. canon 891 of the Code of Canon Law . The Code lays down the age of discretion also for the sacraments of Penance canon 989 and first Holy Communion. canons 913-914 The number of Episcopal Conferences that have set a later age has diminished in recent decades, and even in those countries a bishop may not refuse to confer the sacrament on younger children who request it, provided they are baptized, have the use of reason, are suitably instructed and are properly disposed and able to renew the baptismal promises (letter of the Congregation For Divine Worship And The Discipline Of The Sacraments published in its 1999 bulletin, pages 537-540). Effects of the sacrament The Catholic Church teaches that, like baptism, confirmation marks the recipient permanently, making it impossible to receive the sacrament twice. It accepts as valid a confirmation conferred within Churches, such as the Eastern Orthodox Church , whose Holy Orders it sees as valid through the Apostolic Succession of their bishops. But it considers it necessary to administer the sacrament of confirmation, in its view for the first and only time, to Protestants who are admitted to full Communion with the Catholic Church. One of the effects of the sacrament is that "it gives us a special strength of the Holy Spirit to spread and defend the faith by word and action as true witnesses of Christ, to confess the name of Christ boldly, and never to be ashamed of the Cross" (''Catechism of the Catholic Church'', 1303). This effect has been described as making the confirmed person "a soldier of Christ". [http://www.cin.org/users/james/ebooks/master/trent/tsacr-c.htm The same passage of the ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' also mentions, as an effect of confirmation, that "it renders our bond with the Church more perfect". This mention stresses the importance of participation in the Christian community. The "soldier of Christ" imagery, which remains valid but is downplayed if seen as part of the once common idea of confirmation as a "sacrament of maturity" [http://www.eriercd.org/theology05.asp , was used as far back as 350, by St Cyril of Jerusalem. In this connection, the touch on the cheek that the bishop gave while saying "Pax tecum" (Peace be with you) to the person he had just confirmed was interpreted in the Roman Pontifical as a slap, a reminder to be brave in spreading and defending the faith: "Deinde leviter eum in maxilla caedit, dicens: Pax tecum" (Then he strikes him lightly on the cheek, saying: Peace be with you). When, in application of the Second Vatican Council 's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, [http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html the confirmation rite was revised in 1971, mention of this gesture was omitted. However, the French and Italian translations, indicating that the bishop should accompany the words "Peace be with you" with "a friendly gesture" (French text) or "the sign of peace" (Italian text), explicitly allow a gesture such as the touch on the cheek, to which they restore its original meaning. This is in accord with the Introduction to the Rite of Confirmation, 17, which indicates that the episcopal conference may decide "to introduce a different manner for the minister to give the sign of peace after the anointing, either to each individual or to all the newly confirmed together." Information on other effects and broader matters concerning this sacrament can be found in the ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'', 1285-1321. Confirmation name In many English -speaking countries and in German -speaking lands, as well as in Poland, it is customary for a person being confirmed in the Roman Catholic Church (and some Anglican dioceses) to adopt the name of a Saint with whom he/she feels a special affinity, thus securing an additional Patron Saint to be his/her protector and guide. This practice is unknown in many other countries (including the Spanish and French -speaking ones and also Italy ), and is not mentioned in the official liturgical book of the Rite of Confirmation. Obviously, the custom prevailing in a country influences, often decisively, the practice of immigrants from another country, even if they keep their own language. The saint's name is often used in conjunction with the confirmee's Middle Name , and is without effect in civil law, unless, of course, the confirmand pursues the appropriate legal avenues. ORTHODOX VIEWS See Also: Chrismation Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox prefer to speak of this sacrament (or, more properly, Sacred Mystery ), which they closely link with baptism, as Chrismation , a term that Roman Catholics too use in Italian (''cresima''). These Churches confer chrismation immediately after Baptism , even on infants, as do Eastern Catholic Churches . The Roman Catholic Church does not confirm converts to Catholicism who have been chrismated in an Eastern Church, considering that the sacrament has been validly conferred and may not be repeated. When Roman Catholics (and some Protestants) convert to Orthodoxy, they are admitted by chrismation, without baptism; but, since this is a matter of Local Episcopal Discretion , a bishop may require all converts to be admitted by baptism, if he deems it necessary. Depending upon the form of the original baptism, some Protestants ''must'' be baptized upon conversion to Orthodoxy. ANGLICAN VIEW The traditional view of the . PROTESTANT VIEWS In other Protestant churches, confirmation is often called a "rite" rather than a sacrament, and is held to be merely symbolic rather than an effective means of conferring divine Grace . In Protestant groups where baptism in the early teens is the norm, confirmation is often not practiced at all. The Roman Catholic Church does not recognize the sacramental validity of Protestant confirmations, and therefore does confirm converts from Protestantism. Lutheran view Lutheran confirmation (in - ''Ministers Desk Edition'', p.324). The German-language Wikipedia article linked to the present one in English concerns ''Firmung'' , the sacrament; a separate article, ''Konfirmation'' describes the history and practice of the non-sacramental ceremony in use in Lutheran and other Protestant Churches in place of the Catholic sacrament. In Lutheran Churches only baptism and the eucharist (and, among some Lutherans, sacramental confession) are regarded as dominical sacraments of the Gospel. United Methodist view In the United Methodist Church , Confirmation is a rite where baptized individuals recognize the work of God's grace as well as an embrace of being a disciple. It is the first public affirmation of the grace of God in one's Baptism and the acknowledgment of one's acceptance of that grace by faith. It often occurs when youth enter their junior high school years, but it may occur at any time that a person is ready to profess their faith. The General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church: Confirmation LATTER DAY SAINT MOVEMENT See Also: Gift of the Holy Ghost In the , which provides the recipient with Spiritual Gift s. It consists of a member of the Priesthood laying their hands on the participant's head and saying a blessing, and telling them to "receive the Holy Ghost". REPETITION OF THE SACRAMENT Western Christians do not normally confirm anyone who has already been validly confirmed. The Roman Catholic Church sees confirmation as one of the three sacraments that no one can receive more than once (see Sacramental Character ). In Catholic understanding, the confirmation conferred in a Protestant or Anglican Church is not valid, for lack of a properly Ordained minister; accordingly, confirmation is usually administered to those who enter the Catholic Church from those Churches. In the Anglican Communion, a person who was previously confirmed by a validly-ordained bishop in another denomination is "received" rather than confirmed again. However, the Episcopal Church USA recognizes non-episcopal confirmations as well. Eastern Orthodox Churches occasionally practise what is seen by other Christians as "re-chrismation", in that they usually chrismate/confirm - and sometimes rebaptize - a convert, even one previously confirmed in other Churches. The justification is that the new chrismation (or baptism) is the only valid one, the earlier one being administered outside of the Church and hence being little more than a symbol. The Eastern Orthodox will also chrismate an , even though they were required to be baptized and chrismated before they could assume the throne. However, this was not considered a repetition of their previous chrismation, but a further sacramental act of Anointing . REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
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