Bishop Samuel J. Aquila of Fargo in a recent lecture examined the
sacrament of confirmation and explained his reasons for believing
children should receive it before First Eucharist.
“One can speak
of the many effects of confirmation and the impact it makes upon one’s
life, but it is always important to remember that the divine person of
the Holy Spirit is received in confirmation,” he said in July 6 remarks
at the Liturgical Institute at Mundelein Seminary.
“We need the gifts of
the Holy Spirit, every day, every hour, every minute and every second
to live a life that gives glory to the Father as Jesus glorified the
Father.”
The bishop explained that he had initially favored the
view that confirmation was a “sacrament of maturity” that should be
reserved to high school students only.
However, his view changed after
further studies, work with the sacraments of initiation and experience
with young children who were confirmed when they entered the Church.
Placing
confirmation after First Communion “only muddied the primacy of the
Eucharist as the completion of initiation into the Church and the
life-long nourishment of the relationship established with the Trinity
and the Church in the sacraments of baptism and confirmation,” the Fargo
bishop said.
In an August 2002 pastoral letter, Bishop Aquila
instructed that after children receive the sacrament of reconciliation
in second grade, they should receive confirmation and First Eucharist in
the third grade during the same Mass.
The bishop’s July 6 remarks
surveyed the history the sacrament. Originally, confirmation was part
of a “continuous rite of initiation” leading up to the reception of the
Holy Eucharist.
This is still the practice in the Eastern Catholic
Churches.
After the fifth century, Bishop Aquila said, it became
difficult in the West for a bishop to travel to all parishes to baptize
and confirm all at once and so the administration of the sacraments
became separated.
The custom of receiving First Communion as a
second grader and later receiving confirmation in middle or high school
is “a recent practice of the Church” and the Second Vatican council had
called for a revision of the rite of confirmation.
Turning to the
present administration of the sacrament, Bishop Aquila questioned
whether the common placement of confirmation in late adolescence treats
it as “a reward, or worse, as something earned or deserved for
attendance and work in a parish catechetical program.”
“Should the
fear of not receiving a sacrament ever be used as a means to keep a
young person involved in the life of the Church? Should the gift and
strengthening of the Holy Spirit be denied young persons in their most
formative years?” he asked.
Bishop Aquila also wondered whether
the special attention and length of preparation given to confirmation
makes many perceive it to be more important than baptism and the
Eucharist.
The view that confirmation is a way for young people to
make a personal commitment to their faith “distorts” the sacrament, he
said.
“Confirmation is not marked by a choice to believe or not
believe in the Catholic faith. Rather as disciples we are chosen by God
to receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit, to be sealed with the gift
of the Holy Spirit generously bestowed by God, and we are called to
cooperate with that grace,” he explained.
Confirmation confers a
gift of the Holy Spirit that is ordered to “the life of worship,” the
bishop said while summarizing Catholic thought. It helps the person
achieve a “more perfect integration” into the Body of Christ. This helps
us understand how confirmation is ordered to the Eucharist.
In
this light, it appears “odd” to have someone participate in the
Eucharistic life of the Church if he or she has not received “the seal
of the Holy Spirit which perfects the personal bond with the community.”
While some have said that maturity is necessary for the sacrament, the bishop said that children can be mature spiritually.
“If
they are mature enough to receive the Eucharist, the crown of the
sacraments, are they not mature enough to receive a sacrament that is
ordered to it?” he asked.
“I have found the third graders to be
most receptive to the gifts of the Holy Spirit and their childlike trust
and wonder is beautiful to behold. Many times their ability to see the
truth and have complete trust in God is strikingly better than our own.
It allows for a deeper receptivity of the graces of the sacrament.”
By contrast, too many young adults have regressed spiritually into a state of indifference or despondence towards God.
He
suggested that restoring the order of the sacraments of initiation will
aid the local community in forming effective catechesis which
acknowledges growth in faith as a life-long process.