Before you start reading and completing this assignment, take a moment to offer a prayer.God of steadfast love, I ask that you will help me to keep a focused mind as I participate in the process leading to my Confirmation. As I begin this assignment, help me to be aware of your presence in this place where I work. Give me your strength and guidance. Help me to imitate Jesus so that I may become more like him. Bless my family and friends, and thank you for the freedom to learn about and worship you. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Review of last week's assignment
Last week we looked at the meaning of baptism. Put simply, baptism means participating in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus went down into the river Jordan and was baptized in solidarity with sinners fulfil all righteousness (Matt. 3:15). This baptism led Jesus along the way of the Suffering Servant, made manifest in his sufferings, death and resurrection (Mark 10:38-40, 45). By baptism, Christians are immersed in the liberating death of Christ where their sins are buried, where the "old Adam" is crucified with Christ, and where the power of sin is broken. Thus those baptized are no longer slaves to sin, but free. Fully identified with the death of Christ, they are buried with him and are raised here and now to a new life in the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, confident that they will also ultimately be one with him in a resurrection like his (Rom. 6:3-11; Col. 2:13, 3:1; Eph. 2:5-6).
Why is there such a thing as Confirmation, anyway?
Actually, confirmation was not part of the church before the 4th Century AD. The main reason for this was that in order to be baptized, a preparation period of about 3 years was required. Only adults were baptized, not because there was any prejudice against infant baptism, but because in a world where Christianity was such a minority the odds of anyone being born in a Christian household were very small. There was no such thing as a ‘cradle Christian,’ because almost no one would have had two Christian parents.
In a world where the only people who are baptized are adults, and where those adults are only baptized after a 3-year period of instruction and formation, there was no need for confirmation. The bishop, who would have been bishop of only a small area, such as a city, would have done all the baptisms, and would have laid hands on all the candidates for baptism as part of the service. So for many years there was no separate confirmation.
Soon after the legalization of Christianity in 313 AD, there came the problem of what to do with infants who were being raised in Christian households. In addition, as bishops acquired more territory to oversee, it became impossible for them to officiate at every baptism. It was at this point that infant baptism became an option, and that confirmation began to be separated from baptism.
Today we have reached back to the early church’s understanding in many ways. Baptism is not a partial initiation requiring confirmation to complete it. Baptism, by itself, is full and complete. (By the way, in the Anglican Church we demonstrate this by allowing children to receive communion as soon as they and their parents are ready, at whatever age that may be).
So why do we bother with confirmation at all? For four reasons; first, just as there was a three year instruction period in the early Church, confirmation preparation today provides opportunity for instruction, for teaching, for self-discovery. There is still a need for young people to have a chance to think critically about the vows that were made on their behalf when they were children.
Second, confirmation is an opportunity to affirm personally the baptismal vows made by parents and godparents. It’s about “growing up” in the faith and making a mature decision for oneself. The service of confirmation is a public statement of faith in Jesus Christ.
Third, confirmation is a rite in which we receive the strengthening of the Holy Spirit. In the moment that you are confirmed, the Bishop will lay his hands on your head and pray: “Strengthen, O Lord, your servant N with your Holy Spirit; empower him/her for your service; and sustain him/her all the days of his/her life.”
Fourth, confirmation is a statement that you are a member not only of a local parish church but also of the wider church, as symbolized in the Bishop.
By the way, if a person has been baptized in another church denomination, it is not necessary for them to be re-baptized. Baptism is what symbolizes a person’s conversion to Christ as Saviour and Lord. If, however, the person who comes into the Anglican Church has been confirmed in another denomination, that person will be either “received” or confirmed by the Bishop. In the Anglican Church, baptism is about becoming a Christian, and a member of the Church; confirmation is about becoming a member of the Anglican Church.
Assignment
Based on the reading above, complete the following questions on your own blog:
- Why did confirmation not exist before Christianity became legal in 313 AD?
- How long was the preparation period in the earliest church?
- What are the four reasons for confirmation?
On the Comment section of the Online Learning Space, and combining what you learned about the definition of a sacrament in last week’s assignment with what you’ve read about confirmation this week, write 50 words about how confirmation conforms to the definition of a sacrament.
