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1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction...5 Session One: Sacraments and Symbols...9 Session Two: Water and Baptism...21 Session Three: Bread, Wine, and the Eucharist...30 Session Four: Immediate Preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation: Oil, Laying on of Hands, Confirmation...38 Session Five: Mystagogical Reflection on the Celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation...48 Appendix...55

2 preface Many of us working in parishes are perplexed when catechized, active Catholics come to us seeking to complete their initiation with the sacrament of confirmation. Their situation is unique, since they clearly do not belong in existing parish catechetical or formational structures. Their place is not with children preparing for confirmation, nor is it appropriate for them to be in the RCIA as they are catechized. They do, however, need sacramental preparation. This resource was born out of frustration over what to do with such folks. It was born from efforts to minister to the needs of adult Catholics seeking confirmation. It flows from the Church s understanding of sacramental theology, the liturgical and catechetical documents, and most importantly from the rite of confirmation. The work accomplished in the area of catechesis, especially sacramental catechesis in recent years, served as the guidepost in this endeavor. I would like especially to acknowledge Sister Linda Gaupin, CDP, Ph.D., and her work in this area for the inspiration behind this material. I invite you to adapt this material in whatever way suits your circumstances. There are four preparation sessions and one mystagogical session following the celebration of the sacrament. However, depending on the size of your group and the time allocated for your meetings, you may want to extend some of the sessions. For example, if you decide that there is too much material and too many group exercises for the time you have allotted for a meeting, extend the session to the following week. Begin that session with the same liturgy as the week before, and continue at your predetermined location in the material. It is my sincere desire that this material will help candidates for confirmation, sponsors, catechists, and parishioners to encounter the Spirit of God in new and refreshing ways in order to more fully prepare the community to taste the Lord s goodness embodied in the sacramental experience of confirmation. Mary Birmingham n n 4 n

3 introduction Sue is an active Catholic who never completed her sacraments of initiation. She was never confirmed. Her family experienced a series of stressful situations during the time when Sue would normally have celebrated the sacrament of confirmation in her parish, and for various reasons she was unable to be confirmed with her peers. Sue is now a very active adult who desires to complete her initiation. John is a young adult preparing for the sacrament of marriage. During that preparation, John remembered that he had never been confirmed. John drifted away from the Church for a few of his college years, but after returning to the Church five years ago, has been involved in the life of his parish community. What is a parish to do with such folks? The practice varies from parish to parish, diocese to diocese. They certainly do not belong with the young folks (often adolescents) who are preparing for the sacrament of confirmation. Nor do they belong in the catechumenate, which unfortunately is often where they are placed. The catechumenate was never intended to be the locus of formation for active, catechized Catholics. The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults insists that preparation for the sacraments of confirmation and Eucharist for baptized, uncatechized adult Catholics follow a plan of catechesis similar to the one laid down for catechumens (RCIA, 402). Catechized, active Catholics certainly do not fall within the category of uncatechized Roman Catholics or baptized members of another Christian community (RCIA, 400). Where, then, do catechized Catholics who wish to complete their sacraments of initiation by celebrating the sacrament of confirmation belong? Several church documents help answer that question by giving us a glimpse of what their formation should entail. The General Directory for Catechesis situates every catechetical endeavor within an initiatory model of catechesis. That means that all catechetical activity preparatory and otherwise is to have at its center and heart conversion to Christ. All catechesis is to foster an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, which in turn calls for a radical commitment to living and promoting his gospel. Formation for the sacrament of confirmation, then, is conversion-centered. Sacramental theology reminds us that God desires to be in intimate relationship with human beings. Since the beginning of the world God entered into relationship with us. God s presence is and was manifest through all creation. People chose to turn away from God, to ignore God s presence. But God still desired to restore humanity s broken relationship. Thus, Jesus Christ was sent to manifest God s saving presence to a recalcitrant world. Through his saving action on the cross Christ reconciled us to God. When Jesus returned to God, he sent the Holy Spirit to the church to continue his saving mission in the world. n n 5 n

4 INTRODUCTION The Church prescribed certain symbolic actions sacraments that recall the mission of Jesus and help us touch God s saving presence in our lives. Sacraments are encounters with the saving presence and action of God. Sacraments are actions of God s Spirit, the One who brings transformation. They are public, communal celebrations of faith. They are not private, personal objects that a person gets at the sacramental moment. Sacraments build up the community; their purpose is to make us holy. The various catechetical directories remind us that there are two kinds of sacramental catechesis. The first is the catechesis that prepares people for the initial celebration of the sacrament; the second is the catechesis that provides enrichment following the celebration of the sacrament. Preparatory catechesis occurs over a specified time period before the sacramental celebration. The catechesis that follows the sacrament is lifelong. Thus, if all catechesis is initiatory (conversion-centered), if sacraments are communal celebrations of God s saving presence and action, and if their purpose is to make us holy in order to go out and more effectively practice charity in the world, then formation for the celebration of a particular sacrament must help those who are preparing for it to fully, consciously, and actively encounter the sacramental mysteries inherent in its celebration. Confirmation is one of three sacraments of initiation. Through the waters of new birth and life, baptism offers life; it initiates us into the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. Confirmation strengthens that life and confers the Holy Spirit. The reception of First Holy Communion initiates us into the Eucharistic community. It sustains us with Christ s Body, present in community, word, and sacrament. Ordinarily confirmation takes place within Mass in order to express more clearly the fundamental connection of this sacrament with the entirety of Christian initiation. The latter reaches its culmination in the communion of the body and blood of Christ (Rite of Confirmation, 13). In summary, baptism offers life, confirmation strengthens life, and Eucharist sustains it. The three sacraments are intimately connected and as such reflection on all three is integral to the preparatory process. Finally, sacramental preparation can be reduced to a few principles. The period of preparation is brief in duration, a few weeks perhaps. Since the duration of sacramental preparation is brief, it might be advisable to begin this pastoral formation a month or two before confirmation is to be celebrated in the parish. (1) Formation for the sacrament of confirmation is rooted in the community. It is the responsibility of the community to nurture faith and lead people to the sacraments (RCIA, 9). Thus, preparation for the sacrament belongs in the midst of the celebrating community. Ideally members of the community would be invited to gather with those who are preparing for confirmation. Weeks before the celebration of confirmation in the parish, all would gather for celebrations of the Liturgy of the Word. These liturgies, rooted in the scriptures that reveal and express the theology of confirmation the readings appointed in the appendix to the Rite n n 6 n

5 INTRODUCTION of Confirmation serve as the basis and springboard for further catechesis on the sacrament. Following the Liturgy of the Word, all present might engage in age-appropriate, conversioncentered catechesis on the sacrament that flows from the Liturgy of the Word. I am grateful to Sister Linda Gaupin, a pioneer in developing such a model. The genesis of this resource was the need to prepare adults who, for one reason or another, were unable to participate in the wider parish preparation sessions. The sessions might include persons preparing for confirmation, their sponsors and family, and members of the community. This resource includes four preparation sessions and a mystagogical session following the celebration of the sacrament. Each session begins with a Liturgy of the Word that anticipates, reveals, and gives meaning to the sacrament of confirmation. Formation is based on the rite itself: the Apostolic Constitution, the Introduction, ritual prayers, scriptures, gestures, and symbolic actions. The primary text for preparing people for the sacrament of confirmation is the ritual text for the rite itself: the 2006 Rite of Confirmation. The preparation for and celebration of sacraments presuppose faith and invite it. Sacramental preparation both assumes and invites conversion. Preparation and celebration invite deep, personal, and outward-focused metanoia and transformation. Sacramental catechesis includes preparation for the actual celebration of the sacrament. Sacramental preparation and formation help those being formed to participate consciously, actively, and fully in the sacramental celebration. Thus, it makes sense to begin each session with a celebration of the Liturgy of the Word, resplendent with the lections, symbols, music, and orations from the Rite of Confirmation. This not only prepares for and anticipates confirmation, but also expresses its theology. Every preparation session begins with a celebration of the word in which the scriptures, symbols, music, and ritual prayers of confirmation are anticipated. When the music that will be sung at confirmation is used in every preparation session, the people know it so well by the time confirmation is celebrated that they sing it with energy and ownership. The scriptures appointed for the rite of confirmation (RC, Appendix) provide the biblical warrant, understanding, and theology of confirmation and whet the appetite to feast on God s word in prayer, scripture, and homily when the rite is celebrated. When used in the formation of those who are preparing for this sacrament, the scriptural repertoire helps set forth its meaning. Similarly, the prayer options included in the ritual text also highlight confirmation s meaning and are wonderful prayers to use in the Liturgy of the Word that begins each session. So, to answer the original question, What is a parish to do with persons such as Sue and John?, this book provides a series of formation sessions in which a community gathers for a celebration of the word, followed by a preparation session that flows from the liturgy and the rite of confirmation. The primary context for preparation is the liturgy, not catechetical formation, though it includes it. Ultimately, that means that the sessions that follow the n n 7 n

6 INTRODUCTION liturgy are intended to reflect mystagogically on the liturgy just celebrated. Reflection on the symbols, scriptures, orations, and theology of confirmation invites conversion and thus constitutes proximate sacramental preparation. These gatherings are to be held in close proximity to the actual celebration of confirmation in the parish. There is also a mystagogical session after confirmation in which the sacramental experience is unpacked and meaning is gleaned for one s life. Mystagogia reflecting on the sacramental mystery is critical to the sacramental experience. It has ancient roots in the church. St. Ambrose preached to the newly initiated members about how excited he was finally to speak to them of baptism, confirmation, and Eucharist. He could not do so before their initiation because they could never fully appreciate the meaning of the sacraments until they tasted them in the sacramental encounter. Notes 1. Catholics are ordered to the rite of confirmation in which the bishop is the ordinary minister. Canon law provides the faculty for the pastor of the parish to baptize and confirm the elect. No such faculty is extended for confirming Catholics, however. The assumption is that Catholics will be confirmed by the bishop or a priest with the faculty to confirm.

7 Session one Sacraments and Symbols n Preparation Materials needed: Bible or Lectionary, sheet with opening song and psalm text, or hymnals. Create an environment with cross, book, water, oil, bread, and wine. Be attentive to the liturgical season and incorporate prayers, images, and color from the season. n Liturgy of the Word Opening Song (All stand.) Choose a song that will be used for the celebration of confirmation. If a musician is not available, most of the repertoire today is available inexpensively in mp3 format. Sign of the Cross Opening Prayer Let us pray in the Spirit who dwells within us. Pause for silent prayer. Grant, we pray, almighty God, that the splendor of your glory may shine forth upon us and that, by the bright rays of the Holy Spirit, the light of your light may confirm the hearts of those born again by your grace. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. R/. Amen. (Pentecost, At the Vigil Mass [Simple Form], The Roman Missal) Reading (All sit.) Choose one of the biblical readings from the Old or New Testament appointed for the rite of confirmation included in the appendix in the Rite of Confirmation. See the appendix at the end of this book for a list of those readings. Responsorial Psalm Choose a responsorial psalm that will be used at the celebration of confirmation in your parish. Utilize one of the following options: 1. Ask parish musicians for assistance to lead the singing. 2. Provide a recording to support the singing. 3. Provide a song sheet with the music that will be sung at confirmation. n n 9 n

8 Session one Gospel Choose a Gospel text from the selection of biblical readings appointed for the rite of confirmation. See RC appendix or the appendix of this book. Ritual: Signing Each Person with the Cross (All stand.) Let us pray. Almighty God, you have given life to your children by the life, death, and resurrection of your Son Jesus. For so great a gift we thank and praise you. Through baptism we have all been marked with the sign of Christ: the sign of the cross. It is our faith and our heritage. May the Spirit of God renew you in its power. Sign each person on the forehead and say: I sign you with the cross of Christ. By this sign of his love and sacrifice may you be reminded that Christ alone is your strength. Intercessions For all who are preparing to celebrate the sacrament of confirmation: May their preparation be a time of deep conversion in their lives, we pray to the Lord. For all who are hearing the call of faith for the first time, that the Spirit of God continue to light a fire in their hearts, we pray to the Lord. For all who are presently in our initiation processes and who are preparing for the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and Eucharist: May God s Spirit be upon them and may they receive the support of the Christian community, we pray to the Lord. For all the sick, suffering, homeless, depressed, hungry, and brokenhearted people in our midst and in the world: May they be touched by the mercy and healing love of God and by the service of compassionate Christians, we pray to the Lord. For all who are gathered here (include their names): May the Spirit of God be upon them, and may they experience the love of Christ through the love and prayers of this community, we pray to the Lord. Lord s Prayer Let us pray the prayer that Jesus taught us. Our Father... n 10 n n

9 Concluding Prayer Creator God, we are confident that you are with us to teach us, guide us, and prepare our hearts for the celebration of your sacrament of love. Open our hearts to receive your word and to live it in our lives. We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/. Amen. sacraments and symbols n Mystagogical Reflection on the Liturgy of the Word Break into small groups and invite participants to respond to the following questions. Surface insights in the wider group. Reflection on the Symbols What did you experience in this liturgy? What did it teach you about God, the Holy Spirit, the Church? What were the primary symbols and what did they mean? What did the signing of the cross mean to you and what did it express? If someone asked you to give an explanation and a theology of what you just experienced in liturgy, what would you tell them? In what way has God called you to carry the cross in your own life? Reflection on Scripture Participants reflect on the Gospel that was proclaimed (chosen from the scriptural repertoire in the Rite of Confirmation s appendix). Participants reflect on what they heard, what it meant to them, and how it invites them to live or become transformed. Experience: What spoke to your heart in this Gospel reading? (All share.) Understanding: What do you think this Gospel means? What do you think it meant to the people who heard it during Jesus time? Vision/Tradition: Catechist presents a brief explanation or interpretation of the Gospel. Testing the Vision/Tradition: Were there any new insights for you? Was there anything you had not considered? In what way does this Gospel invite a change of attitude or way of thinking and behaving? Decision: In what way does this scripture invite you to be a better disciple of Christ? In what way does this Gospel challenge the way you behave in the marketplace, at home, and/or with your family and friends? What are you willing to commit to at this time in your life attitude change, behavior change, moral action? Take a stretch break and then continue with the catechetical session. n 11 n n

10 Session one n Catechetical/Mystagogical Session Welcome and Hospitality Introductions: Invite participants to get acquainted with one another. (Who are they? What is their background? What is their family experience?) Introductory comments: (In similar words) The Church directs that when we prepare people for the sacraments we are to envision this preparation as an opportunity for conversion. Sacraments are opportunities to deepen our faith in Christ and grow in that relationship with others. Thus, you are not here simply to learn about the sacrament, although learning is part of the process of preparation. You are here to prepare for confirmation and to grow in faith. You will prepare to encounter the Spirit of God in the celebration of the sacrament of confirmation. Part of that preparation will include sharing faith with other people who are here for the same purpose. Group Process (10 minutes) Let s start by asking one another: What brings you here? Why do you want to be confirmed at this time in your life? If the group is large, divide them into smaller groups and let them share first in small groups and then invite a large group discussion later. Points to elicit from the group discussion: the invitation by God, the need to become closer to God in their lives, the need to complete their sacraments of initiation. Bottom line: They have been invited by God into a deeper relationship through the celebration of the sacraments with the community. n Overview of Confirmation (10 minutes) Group Process: If we were to ask you to give us a definition of the sacrament of confirmation, as you understand it right now, what would that be? Appoint a scribe in each group to be the spokesperson for that group and write the participants responses on a piece of paper. Do not comment on their answers. Move directly to the following overview and make connections with their responses. Keep their responses and return to them at the last session. Overview Catechist reads the overview to the participants. The primary purpose of these gatherings is to prepare the candidates for confirmation to encounter Christ in the sacramental sign/sacramental action, that is, in the celebration of the sacrament of confirmation. n 12 n n