Confirmation Offerings

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perla_m

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Hello to everyone,

My parish is holding Confirmation for adults soon and expects a special offering of 40 EUR per person (approx 50 USD). They said that this offering would cover the costs of the Mass and would include an offering to the Bishop, and that the people being confirmed could make an additional offering to the parish priest if they wanted.

I was wondering if anyone knows if this is normal practise? Does the Church have any regulations about this kind of thing? I do not believe that this is a traditional custom in my country…it seems to have started in the last 30-40 years or so. I know that most of the people who post on this forum are from the US and other Anglophone countries, so I would appreciate knowing what you think about this. I seem to remember reading or hearing that special offerings were customary for baptisms, but not for the Rite of Confirmation.

In my country, salaries are generally low (especially compared to the cost of living) and unemployment is quite high. The Catholic Church receives money from the state, so the churches do not rely on offerings only in order to maintain operations. Honestly, the amount of money being asked does seem rather high.

I’ve found this forum to be a good source of information in the past, so I did a search on this topic and didn’t find anything. I would appreciate any comments/information.

Thank you!
 
Never heard of that for confirmation (at least here in the US). For some ceremonies (weddings) it is customary to offer the celebrant a monetary gift, just as a stipend can be given for a special intention at a regular Mass.
However, They can never compel you to pay this! That is very clear in the Church’s documents: it is to be a free will offering.
 
Yes, it is done here in US but it’s optional from parish to parish. It’s not required but encouraged by some pastors. I’m not in favor because,IMO, it sends a wrong message…paying for a sacrament.
 
perla_m said:
I was wondering if anyone knows if this is normal practise?
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Yes.
perla_m said:
Does the Church have any regulations about this kind of thing?
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Canon law governs this.
perla_m said:
I do not believe that this is a traditional custom in my country…it seems to have started in the last 30-40 years or so. I know that most of the people who post on this forum are from the US and other Anglophone countries, so I would appreciate knowing what you think about this. I seem to remember reading or hearing that special offerings were customary for baptisms, but not for the Rite of Confirmation.
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Stipends and offerings for sacraments are covered in universal canon law. It’s not new and it’s not regional.
perla_m said:
In my country, salaries are generally low (especially compared to the cost of living) and unemployment is quite high. The Catholic Church receives money from the state, so the churches do not rely on offerings only in order to maintain operations. Honestly, the amount of money being asked does seem rather high.
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Ask your priest what the procedure is for those who cannot afford the offering (if you **really **can’t afford it or all of it). There must be allowances for this (as defined in Canon Law). The sacraments cannot be refused based on whether or not an offering is made.
 
1ke said:
Probably because the parish pays it and doesn’t ask for the parishioners to do so. That is what our parish does.
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So how much is paid by your Parish for each person being confirmed?
 
if your pastor is a diocesan priest, then he receives a salary and compensation for just about every living expense (including food and car).
There was a time when priests relied on these types of stipends to meet living expenses, but that is no longer the case-for diocesan priests.

I have no idea what canon law says on the matter. I think it is inappropriate for the church or especially the pastor to encourage this.
If someone wants to give a gift, then by all means give a gift. But to encourage this is another story.

I am also very saddened by the practice of charging priest and musician fees for funerals that occur during the office hours of both already-paid individuals. Our music director is a fulltime staff person and still receives a stipend from the grieving family for service performed at a funeral during his usual office hours. Same with our pastor. I couldn’t look myself in the mirror if I did took money for that. And no, I do not accept the argument that they had to prepare on their own time (especially from the music director who is full time with a full time assisitant at a medium-sized church). Our funerals are canned and exactly the same almost every time.
 
1ke said:
Probably because the parish pays it and doesn’t ask for the parishioners to do so. That is what our parish does.
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Wait a minute … I got a kind being confirmed tomorrow! You’re telling me that in this whole class of pre-teens, each parent is supposed to make a formal gift to the parish?

Or is this just for adults being received into the Church?
 
surritter said:
Wait a minute … I got a kind being confirmed tomorrow! You’re telling me that in this whole class of pre-teens, each parent is supposed to make a formal gift to the parish?
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No I don’t believe I said that at all.

I said that in the case of *our *parish, the parish pays the Bishop’s stipend and does not ask the families to reimburse any amount.

I have no idea what *your *parish does or asks of its confirmandii and families nor what your diocesan policies are. But I think it reasonable to assume that you would have been informed by now if there were any stipends or offerings needed.
surritter said:
Or is this just for adults being received into the Church?
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No, it is for anyone being confirmed by the bishop-- teen or adult.
 
asd72 said:
So how much is paid by your Parish for each person being confirmed?
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I do not know off hand. We have several parishes who receive confirmation in a cluster and the parishes divide the stipend between them. It is not calculated per person in our diocese.
 
1ke said:
No I don’t believe I said that at all.

I said that in the case of *our *parish, the parish pays the Bishop’s stipend and does not ask the families to reimburse any amount.
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Sorry… I presumed your post was in reply to the OP question, which mentioned a requirement of a fee from each confirmandus. Glad that I don’t have to worry about it for our child.
 
I know that it is sort of expected that there will be an offering made (from what I’ve seen on CAF), but I didn’t know a Pastor could actually request a stipend of a set amount. I find this to be an abomination. This is a sacrament of the Church.

So if someone doesn’t have $40, they end up being embarassed when they have to talk to the priest and tell them that they are not able to afford this.

Basically, someone can feel discouraged to become confirmed (or have their kids confirmed) because of a fee.

I’m going to be confirmed this year and so far no one has mentioned a fee to me, although I plan on giving an offering based on what I’ve read on here.
 
Our Confirmation fee is included in the Religious Ed fee that is paid at the beginning of the year. There is no extra donation that the parents have to pay.

To the poster with regard to payment for funerals, especially for musicians. Our music director is paid a salary that does not include funerals or weddings since we do not know how many we will have that year. The music director receives a stipend to play at those liturgies. This also goes for the cantor who is paid for each liturgy he or she does, including Sundays. For weddings the couple pays them directly. For funerals it is included in the funeral director’s fee who then pays the musicians. The priest’s stipend in also included. If there is a problem with being able to pay we can always work it out. Given that the average wedding dress is close to $1,000, and receptions in our area are over $100 a plate, no one should balk at paying a fee to the Church.
 
I’m almost 60 and have always been active at parishes where I lived (2 different states)…have taught religious ed. for years. Being asked or expected to pay a fee or stipend for anything other than a wedding is something I’ve never heard of before. It was never mentioned when I received Confirmation…nor when my children did (different diocese)…nor my grandchildren (different diocese again).

I don’t like the idea at all…if someone wants to, fine…but I don’t believe it should be required or even asked.
 
When I was confirmed, my parents gave a stipend to the Archbishop, an offering to the parish, and paid for the rental of the academic gown and beanie I had to wear. But I think the total cost was about twenty five dollars back in those days, if it was that much.
 
Where I live, religious ed classes are $40 for first child and $30 for each additional child. If a parent can not afford it, the fees are waived. You could also make payments, but most don’t. (these were the fees six yrs ago) Three years ago the cost for a funeral Mass was $300, if you can’t afford it the Church will waive the fee. Funeral receptions for family members, friends and relitives are free, but donations are excepted. RCIA I believe has no fees required…
 
Joannm said:
Our Confirmation fee is included in the Religious Ed fee that is paid at the beginning of the year. There is no extra donation that the parents have to pay.

To the poster with regard to payment for funerals, especially for musicians. Our music director is paid a salary that does not include funerals or weddings since we do not know how many we will have that year. The music director receives a stipend to play at those liturgies. This also goes for the cantor who is paid for each liturgy he or she does, including Sundays. For weddings the couple pays them directly. For funerals it is included in the funeral director’s fee who then pays the musicians. The priest’s stipend in also included. If there is a problem with being able to pay we can always work it out. Given that the average wedding dress is close to $1,000, and receptions in our area are over $100 a plate, no one should balk at paying a fee to the Church.
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“Confirmation Fee”-that implies charging for the sacrament. Hmmm

Anyway, I never did mention weddings-mainly because I find it outrageous how they turn into theatrical events with no expense spared Paying a fee to the church makes sense because of the use of the facilities during a time it is not ordinarily in use, etc. And I understand why it is appropriate to pay musicians at a wedding ceremony.
That is why I did not mention weddings but specifically FUNERALS during the pastor’s and the music director’s regular office hours. They are already there, it is part of their job. It is NOT appropriate to charge a stipend to the grieving family-I don’t care if it comes out of the Funeral Directrors fee or not. The moral thing to do is for the parish to contact the local funeral home and waive those fees,

I balk at the “minister” asking to be paid under these circumstances. And just to be clear: there are almost never other musicians bedside the Music Director singing or playing music at weekday funerals-so it is not as if he has to collect that stipend for other musicians. Our choir is volunteer anyway, I would think volunteering to sing or play at a funeral would be such a beautiful gift. Why start charging for your time and service when you are needed the most?
 
Around these parts, the parish pays the Bishop a stipend and the parents or adult confirmandi never are asked for a penny.
 
My children are at Catholic schools, but get confirmed through the parish, along with the Religious Ed kids from the public schools. We didn’t pay a fee since our preparation is done at school. I’ll bet the Religious Ed families did have to pay a fee for materials, etc. That’s why I never thought about any payment.
 
perla_m said:
Hello to everyone,

My parish is holding Confirmation for adults soon and expects a special offering of 40 EUR per person (approx 50 USD). !
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where is the “demand”?
what is the problem?
they are letting you know because it is a commonly asked question what might be an appropriate offering in your area
of course if you can’t give anything, don’t, nobody is going to refuse you the sacrament, but others will bear your part of the costs involved in the program but most will be happy to do so for anyone who cannot contribute

why is this even an issue?

I have no idea of relative values of Euro vs dollar where you live but I can tell you hear the parish incurs fixed cost (overhead) and variable costs (texts, resources, supplies, retreat etc.) for each confirmation candidate to the tune of $300 for teens, $200 for adults, and the suggested donation for teens is $25/year, and nothing is asked of adults although they are given an envelope labled “sacramental donation” if they care to give something, mainly because most ask if they can do so.
 
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