Do you choose a confirmation name for RCIA?

[KJS]

i chose Joseph as I really see him as a positive model of virtue for Catholic men. He trusted God and married Mary, even when he could have just bailed out per the law. He protected the Holy Family during the Exile to Egypt. He worked hard to support his family and taught Jesus a trade. He has also interceded for my family quite a bit re: employment/selling houses - so that also helps out too!

 

[funnyyetsavvy]

I swam the Tiber tonight, and we were encouraged to choose a name…

I chose Cecilia!

 

[CatintheHat]

Everyone in my class chose a name. Mine is St. Mary Magdalene. Her feast day happens to be my birthday!

 

[surfgirlusa_200]

I swam the Tiber tonight, and we were encouraged to choose a name…

I chose Cecilia!

I almost went with Cecilia, but ended up choosing Catherine. You made a good choice, though I still like Cecilia, in part because of her association with music (which has always been a big part of my life).

 

[tinalewis]

Both my RCIA class last year and my husband’s RCIA class instructors this year mentioned confirmation names, and asked us to think of a confirmation name that had meaning for us. They changed their minds at the last minute and nixed the idea of using confirmation names altogether. Odd. I guess someone in charge didn’t think it was a good idea after all.

Still, I chose St. Andrew the Apostle and my husband chose St. William of Scicli. Too bad niether of us were confirmed with these names, but oh well. We still hope that these saints won’t take it personally and will bless us with their prayers anyhow.

 

[Curious]

Everyone in my class chose a name. I was the only female that chose a male - St. Paul who is now my patron. I have always felt a kinship with him and have loved him even before I knew it was okay to love a saint.

Now I need me a medal…

Curious

 

[funnyyetsavvy]

Yes, I did choose Cecilia because of the music association

 

[Jennifer_G]

Does anyone know if it OK to choose “two” confirmation names??? I am struggling with two saints that I am really ‘in Love’ with.

I’ve even heard of one person choosing 3. I chose two myself.

 

[Doni]

I had long researched the whole thing about confirmation names and saints before I began RCIA. I even knew our own bishop’s policy on the matter (that the baptismal name is to be encouraged, but a different confirmation name is allowed, and this name is supposed to be the name of a saint).

That said, in my own RCIA class, it was absolutely never brought up at all, not in the lectures, nor in the handouts. We could submit questions anonymously, so I did. I asked about confirmation names. That was in January, and it was still never answered or brought up. However, in February, we received a handout of the information going into the official sacramental records. We were to check it for accuracy. There was a blank line where we could put an optional confirmation name. I grabbed my chance and wrote in ‘Vicenta.’ (The name is the Spanish feminine form of ‘Vincent,’ which I wanted to take in honor of my longtime patron Vincent of Saragossa.)

At the Easter Vigil, my sponsor was to tell the priest my name as I was being confirmed. So it literally came down to the rehearsal on Saturday morning when I turned to her and said, “I wanted ‘Vicenta’ as my confirmation name.” So that’s the name my sponsor gave to the priest both at rehearsal and at the actual confirmation.

So Vicenta is my confirmation name, whether anyone officially acknowledges it or not. And I might have been the only one to have a confirmation name that is different from my baptismal name. I really liked my RCIA, but I still think it was sad that the whole idea of confirmation names was literally ignored. I imagine most of us are finishing RCIA not even realizing is was ever allowed.

 

[basenji]

I was baptized Catholic and grew up with a Catholic identity but never fully received the other sacraments of initiation until much later in my life. All that time I had been looking forward to taking a confirmation name and it really meant a great deal to me.

When it came time for my Rite of Full Reception into the Church, the RCIA director totally balked at the idea of confirmation names: it wasn’t done anymore, it was remnant that was lingering from “before”, it didn’t further the spirit of Vatican II…etc etc.

I understood that confirmation was a deeper realization and final seal of my baptism and that it should be recorded with the same name that was used when I was baptized. However, my parents deliberately did not give me a middle name because they wanted me to use my confirmation name for that. Argh! I was really stuck for a while and had to cause a bit of a fuss. I think my rather progressive pastor looked on me as a bit of throwback after that (and so what if I am, anyway!).

Eventually I was able to finally and fully be received and with a confirmation name.

I chose Nicodemus, who was my grandfather’s patron. I was received into the Church on the 6th anniversary of my grandfather’s death and it was in a cathedral that he helped repair and remodel. I had no idea of any of that beforehand. Ah, sweet Providence!

Thanks for letting me blather!

 

[francesca_gen]

Does anyone know if it OK to choose “two” confirmation names??? I am struggling with two saints that I am really ‘in Love’ with.

Very late to the conversation, but yes – mine are Francesca and Genevieve; the former for St. Francis and the second for Ste. Genevieve of Paris; it was also my grandmother’s name.

 

[EeyoresButerfly]

My program really encouraged it. I went with St. Columba but took his Gaelic name of Columcille. I wish to be an author and he is the patron saint of poets and bookbinders. I also have a love for Scotland and he is the patron saint for Scotland as well, in fact, he is the one who brought Christianity to Scotland.

This may sound really weird, but when I was younger I loved reading anything I could get my hands on about the Loch Ness Monster. St. Columcille was actually the first recorded sighting of the Loch Ness Monster, it is in his biographies by Adamnan. As such, he was the first saint I ever learned about.

What was neat was that I really had no clue how to say his name in Gaelic, and the priest who confirmed me happened to be from Derry, Ireland. Columcille is also the patron saint of Derry, Ireland. (He was born into the Irish royal family.) It certainly cemented the decision, all roads lead to Columcille. Sadly, nobody knows who he is and you cannot get a Patron Saint medal of him. I even contacted Iona Abby in Scotland, which he foudned and still stand today, and they do not even have them. Oh well.

 

[Doni]

Sadly, nobody knows who he is and you cannot get a Patron Saint medal of him. I even contacted Iona Abby in Scotland, which he foudned and still stand today, and they do not even have them. Oh well.

Believe it or not, I’ve heard of Columcille (but I’m of part-Scottish descent through my paternal line, and at once time tried to tackle the Scottish Gaelic language, etc., etc.). I remember reading all sorts of things about Columcille/Columba and Iona and all that. Anyway, I think he’s a very good choice for a patron saint.

Alas, I know what it’s like to not find stuff on him. Same here with my patron St. Vincent of Saragossa. (I guess, unless I want to move to Spain. He’s far more popular over there than here in the U.S.) I have a small collection of stuff on Vincent, but only because I’ve either really searched, or just got creative and made it myself. I did find an icon through an Orthodox gift store, however. But Vincent’s not someone who shows up in Catholic gift shops. (There are, of course, a lot of OTHER Vincents – just not MY Vincent.)

 

[YinYangMom]

Sadly, nobody knows who he is and you cannot get a Patron Saint medal of him. I even contacted Iona Abby in Scotland, which he foudned and still stand today, and they do not even have them. Oh well.

Same here with my patron St. Vincent of Saragossa. (I guess, unless I want to move to Spain.

My daughter chose St. Genesius and that was news to me. She didn’t want jewelry so I came across this neat site: Patriarts to find some unique gifts for her.

This is the design they have for Colmcille and it’s available in an Anachron that comes with a scroll, ceramic tile, spirit stone, pendant, one-of-kind jewelry and other forms.

This is the design they have for Vincent of Saragossa, also available in the same mediums as Colmcille (jewelry, spirit stone, etc.)

 

[Doni]

My daughter chose St. Genesius and that was news to me. She didn’t want jewelry so I came across this neat site: Patriarts to find some unique gifts for her.

Patriarts is interesting. But I think I’m going to stick with something more traditional.

Funny, I’m sort of a teetotaler, and yet I ended up with the patron saint of winemakers. The truth is, I was attracted to Vincent because of his life and martyrdom, his courage and steadfast faith. The later legends connecting him to wine are sort of afterthoughts to me, I suppose – but I sometimes thinks that God has a sense of humor in sticking the two of us together.

Ah, but tonight I stumbled across a site that sells plain ol’ Vincent of Saragossa medals.

tiny.cc/VincentSaragossaMedals

Not cheap, admittedly, but as hard to find as Vincent has been, I’m just glad to find this.

---

Back to the original topic… The other day I mentioned to a guy at work that I took the confirmation name “Vicenta.” Ugh. Sort of opened a big can of worms. There is a lady who is an evangelical Protestant who can’t stand Catholicism because she got stuck in a Catholic school when she was young and all her classmates did weird stuff (like praying the rosary and using holy water). And all during the time I was in RCIA, she kept preaching about why I shouldn’t be messing with Catholics. Didn’t work, 'cause I became Catholic anyway.

Anyway, on this day our UPS guy made a delivery. His name happens to be Vincent. After he left, I mentioned to a male co-worker about my confirmation name, and that’s when the other lady jumped in. – “Why do you need to change your name?” (I explained I wasn’t changing my name.) “What are we supposed to call you now?” (Doni, of course, like always.) She sort of got cut short because a customer came in, but I think I’ve got another “Catholic black mark” on me now.

And thankfully, for that day at least, I didn’t have to get into why we actually PRAY to saints. But I’ve been trying to prepare for that one if it ever comes up.

 

[LARSCOUT0311]

Back to the original topic… The other day I mentioned to a guy at work that I took the confirmation name “Vicenta.” Ugh. Sort of opened a big can of worms. There is a lady who is an evangelical Protestant who can’t stand Catholicism because she got stuck in a Catholic school when she was young and all her classmates did weird stuff (like praying the rosary and using holy water). And all during the time I was in RCIA, she kept preaching about why I shouldn’t be messing with Catholics. Didn’t work, 'cause I became Catholic anyway.

I had a somewhat similar experience. I currently work at a jail and all of a sudden decided it was time to become Christian. I felt I was ready and felt the nudge become stronger and stronger, finally giving in to the Holy Spirit. I was always interested in the Catholic Church due to its tradition, symbolism and its age. So, I did what any other knowledge seeker would do with the resources at hand…I contacted the jail’s chaplain as he was the spiritual “expert” in the facility.

The meetings started out fine until he started handing me Unitarian propaganda. I asked him what all this was and he told me that I didn’t want to become a Catholic. I asked him why and he started going off about the Pope and the lack of scripture that the church teaches. I was amazed and perturbed. I quickly broke ties and went my own way until the Parish RCIA class kicked off. After I was received into the Catholic Church I ran into him again in a very round about way.

I was talking to one of my Baptist friends who was very distraught and was interested in the Rosary and books I had. He overheard me talking about Confirmation names and explaining that it is not necessarily you the chooses your patron Saint but your patron Saint who chooses you. He laid into me about idol worship and every other prejudice against Catholics. I actually earned more respect from my Baptist friend because I withstood the Chaplain’s tirade calmly and went back to teaching her about the Catholic Church while he stormed off.

It is amazing the prejudices that still remain against Catholics due to ignorance and the lack of ability to even begin to research inane(and I would say insane) beliefs.

 

[RavenousWolf]

I never realized there was such a “to do” about Confirmation names or that RCIA programs had stopped encouraging people to chose patron Saints! It’s amazing how people can nit-pick every little thing and disturb something that can be so beautiful and personal!

As for me, when it came time to be Confirmed, I chose St. Francis of Assisi. I didn’t really even have to think much because he had sort of been my patron since the time I was a little kid, when my kindergarten class celebrated All Saints’ Day by dressing up as different Saints… you can guess who I was! Anyhow, it has been interesting to see how my relationship with Francis has grown through the years and just how much we have in common! I do believe that God helped me into this great friendship with my patron!

More recently I was sponsor for a friend coming into the Church, and she chose St. Therese of Lisieux… it has been beautiful watching her grow into a relationship with this Saint and it amazes me what a perfect fit they are!

 

[Vikk]

Everyone in my class chose a name. I was the only female that chose a male - St. Paul who is now my patron. I have always felt a kinship with him and have loved him even before I knew it was okay to love a saint.

Now I need me a medal…

Curious

I’ve been told I cannot choose a male name but must choose a female. None of the names I have an affinity with are female.

 

[Maria_Raphael]

I’ve been told I cannot choose a male name but must choose a female. None of the names I have an affinity with are female.

Really? I was allowed to chose a male name (Raphael) and no one objected–including the Archbishop who confirmed me!

 

[Doni]

As I mentioned earlier in this same thread, I chose Vincent of Saragossa (San Vicente de Zaragoza) as my confirmation saint, and “Vicenta” as my confirmation name. Vincent is male, and I’m female. But his courage and steadfast faith have taught me so much, and there is so much about his life that inspires me to keep on keeping on. Those virtues are not bound by gender, his or mine.

I don’t know what I would have done if I had been told my confirmation saint had to be female. I imagine I would have just stuck with my own name in that situation. Vincent’s really the only saint with whom I had that kind of a bond. He’s been my personal patron saint since 2002. He chose me more than I chose him. I became Catholic largely because of Vincent. Through him I developed an appreciation for the communion of saints. And he’s prayed for me this whole time and was sort of a second sponsor to me. It seemed quite appropriate to me to honor him by taking his name – or at least a feminine form of it.