Irreligious confirmands

[OurGodIsWithUs]

Here’s the problem. This will plague the church for a while.

LIBERAL CATHOLICISM. This world has a messed up way for justifying things. People think that they’re being kind by accepting new changes (gay marriage etc.).

WRONG!!!

Be kind, always. Be just and fair to everyone. Don’t discriminate! But ultimately, you should stand by your beliefs. You can’t be on the fence. The Catholic Church doesn’t recognize gay marriage and is against abortion. Period. No wiggle room. It’s really stupid if people think gay marriage is completely normal and abortion is also completely normal, and claim to be Catholic. Who are you kidding?

These people take respecting others’ beliefs waaaay too far. They change themselves for others and attempt to support and justify their views, however they can.

The most common phrases from such people:

Who are we to judge?
I’m not trying to argue against anyone here.
I’m not saying anyone else is wrong
The church must change, because the world is also changing. (The worst one yet) (They told me to jump off a bridge so I did kinda thing)
I’m just sayin’
I know… but I understand why they think that (Devils advocate)
The easiest telltale sign: When someone plays the devils advocate.

I’m not saying we should bash people. At the same time, don’t go out of your way to defend beliefs that aren’t in line with Catholic doctrine. Be respectful, and disengage.

 

[PetraG]

I hear what you are saying, and I know the practice of the Eastern Churches, but I still do not accept that Confirmation (or, for that matter, Baptism) should be received by someone who does not embrace the Church and its teachings in their entirety.

Keep in mind, however, that Confirmation is one of the sacraments of initiation, given to us by Christ to confer grace. It isn’t a merit badge we earn by having come into perfect compliance with what a saint ought to comply with. There is room for imperfect Catholics to receive Confirmation!

Those preparing for Confirmation ought to be protected from going through with it in defiance of their consciences, however, whether that is because of outside pressure or from a misguided desire to fit in. The person should be strictly enjoined not to lie to the bishop about their interior state in order to be accepted as properly disposed, but to be honest with themselves and with everyone else regardless of the reactions they might get from some quarters.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

I hear what you are saying, and I know the practice of the Eastern Churches, but I still do not accept that Confirmation (or, for that matter, Baptism) should be received by someone who does not embrace the Church and its teachings in their entirety.

Agreed. I didn’t mean to suggest that confirmation needs to be a sign of prior holiness. I simply meant that it shouldn’t be administered to people who aren’t spiritually mature enough, or not serious enough in their faith, to make the promises that confirmation requires (both explicit and implicit).

On the other hand, if it is a sacrament of initiation, we might do well to follow the lead of the Eastern Churches and consider administering it at the same time the infant is baptized, with, as I said, the parents and godparents making the promises by proxy. For that matter, we might consider administering a drop of the Precious Blood to the child when the parents come up to receive as well. If I am understanding the Eastern practice correctly, they do a “First Solemn Communion” when the child reaches the age of reason.

 

[Phemie]

QwertyGirl:

I will probably get flamed for saying this, but the best thing you can do is discourage them from taking part in the sacrament if they are doing so under false pretenses. If they don’t believe, they shouldn’t be getting confirmed. This is for many reasons, but it is important.

With that said, it is possible over the course of the next two years they may change their beliefs. That is fine, too, of course.

Do what you can to help them discern if they are able to be confirmed in good faith. Lots of kids go along with it because it is what is expected of them by their parents and other family members. It is a poor reason to do so.

Our rule was that although our children and pastor were the ones who would discern whether our children were properly disposed and willing to received Confirmation, they did not have a choice about whether they were going to go through the sequence to prepare for Confirmation. If they had completed that and weren’t disposed, of course we would have said something to the pastor about that.

That was also my position. We only went through this with the youngest, the other two had simply not questioned it. He fought us but once he had done the preparation he decided to receive the sacrament.

 

[PetraG]

I would not be against conferring confirmation at or near the time of First Holy Communion. I’m willing to concede it is above my pay grade to decide these things. I am concerned, however, that putting Confirmation at late high school age might be putting the sacrament meant to strengthen us a bit late. It seems to me that those graces are needed somewhat before young people start to date. That is also the age at which someone is most likely to be tempted to rebel for the sake of rebelling and to be just a little too smart to do what even common sense advises.