MERGED: Confirmation valid?

[Stylites]

Confirmation is not required for the validity of the marriage. The issue of licitity is a very technical canonical questoin. I’d be wary of using the word illict where the canons do not.

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On to your point:

While it is not an absolute requirement that Catholics be confirmed before they are married in the Church, confirmation before marriage is something the Church strongly urges. The Code of Canon Law states:

Catholics who have not yet received the sacrament of confirmation are to receive it before being admitted to marriage, if this can be done without grave inconvenience (canon 1065 §1).

Since there is usually at least a six-month period of preparation for a Catholic marriage, your niece should be able to be confirmed before her marriage takes place. I suggest that you recommend to her that she talk to the celebrant presiding at her marriage about what can be done to expedite her preparation for and reception of the sacrament of confirmation.

(http://forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=94270)Is confirmation required for a Catholic marriage?

 

[Rome_Always]

Yes. Often if you are confirmed as an adult, the parish priest may perform the ceromony. For many teenagers however, it is the Bishop. Our parish priest does Confirmation ONLY at the Easter Vigil where it makes it hard for the Bishop to get to. It is valid, however.

 

[Violetta30]

Thank you for your response.

I finally got up the nerve to call the Diocese office and was assured that my confirmation is completely legitimate! Thanks for all of your support and wonderful answers ! Now I can worry about something else and no doubt, I will…pray for me !

 

[DavidKays]

A) You are incorrect. One is fully Catholic the moment one is baptized into the Catholic Church.

B) Puzzleannie is correct regarding the faculties to confirm. The faculties to confirm given to priests for candidates and catechumens does not extend to those baptized Catholic. That requires separate permission for that specific person.

No Stylites is correct. These Sacraments are initiated so as to start your spiritual progress. In the Eastern Church we do not seperate these events as you Catholics do in the West. We in the East receive all 3 Sacraments right off the bat. Confirmation completes Baptism so we in the East decided to administer it right after Baptism. The person who started this thread I will like to mentioned that it is our Eastern priests who adminster these Sacraments including Confirmation. I suppose most of our Confirmations are performed by our priests and not by the Bishops. But all the priests use oils that are blessed beforehand by the Bishop so in reality the priest administers the Bishop’s blessings and not their own. All confirmations done in the Eastern Church are done this way. Your priest may have done this as well. God Bless!

 

[Violetta30]

DavidKays…thank you for your post. I am keenly interested in all the various practices within our Church. Even though I am an American, I am extremely disappointed in my country overall and in particular, the American Catholics.

My grandmother was an Italian immigrant (Naples, Italy) and my brother was a Trappist for brief time in the 50s. My parents insisted I join the Anglican Church with them when I was 12 and last year, at the age of 58, I FINALLY returned to my Church. However, through the years I always loved the Catholic church but did not allow myself to consider returning. It is at once a sad and joyful story! Everyone who knows me said they were not at all surprised at my return but I can say I was because I did not know that I COULD return.

Thanks to a holy priest, I was confirmed at Easter Vigil. I suppose my doubts raised in my post are a result of “can this really be true” sort of thing as I am so elated at my new “identity”, I simply cannot believe it’s really happened to me after all these years.

Again, your post was beautiful and I really appreciate you taking the time to answer.

I have a deep love for those who show great discipline and devotion to this the True Church. I pray for the people of my country and especially for the so-called Catholics.

May the Precious Blood that pours out from the Sacred Head of our Lord Jesus Christ, Temple of Divine Wisdom, Tabernacle of Divine Knowledge and sunshine of heaven and earth cover you now and forever. Amen

 

[Flame4]

I had a friend ask me if his confimation was vaild:

He wasn’t able to go to confession before his confirmation. There were no priests available for confession before the confirmation, though he tried. (I don’t know if he knew he could ask for an emergency confession at any time, or if this would count as an emergency.) Anyways, he was confirmed, however presumably in mortal sin. He wants know if it was still vaild or how to vailidate (is that the word?) it. I would think confession is enough, but I wanted to make sure.

Thanks for your answers.

God Bless

 

[Stylites]

I had a friend ask me if his confimation was vaild:

He wasn’t able to go to confession before his confirmation. There were no priests available for confession before the confirmation, though he tried. (I don’t know if he knew he could ask for an emergency confession at any time, or if this would count as an emergency.) Anyways, he was confirmed, however presumably in mortal sin. He wants know if it was still vaild or how to vailidate (is that the word?) it. I would think confession is enough, but I wanted to make sure.

Thanks for your answers.

God Bless

I believe that a confirmand must be in a state of grace before receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. He should consult with his priest. He may have to reconcile first and then be confirmed properly.

 

[Seatuck]

I had a friend ask me if his confimation was vaild:

He wasn’t able to go to confession before his confirmation. There were no priests available for confession before the confirmation, though he tried. (I don’t know if he knew he could ask for an emergency confession at any time, or if this would count as an emergency.) Anyways, he was confirmed, however presumably in mortal sin. He wants know if it was still vaild or how to vailidate (is that the word?) it. I would think confession is enough, but I wanted to make sure.

Thanks for your answers.

God Bless

Yes, it was valid . He just needs to go to confession to receive the grace from it. He should also confess to receiving a sacrament while not in a state of grace.

 

[JohnDamian]

A Sacrament is valid despite the grace of the minister or the recipient. This is called “ex opere operato” -( see CCC1128) However; for the sacrament to have effacity the individual must be have the right disposition. If the individual does not have the right disposition at the time of recieving the sacrament; the effacity is delayed until the recipient recieves the right disposition.

This is the case because certain Sacraments leave an “indellible mark” such as Baptism, Holy Orders, Confirmation and so forth; which is why the Sacrament cannot be repeated on the same individual twice.

 

[FidesSpesCarita]

I had a similar situation occur when I was confirmed. I faithfully attended mass for 2 more years as a Catholic prior to my first attending the Sacrament of Penance (I like the old term better…). My, moderately traditional, priest ensured me that my confirmation was valid and not to worry.

There may be more material on this, but I wouldnt be too stressed.

FSC

 

[VetA]

There may be semantic differences with the word “full”, for a baptized person without 1st Holy Communion or Confirmation cannot be a godparent, cannot licitly be married in the Church, cannot receive holy orders, and cannot take a religious vow. Are they “fully” Catholic? Not in the sense that all the vocations are as yet available. Are they in full communion with the Catholic Church? Yes, as members of the Body of Christ (which includes non-Catholics and even non-Christians).

people who are not confirmed can marry, my uncle and father are perfect examples