John Carberry
New member
Shadows of Confirmation, by John Carberry
“The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the
poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let
the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Lk 4:18-19, Is 61:1-2). Luke
introduces Jesus to us at the beginning of his ministry with a visit to his hometown of Nazareth.
Jesus walks into the synagogue on a sabbath and unrolls the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He
reads this passage and then tells the people that today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your
hearing (Lk 4:18-21). The Spirit of the Lord was indeed on this shoot from the stump of Jesse,
the spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, and fear of the Lord. His
delight shall be the fear of the Lord (Is 11:1-2, Rom 15:12).1 Christ was marked with the seal
from the Father (Jn 6:27).2
Confirmation is commonly associated with Pentecost, or 50 days after Easter. For
Christians, Pentecost celebrates when the Holy Spirit came down upon the apostles, who were
inspired and rejuvenated (Acts 2:1-4). Pentecost was also a feast in the Old Testament. It comes
from a Greek term pentekoste which means fifty days (Lv 23:16, Nm 28:26-31). It occurred fifty
days after Passover. It was sometimes called the Feast of Weeks because a week of weeks,
seven times seven, plus one day equals 50 days (Dt 16:9). It was both a celebration of the grain
harvest (Lv 23:22, Ex 23:16, 34:22) and a celebration of the Law being given to Moses. The
Jews call Pentecost the birthday of the Torah or the season of the giving of the law since rabbis
believed that the Torah was given on Pentecost.3
The Pentecost of the New Testament fulfills this ancient feast. The apostles are now
mature like the grain and they are able to bear fruit for Christ. They can now comprehend and
understand the Gospel and preach it to others. The Spirit recalls for the Church everything that
Jesus said.4 The apostles are now able to know (knowledge) and understand (understanding) the
Gospel, as well as explain it to others (counsel). Challenged to make the proper choices
(wisdom), they will undergo persecution and imprisonment (strength or fortitude). Through
living in Christian charity (piety) and staying firm in their faith (fear of the Lord), the apostles
can bring the New Law of the Gospel to others (Is 11:1-2).5 This New Law, written not on
tablets of stone, but on our hearts (2 Cor 3:3, Ps 37:31, Mk 7:15, Ex 24:12, 32:15-16, 34:1, Dt
9:8-17, 10:1-2, Ez 36:26), fulfills the Old Law (Mt 5:17-20).6
The Holy Spirit is present and foretold in the Old Testament. God took some of the spirit
that was upon Moses and gave it to the seventy elders in the desert (Nm 11:17, 25). The spirit of
the Lord rushed upon David at his anointing (1 Sm 16:13). The spirit of the Lord also rushed on
many others (Is 44:3), especially priests, prophets and kings. God promised that he would give a
new heart and put a new spirit within them, while removing the stony heart from their bodies and
replacing them with a natural heart (Ez 11:19, 18:31, Jer 31:33, Heb 10:16). This new spirit
allows the Israelites to live according to God’s statutes and carry out what he asks (Ez 11:20).
God promised to pour out his spirit on all of humankind so that they might prophesy or speak on
behalf of him (Jl 2:28, 3:1).
John Carberry is the author of Parables: Catholic Apologetics Through Sacred Scripture
(2003) and Sacraments: Signs, Symbols and Significance (2023).
1 CCC, 1286.
2 CCC, 1296.
3 Kohler, Kaufmann, J. L. Magnus, and Judah David Eisenstein, Jewish Encyclopedia, accessed 3/5/2020.
4 CCC, 2623.
5 Aquinas, Thomas, Summa Theologica, II, I, Q103, A3, Reply Obj. 4.
6 CCC, 715.
“The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the
poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let
the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Lk 4:18-19, Is 61:1-2). Luke
introduces Jesus to us at the beginning of his ministry with a visit to his hometown of Nazareth.
Jesus walks into the synagogue on a sabbath and unrolls the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He
reads this passage and then tells the people that today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your
hearing (Lk 4:18-21). The Spirit of the Lord was indeed on this shoot from the stump of Jesse,
the spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, and fear of the Lord. His
delight shall be the fear of the Lord (Is 11:1-2, Rom 15:12).1 Christ was marked with the seal
from the Father (Jn 6:27).2
Confirmation is commonly associated with Pentecost, or 50 days after Easter. For
Christians, Pentecost celebrates when the Holy Spirit came down upon the apostles, who were
inspired and rejuvenated (Acts 2:1-4). Pentecost was also a feast in the Old Testament. It comes
from a Greek term pentekoste which means fifty days (Lv 23:16, Nm 28:26-31). It occurred fifty
days after Passover. It was sometimes called the Feast of Weeks because a week of weeks,
seven times seven, plus one day equals 50 days (Dt 16:9). It was both a celebration of the grain
harvest (Lv 23:22, Ex 23:16, 34:22) and a celebration of the Law being given to Moses. The
Jews call Pentecost the birthday of the Torah or the season of the giving of the law since rabbis
believed that the Torah was given on Pentecost.3
The Pentecost of the New Testament fulfills this ancient feast. The apostles are now
mature like the grain and they are able to bear fruit for Christ. They can now comprehend and
understand the Gospel and preach it to others. The Spirit recalls for the Church everything that
Jesus said.4 The apostles are now able to know (knowledge) and understand (understanding) the
Gospel, as well as explain it to others (counsel). Challenged to make the proper choices
(wisdom), they will undergo persecution and imprisonment (strength or fortitude). Through
living in Christian charity (piety) and staying firm in their faith (fear of the Lord), the apostles
can bring the New Law of the Gospel to others (Is 11:1-2).5 This New Law, written not on
tablets of stone, but on our hearts (2 Cor 3:3, Ps 37:31, Mk 7:15, Ex 24:12, 32:15-16, 34:1, Dt
9:8-17, 10:1-2, Ez 36:26), fulfills the Old Law (Mt 5:17-20).6
The Holy Spirit is present and foretold in the Old Testament. God took some of the spirit
that was upon Moses and gave it to the seventy elders in the desert (Nm 11:17, 25). The spirit of
the Lord rushed upon David at his anointing (1 Sm 16:13). The spirit of the Lord also rushed on
many others (Is 44:3), especially priests, prophets and kings. God promised that he would give a
new heart and put a new spirit within them, while removing the stony heart from their bodies and
replacing them with a natural heart (Ez 11:19, 18:31, Jer 31:33, Heb 10:16). This new spirit
allows the Israelites to live according to God’s statutes and carry out what he asks (Ez 11:20).
God promised to pour out his spirit on all of humankind so that they might prophesy or speak on
behalf of him (Jl 2:28, 3:1).
John Carberry is the author of Parables: Catholic Apologetics Through Sacred Scripture
(2003) and Sacraments: Signs, Symbols and Significance (2023).
1 CCC, 1286.
2 CCC, 1296.
3 Kohler, Kaufmann, J. L. Magnus, and Judah David Eisenstein, Jewish Encyclopedia, accessed 3/5/2020.
4 CCC, 2623.
5 Aquinas, Thomas, Summa Theologica, II, I, Q103, A3, Reply Obj. 4.
6 CCC, 715.