Uncertainty of Confirmation

[Firefly51]

I was baptized as a 14 year-old while in High School. (49 years ago) The Old Parish Church where I was baptized, has records of my baptism but none of my Confirmation or even when I did First Communion. I was an Altar server in this parish and has been taking Holy Communion for as long as I can remember. The parish also has record of my marriage.
I’ve been in a new parish for many years now and need to sort this out in order to further advance my participation in Church life. My parents have died and I have a difficulty in identifying anyone who can help me with this. **Can I just be Confirmed now under the assumption that it never happened? ** I know it will raise highbrows in my present parish where I have been participating for man years. My Parish Priest is willing to do it! Since I cannot say with an certainty that this Sacrament was conveyed. Can I get some feedback on this please?

 

[PazzoGrande]

I was baptized as a 14 year-old while in High School. (49 years ago) The Old Parish Church where I was baptized, has records of my baptism but none of my Confirmation or even when I did First Communion. I was an Altar server in this parish and has been taking Holy Communion for as long as I can remember. The parish also has record of my marriage.
I’ve been in a new parish for many years now and need to sort this out in order to further advance my participation in Church life. My parents have died and I have a difficulty in identifying anyone who can help me with this. **Can I just be Confirmed now under the assumption that it never happened? ** I know it will raise highbrows in my present parish where I have been participating for man years. My Parish Priest is willing to do it! Since I cannot say with an certainty that this Sacrament was conveyed. Can I get some feedback on this please?

There is the possibility of a Conditional Confirmation, just as there is for Conditional Baptism, for cases when there aren’t records available.

That being said, see if you can get a recent updated copy of your Baptismal certificate. It is supposed to have annotations with the subsequent sacraments you’ve had. But things don’t always work out the way they should and it might not be there.

 

[Phemie]

I was baptized as a 14 year-old while in High School. (49 years ago) The Old Parish Church where I was baptized, has records of my baptism but none of my Confirmation or even when I did First Communion. I was an Altar server in this parish and has been taking Holy Communion for as long as I can remember. The parish also has record of my marriage.
I’ve been in a new parish for many years now and need to sort this out in order to further advance my participation in Church life. My parents have died and I have a difficulty in identifying anyone who can help me with this. **Can I just be Confirmed now under the assumption that it never happened? ** I know it will raise highbrows in my present parish where I have been participating for man years. My Parish Priest is willing to do it! Since I cannot say with an certainty that this Sacrament was conveyed. Can I get some feedback on this please?

Before you do anything, and your priest can’t confirm you without the Bishop’s permission since you are already Catholic and your Confirmation belongs to the Bishop, check with the diocese to see how things were done back at the time when you were baptized. Because you would have been considered an adult baptism/conversion and that usually got recorded at the diocesan level too.

If you were baptized at 14 (considered an adult Baptism), wouldn’t you have been confirmed at the same time? Was it done in private or during Mass? If during Mass I also would assume that you would have received Communion at the same Mass, but First Communions don’t need to be recorded so some parishes don’t do so.

I don’t know exactly how things worked under the old Code of Canon Law and before the RCIA was promulgated in the 70s but I would definitely check with the diocese before doing anything else.

 

[Joannm]

49 years ago there was no RCIA. What usually happened was that an adult was baptized and then would just receive Confirmation when the Bishop happened to come around to confirm the kids. Back then also children were confirmed much earlier. I was confirmed at 10 years old in 1964.

At 14, didn’t you recall receiving Confirmation. You would have stood before the bishop and he would lay hands on you and anointed your forehead with oil. Confirmation is a one time sacrament. Talk to you priest about it.