Confirmation is a Catholic Sacrament of mature Christian commitment and a deepening of baptismal gifts. It is one of the three Sacraments of Initiation for Catholics. It is most often associated with the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The Sacrament of Confirmation is the second of the three sacraments of initiation. Confirmation is a Catholic Sacrament of mature Christian commitment and a deepening of baptismal gifts. Confirmation perfects our baptism and brings us the graces of the Holy Spirit that were granted to the Apostles on Pentecost Sunday. It is most often associated with the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The Sacrament of Confirmation completes the sacrament of Baptism. If Baptism is the sacrament of re-birth to a new and supernatural life, Confirmation is the sacrament of maturity and coming of age. Confirmation is a sacrament of empowerment. It gives the strength to follow Jesus and to become involved in the mission which Jesus left to the Church.
It is administered by laying-on of hands and anointing with chrism accompanied by prayer. The chrism is blessed by the bishop and the bishop administers the sacrament. All baptized persons can and should be confirmed. The effect of the sacrament of confirmation is to give strength in faith and for the confession of faith and to impress an indelible character.
Baptism, the Eucharist, and the sacrament of Confirmation together constitute the "sacraments of Christian initiation," whose unity must be safeguarded. It must be explained to the faithful that the reception of the sacrament of Confirmation is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace. For "by the sacrament of Confirmation, [the baptized] are more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence, they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by world and deed. - Vatican Council II, Lumen gentium, 11.
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