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MON - THURS: 8:00 - 5:15

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(217) 698-8500

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1615 W. WASHINGTON ST., SPRINGFIELD, IL 62702



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WHY IS CONFIRMATION IN THIRD GRADE?

Return to Confirmation and First Holy Communion

During the Fourth Diocesan Synod in 2017, lay Catholics representing every
parish in the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois voted overwhelmingly in support
of the restored order the sacraments, meaning Confirmation would come before
First Holy Communion, and they would both occur in third grade. Despite this
change being implemented in parishes and schools several years ago, the same
concerns and questions debated in the synod are being raised by Catholics in our
diocese today. This site is intended to address these and other concerns and to
provide context for this important change.


What is Confirmation and what is the purpose in choosing a Confirmation name?

Confirmation is where a Catholic is sealed with the Seven Gifts of the Holy
Spirit by the authority of the diocesan bishop, a successor of the Apostles.
Those gifts are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and
fear of the Lord.

When someone receives the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament of
Confirmation, he or she is “more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith
by word and deed” (Lumen gentium, 11). While this is not a new mission for the
baptized, those who are anointed with the sacred Chrism “share more completely
in the mission of Jesus Christ” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1294). So, it
became customary for those preparing for Confirmation to choose what we commonly
call a Confirmation name. While not required by the Church, choosing such a name
is a laudable practice and is commonly done in the dioceses of the United States
of America.

Some time ago, it became somewhat usual to choose a Confirmation name because it
was the name that a grandparent had, but this was never the idea behind the
choosing of a name. Rather, because the one to be Confirmed will be sent out “to
confess the name of Christ boldly, and never to be ashamed of the Cross,” the
idea is to choose the name of a saint who can help fulfill this mission
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1303). Sometimes, we choose the saint because
of his or her patronage, because of the name itself, because of a common
personality, or because of his or her story. Sometimes, though, it also seems a
saint, as it were, chooses us. Whatever the case, choosing the name of saint is
a way of placing oneself under the patronage of this particular friend of God,
of seeking to imitate this person who imitated Christ, and of seeking the
prayers and guidance of this saint (cf. I Corinthians 11:1).

Why are we now Confirming third-graders?

Confirming children in third grade and having First Holy Communion come after
Confirmation is what’s called the “restored order” of the sacraments, which was
implemented several years ago in our diocese. It’s important to note that we are
not starting something new. Aside from fairly recent history, it has always been
the Church’s practice to first confirm new members and then welcome them to
receive Communion. This practice held for adults and children, alike, and it has
continued to the practice of RCIA. In fact, the Catechism of the Catholic Church
clearly affirms the proper sequence in paragraph 1322: “The holy Eucharist
completes Christian initiation.” 

The approach of inverting the sequence of first Eucharist and Confirmation first
appeared in France in the middle of the 19th century, as the bishops sought a
longer formation period for confirmandi. In 1879, Pope Leo XIII rebuked the
French practice and ordered the original sequence to be restored, but the
bishops failed to make the change. The practice spread subsequently to the
Church in America as well.

So, the real question is not why we would lower the age of Confirmation, but
rather what have we gained by deferring it to a later age? The facts in this
regard are eye-opening. Consider that nearly 80 percent of all fallen away
Catholics were never confirmed, and the average age of Catholics falling away
from the faith is 13 years old. By deferring the age of Confirmation, we have
deprived these children of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which are strengthened
by the sacrament of Confirmation. We will never know what might have otherwise
happened for them.

But how can children receiving Confirmation earlier in their life help them?

Bishop Paprocki summed it up best, saying: “Given what our children are
confronting in society, why would we delay the grace of Confirmation — a grace
that can protect them from those dangers.”

Our children are facing an unprecedented barrage of threats to their emotional
well-being and moral clarity.

Deferring Confirmation deprives our children of special graces that can help
them withstand the spiritual challenges of this new reality. Further, deferring
Confirmation until they are already swimming in these waters also increases the
likelihood that they will experience barriers to the sacramental grace. After
all, as St. Thomas Aquinas teaches us, there are three obstacles to grace: lack
of faith/insincerity; lack of repentance; and presence of demons (STL III
66-68).

Therefore, delaying Confirmation is a double-edged sword: It deprives our
children of grace they badly need at a younger age; and it likely decreases the
effectiveness of the sacrament in their lives.

Confirmation and First Holy Communion in the same year – how can our children
grasp these deep, theological aspects of our faith?

If an 8-year-old is able to understand enough about the Eucharist — that the
bread and wine are changed with the words of consecration and become the very
Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ — and be properly disposed to receive
the Eucharist reverently, then it seems reasonable that he or she is also able
to understand what it means when we teach that the Holy Spirit gives seven gifts
to be used in faith. In fact, this is why the Church established the “age of
reason” as the appropriate normal age for reception of the sacraments of
initiation.

Quoting St. Thomas Aquinas, the Catechism of the Catholic Church wisely reminds
us that “age of body does not determine age of soul. Even in childhood, man can
attain spiritual maturity: as the book of Wisdom says: ‘For old age is not
honored for length of time or measured by number of years’ (4:8). Many children,
through the strength of the Holy Spirit they have received, have bravely fought
for Christ even to the shedding of their blood” (CCC, 1308).

How can we expect third-graders to be prepared to confirm their own faith as
adults in the Church?

This question points to a couple common points of misunderstanding regarding the
sacrament of Confirmation. The first over-emphasizes the action of the
confirmandi in the sacrament, and the second mistakenly views Confirmation as a
sort of graduation from faith formation. Paragraph 1308 of the Catechism of the
Catholic Church states: “Although Confirmation is sometimes called the
‘sacrament of Christian maturity,’ we must not confuse adult faith with the age
of natural growth, nor forget that the baptismal grace is grace of free,
unmerited election and does not need ‘ratification’ to become effective.”

It is certainly important that recipients of the sacraments be properly disposed
and prepared to receive the sacraments. As noted above, however, there is a very
high probability that a third-grader is more open, receptive, and properly
disposed to this sacramental grace than an eighth-grader. Conversely, it is more
likely that an eighth-grader faces greater obstacles to grace. The Church has
deemed the age of reason to be the age of 7.

Is restored order being made in other dioceses?

This change has been encouraged by both Pope Benedict XVI and by Pope Francis,
and many bishops are implementing or planning for the restored order. In the
United States, about 15 dioceses have implemented the restored order, including
Phoenix, Denver, and Spokane.

Is this asking a lot of our teachers?

It is certainly a significant change for our teachers and catechists, but our
schools and parish formation programs are blessed with gifted and talented
teachers who are eager to do what is best for their students. Each parish has
the flexibility to choose the curriculum they feel is best for their teachers
and students (curriculum suggestions can be found at
dio.org/catechesis/restored-order.html). Let's remember that we should treat
this as an opportunity to form lifelong disciples of Christ.

© 1997-2021 Diocese of Springfield in Illinois.


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