the sacrament of martyrdom & evangelization
Preparation for a child’s Confirmation usually takes place at the age of 12. Parents work together with the parish to prepare their children for this beautiful Sacrament.
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 word and deed.
CCC 1285
The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that parents are the primary educators of the faith for their children. As your child’s primary educator, we ask that you do the following as part of the Family Faith Formation Program:
- Attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation.
- To the best of your ability, go over weekly faith formation lessons with your child.
- Financially contribute to the Church according to your ability.
- Be an active and registered member of one of the Upper Pontiac Parishes.
- Pay attention to emailed correspondence from the parish.
Preparation for Confirmation
The first step in preparing your child for Confirmation is to bring your child to church on Sundays. If you are not regularly attending Sunday Mass, then your child cannot receive this Sacrament. Attending Sunday Mass is an essential aspect of Christian life. God says to us through Moses, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work” (Ex. 20:8-10). The Catechism of the Catholic Church elaborates on the necessity of keeping the Lord’s Day holy:
The celebration of Sunday observes the moral commandment inscribed by nature in the human heart to render to God an outward, visible, public, and regular worship “as a sign of his universal beneficence to all.” Sunday worship fulfills the moral command of the Old Covenant, taking up its rhythm and spirit in the weekly celebration of the Creator and Redeemer of his people.
CCC 2176-2177
The Sunday celebration of the Lord’s Day and his Eucharist is at the heart of the Church’s life.
Sunday is the day on which the paschal mystery is celebrated in light of the apostolic tradition and is to be observed as the foremost holy day of obligation in the universal Church.
In our parishes, all children are required to take a course to prepare for the Sacrament of Confirmation. Preparation will be arranged on an individual basis as parents commit to bringing their child to Mass every Sunday. Once regular Sunday Mass attendance has begun, you will be given a copy of “The New Saint Joseph First Communion Catechism”. This is for review to make sure your child has learned all of the fundamentals of the Sacramental life. We will meet after Sunday Mass once a month to review content of this book until the child is ready to receive Confirmation. No date will be set for Sacraments until a child is ready to receive those Sacraments.
There are also three online courses (one for the child, “Sent by the Spirit” and two that parents/guardians will be expected to complete during their child’s preparations: “Presence” and “Forgiven”). All are available for free on Formed.org. You can access these and other resources by going to formed.org and signing up as a parishioner of the “Diocese of Pembroke”.
If you are regularly attending Sunday Mass with your child and wish to take the next step in preparing for Confirmation, please fill out the form below.
Upper Pontiac Parishes 