The Sacrament of Confirmation

On the day of the feast of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came down in an extraordinary way on the Apostles as they were gathered together with Mary the mother of Jesus and the group of disciples. They were so "filled with" the Holy Spirit that by divine inspiration they began to proclaim "the mighty works of God." Those who believed the Apostles' preaching were then baptized, and they too received "the gift of the Holy Spirit." From that time on the apostles, in fulfillment of Christ's wish, imparted the gift of the Spirit to the newly baptized by the laying on of hands to complete the grace of baptism. This laying on of hands is rightly recognized by Catholic tradition as the beginning of the sacrament of confirmation, which in a certain way perpetuates the grace of Pentecost in the Church.

In baptism, the newly baptized receive forgiveness of sins, adoption as sons of God, and the character of Christ, by which they are made members of the Church, and for the first time become sharers in the priesthood of their Savior. Through the sacrament of confirmation, those who have been born anew in baptism receive the inexpressible gift, the Holy Spirit himself, by which "they are endowed... with special strength." Having received this sacrament, they are "bound more intimately to the Church" and "they are more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith both by word and by deed as true witnesses of Christ." Finally, confirmation is so closely linked with the Holy Eucharist that the faithful, after being signed by holy baptism and confirmation, are incorporated fully into the body of Christ by participation in the Eucharist.

For a more complete description of the Sacrament of Confirmation, click here.