Confirmation

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Confirmation Process Overview

Formation: Seven Family Sessions

• Who: Confirmands, Parents (At least one), Sponsor (For March Session)
• What: All those who are part of the Confirmation preparation process (Teen, Parents, and Sponsor) are required to attend Seven Formation Sessions throughout the Year, occurring every 2nd Sunday of the Month. The Meetings are situated following the 11:30am Mass time from 12:45-2:30pm in the Youth Ministry Center. Meetings will begin with the talk covering that specific Month's topic, then Parents and Confirmands will split into small groups to unpack and discuss the talk together. Both the Confirmand and at least one Parent should be at these meetings. In March, in lieu of an official in person meeting, the Confirmand and their Sponsor will be expected to meet and discuss the relevant topic and questions together. Make up requirements include watching the session together on your own time and submitting responses to the group questions BEFORE THE NEXT SESSION.
• Why: Our goal is to walk with both the teens and parents during a very pivotal time in their child's life.

Service: Works of Mercy

• Who: Confirmands (Recommended: Parents and Sponsor help in the service)
• What: Confirmands will be required to go beyond the monthly sessions and complete acts of "Spiritual Service" based around the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy. A list of ideas for performing such acts can be found in the information handout given at the first session in September, as well as down below (Group opportunities will also be offered as well for those unable/struggling to find a way to accomplish the works). After performing the respective works of mercy, Confirmandi will need to reflect and internalize the experience through submitting a brief reflection on what they did, what they got out of it, and how the experience taught them about the Life of Christ. Confirmandi will be expected to perform AT LEAST ONE OF EACH (Spiritual and Corporal) OF THE WORKS OF MERCY.
• Why: "For just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead" (James 2:26). It's easy to sit and talk about our faith, to learn about it, and for some, to share their faith with others. While this is good and essential, Christ calls us deeper into Himself through service; Making the Word Flesh to serve and save Humanity is LITERALLY His Life's Mission! If it's good enough for Him, it's good enough for us!

Encounter: Mass Journals

• Who: Confirmands & their Families
• What: Confirmands and their families are expected to attend Mass every Sunday and complete their "Car Ride Questions" together. Journals will be provided to all Parents and Confirmands, and will include the weekly readings, room for reflection, and questions for discussion together as a family. Check-ins will be done at each of our in-person meetings.
• Why: No amount of formation on our end will ever be equivalent to time with Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament. The Mission of the Church is to lead others to Christ, and there is no better and more perfect way of accomplishing this mission than to bring others to the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus in the Eucharist! Completing formation for Confirmation without first having a strong relationship with Christ in the Eucharist through the Mass is liking doing the extra credit without doing the homework!! This is the most regular formation we do as Catholics, and so it makes total sense to make it an essential part of our formation process!

Retreat: Discernment Retreat

• Who: Confirmands
• When: April 17th - 18th, 2027
• What: As per the Diocesan requirements, those in preparation for the reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation are required to attend one retreat during their time of formation. Our Confirmation Retreat will be held in March/April as an overnight retreat experience. Confirmandi are required to attend. If not able, families need to reach out BY JANUARY 1ST AT THE LATEST to ensure we have adequate time to select an equivalent retreat before the Rite of Confirmation.
• Why: In the busyness of life, we all need time to be away, to rest, to regather ourselves, and to focus on what's important. All throughout the Gospels, Jesus took time away from His preaching and ministering to retreat away from the crowds and spend time with the Father in prayer. Our retreat continues the theme of the importance of stories by stepping back and looking at our own story, recognizing where God has been, and where we want to go moving forward after Confirmation.

Important Dates

CONFIRMATION 2026/2027 Sessions
12:45-2:30pm @Youth Ministry Center

• Info Session - September 13th
• Session 1- Foundations: The Importance of Faith - October 4th
• Session 2- Foundations: The Case for Christ - November 8th
• Session 3- Foundations: One, Holy, Catholic, & Apostolic - December 13th
• Session 4- Sacraments: Initiation & Confirmation - January 10th
• Session 5- Sacraments: Healing & Vocation - February 7th
• Session 6- Sainthood: Works of Mercy - March 14th
• Session 7- Sainthood: The Cloud of Witnesses - (Self-Lead between Confirmand and Sponsor)
• Capstone Session- Ite, Missa Est: The Kerygma - April 25th

CONFIRMATION 2027 OVERNIGHT RETREAT:

When: April 17th - 18th, 2027
Where: St. Joseph Retreat Center, Tipton, IN

CONFIRMATION 2027 LITURGY: