Being Confirmed
People who have been baptised can be confirmed provided they are old enough to renew for themselves the promises made for them at their baptism by their parents and Godparents. It is usual for people only to be admitted to Holy Communion once they have made that personal affirmation of faith and received Confirmation.
If you begin to feel you want to be received into the Church, discuss it with the local vicar or one of the parish clergy. Most parishes run an annual course or classes for confirmation candidates, often one for adults and one for young people. For details of your local church go to http://www.achurchnearyou.com
Where Confirmation takes place
Many people are confirmed in their local church or in the cathedral. However, people may also be confirmed in another church in a service in which candidates from a number of different churches are combined together, and some children and young people are confirmed at their school.
Confirmation usually takes place during a service of Holy Communion at which the Bishop presides. He will use the opportunity of the sermon to talk to the candidates about the responsibilities of adult Christian life and they will then make their public profession of faith. Any unbaptised candidates are baptised and the Bishop prays that the Holy Spirit will come upon those who are to be confirmed. They kneel before the Bishop, who lays his hands on the head of each, saying:
'Confirm, O Lord, your servant with your Holy Spirit.'
Or he might use this longer prayer:
'Defend, O Lord, this your servant with your heavenly grace, that (s)he may continue yours for ever, and daily increase in your Holy Spirit more and more, until (s)he comes to your everlasting kingdom.'
The service continues with a celebration of the Holy Communion, where the newly-confirmed join in receiving the sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ.
Were you baptised?
Many people were baptised (christened) as a baby but have had little contact with the Church since. However, baptism is permanent and cannot be cancelled or repeated. So, if you were baptised as a baby, in whatever church that took place, you are still baptised and you cannot be baptised again. Some people are not sure whether they have been baptised or not. It is important to try find out from parents or older relatives and to discover where it took place, because you may need to obtain a baptismal certificate.
To find churches in England go to http://www.achurchnearyou.com
If you haven't been baptised, it will probably be suggested that you be prepared for baptism and confirmation at the same time. Normally you will then be baptised at the same service in which you are confirmed.
You will be asked to make the promises of baptism, repenting of your sins and turning to Christ. You must declare before God that you accept the Christian faith. Baptism takes place at the font, where water will be poured over your head. The priest who baptises you will call you by your name and then use the words based on Holy Scripture: 'I baptise you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.'.
From another denomination?
If you are a Christian from another denomination and feel drawn towards joining the Church of England, the way this is done will depend partly on your present denomination. Please discuss this with your local clergy.
Warning: getimagesize(/home/virtual-web/www.trurodiocese.org.uk/public/cmsimages/thumb_80.jpg) [function.getimagesize]: failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home/virtual-web/www.trurodiocese.org.uk/public/includes/functions.php on line 202
Living the Eucharist
Author Stephen Conway RP Books Code: 105450 ISBN: 9780232524215