Confirmation Parent Information Packet 2018-2019 - Sacred Heart of Mary
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Confirmation Parent
Information Packet
2018-2019
Sacred Heart of Mary Catholic Church Sacramental Program
1Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
Welcome!
All of us at Sacred Heart of Mary want to welcome you, your Confirmation candidate,
and your entire family to the Confirmation preparation process! This is an exciting time for your
Confirmation candidate within their faith journey! Your Confirmation candidate is now
embarking on the journey to own their faith and take the responsibilities of their own faith life
and to be a soldier for Christ!
With that being said we are here to help with that process as much as possible! We want
to make sure that we are providing all the necessary tools, experiences, and communication to
make this as meaningful of a process as possible. Please never hesitate to contact myself either
by phone call or email.
Within this packet, you will find various important pieces of information that you will
want to keep track of throughout the entire year. Please make sure you take the time to cover this
information with your Confirmation candidate and store it in a place where you both can locate
it. The following information will be covered:
- Confirmation Requirements Outlined
- Service Component Explained
- Retreats
- Saint presentation
- Confirmation Letter
- Confirmation Rehearsal
- How To Choose A Sponsor
- Celebration of Confirmation Information
- Forms due dates
May the blessings of our loving Heavenly Father be poured out upon your candidate and
your entire family during this process. I am so excited to embark on this journey towards
Confirmation with each Candidate.
In Gratitude,
Shaun Clyncke
Youth Director
303-499-7572, x209
youth@sacredheartofmary.com
2Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
Explanation of the Sacraments
A Sacrament is an exterior sign of an interior reality. We will cover on a base level all the
Sacraments to understand God’s plan of sanctification for us through His love and grace. When
we use the word internal reality, it means an actual change/transformation is occurring. We don’t
always to take the time to understand the deep love poured into us through the Sacraments and
that God’s power truly changes us to become who we are meant to be. We can always tap into the
grace of the Sacraments we receive and if we understand what is going on in the Sacrament, it is
easier to live out the graces we receive from it. My hope is that as none of us have perfect
knowledge, that through your child’s journey in the Sacrament that you will enter into it with
them to grow in your own faith life. I am excited to see how the Sacrament will help our
community and your family grow.
Confirmation is much more than just a rite of passage. There are five effects of this outpouring:
1) It affirms our identity as Children of God (Divine filiation)
2) It unites us more firmly to Christ
3) It increases in us the Gifts of the Holy Spirit (Wisdom, Counsel, Fortitude, Knowledge,
Piety, Understanding, Fear of the Lord). Think about an actual outpouring of these and
what they would do for our faith.
4) It strengthens our bond with the Church
5) It strengthens us to spread and defend the Faith by our words and actions, to be fearless
witnesses to Jesus and the power of the cross.
Confirmation is NOT intended to be the end of your son/daughter’s spiritual formation but is the
beginning of a deeper life in Christ.
Confirmation is one of three “Sacraments of Initiation” along with Baptism and the Holy
Eucharist.
Confirmation perfects the graces received at Baptism, empowering us to be followers of the Lord
and co-workers for the Kingdom of God (CCC1316)
Unlike the other Sacraments of Initiation, the ordinary minister of Confirmation is the bishop, a
successor of the apostles. (If the bishop cannot attend, he assigns his authority to the priest
celebration the Sacrament)
The bishop/minister in his place extends his hands over those to be confirmed, prays over them,
and anoints them with the holy oil saying, “Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit.”
(CCC1320)
The word Christ means “Anointed One”. In union with Jesus, the Sacrament of Confirmation
makes us anointed ones as well!
3Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
You as parents are the first and foremost educators of you children in their faith. First through
your own witness and then through education. Find ways to journey with your child through this
important time with them. Prayer, The Sacraments and your own continued daily conversion in
the Love of Jesus are crucial ways to witness to them.
CONFIRMATION PREPARATION REQUIREMENTS
The Confirmation preparation process at Sacred Heart of Mary contains specific
elements in order to help the candidate experience as many aspects of faith as
possible. The elements of Confirmation preparation are as follows:
1. Attend Mass weekly
2. Substantial attendance in confirmation classes
3. Participation in group service project & complete Service Reflections
4. Attend 3 Parish Events at Sacred Heart of Mary
5. Attend a Sacred Heart of Mary sponsored retreat or youth conference
6. Write a Confirmation Letter of Intent
7. Choose a Confirmation Saint and prepare a short presentation about the Saint
8. Attend Confirmation Rehearsal
Please discuss these elements with your child in order to work together and plan
appropriately during the Confirmation process this year.
4Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
MASS ATTENDANCE
What does it mean to “attend mass weekly”? As Catholics, we are to attend mass
every Sunday and holy days of obligation (CCC 2180). God created us for the
purpose to know, love and serve Him in this life and to be happy with Him forever
in the next. Because of this purpose which is written on our hearts, we are actually
only able to be satisfied by living it out.
In the Mass, God gives us the only thing that can truly “satisfy” us: His very self.
There are other ways we can encounter God such as prayer, reading the bible,
serving others. All of these, however, point to and enliven our reception of Jesus,
body, soul, and divinity, in the Eucharist. The Eucharist nourishes us spiritually by
uniting us with the risen Christ (CCC 1392).
Mass is the richest encounter we can have with God here on earth and helps fulfill
our core purpose: union with God. God also knows us and our needs better than
we even know ourselves and as such commands us to attend mass (3rd
Commandment).
No one will be taking attendance to make sure your son or daughter is attending
Mass. As a family, the parents set the example of how to live life as a Catholic.
The responsibility is on the parents to ensure that their child, God’s child,
understands the importance and blessing that Mass is for us.
5Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
CONFIRMATION CLASS ATTENDANCE
WHAT IS “SUBSTANTIAL ATTENDANCE”:
• Confirmation class is held weekly. These classes are planned so that
the candidate receives basic instruction from the confirmation teacher.
Confirmation class is intended to assist the parents in their efforts to
catechize their child and help the parents prepare the candidate for
confirmation.
• “Substantial” means that the student with the parent’s assistance
makes every effort to attend as many classes as possible. Of course
absences for illness, school sponsored events or a family emergency is
understandable. Homework, studying for tests and other school work
responsibilities are not a reason to miss class. Please plan ahead!
• If a class is missed, it is expected that the student and parent will
review all information and complete the workbook exercises prior to the
next class.
6Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
COMMUNITY SERVICE & PARISH EVENTS
WHY COMMUNITY SERVICE WORK IS NECESSARY:
• Throughout Scripture we are called to love our neighbor and stand up for
justice as well as peace. Since service and justice are so important to
who we are as Catholic Christians, performing service work is essential
to our lives. Therefore, we ask that each candidate takes his/her service
projects seriously and as a priority.
• It is important to keep in mind that service to others isn’t something that
we do “to check it off our list”. Rather service is something we do
because we know that the presence of Jesus is in all persons and in all of
God’s creation. We literally serve Jesus!
HOW MUCH TIME IS NEEDED TO BE COMPLETED AND BY WHEN:
• Candidates are asked to participate in service work and attend 3 parish
events in the upcoming months.
o With the service work, candidates need to perform some of the hours
for the greater community that we live in and some of the hours for
the Sacred Heart of Mary parish community of which we are a part.
o Candidates can choose to attend any 3 parish events. These events
can be found on our parish website, www.SacredHeartofMary.org,
on the homepage calendar. As specific parish events occur, you
can also find details under “Gather” on the website.
• Candidates are asked to complete their service work and attend their 3
parish events by April 10, 2019. The Reflection journals for both the
service work and the parish events should be completed and provided to
the teacher by April 24, 2019.
7Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
CONFIRMATION RETREAT
Confirmation Retreat Opportunities:
• There are 4 retreat options for candidates to participate in:
o NET Retreat
▪ January 2019 (date TBD)
o Mountain Madness (middle school students only)
▪ February 2019
o Holy Week Retreat
▪ April 18-19, 2019 (Easter Sunday is April 21st, 2019)
o Steubenville of the Rockies Youth Conference (high school
students only)
▪ June 2019
Registration for Retreats:
When registration for a retreat opens, it will be online on the parish website,
www.SacredHeartofMary.org. I will also send out email reminders that registration
is open. Space is limited for each retreat. Timely registration is of the essence.
8Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
CONFIRMATION LETTER OF INTENT
WHAT IS THE CONFIRMATION LETTER OF INTENT:
• Each candidate is asked to compose a letter at the end of the
Confirmation preparation journey to state their intent of wanting to be
confirmed in the Catholic Church. Within the letter, Confirmation
candidates should write what it is they have done to prepare for the
sacrament, why they want to receive the sacrament of Confirmation, and
what it is they are planning to do once they are confirmed to continue to
grow in their faith.
THE BASIC DETAILS:
• Candidates will address their letter to Fr. Cliff McMillan. The purpose
of the letter is to express their desire to be confirmed in the Catholic
Church.
• The Confirmation Letter of Intent will be due by March 6, 2019
9Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
CONFIRMATION SAINT PRESENTATION
WHAT IS THE CONFIRMATION SAINT PRESENTATION:
• Each candidate is asked to prepare a short presentation about their
chosen Saint. For Confirmation, each student will choose a Saint of
which they will have their name as their Confirmation name (i.e. Saint
Teresa of Calcutta). Each student should give thoughtful consideration
in choosing their saint. A chosen Saint should be a person who the
student finds interesting and even inspirational. Someone to pray to and
to follow.
THE BASIC DETAILS:
• The Saint presentation needs 6 basic components:
o Name of the Saint
o Color photo of the Saint (nothing fancy - print from your
computer)
o Feast date
o Interesting information about the Saint’s life
o What they are the patron Saint of
o Why they chose their Saint and what lesson did they learn about
the Saint that they can follow.
• The Saint presentations will be January and February. Students will be
assigned the date of their presentation.
10Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
CONFIRMATION REHEARSAL
Process of Scheduling the Confirmation Rehearsal Date:
• Once the Diocese assigns us our Confirmation date, we then schedule the
date for the Confirmation Rehearsal.
• Our goal is to have the Confirmation rehearsal the Saturday prior to
Confirmation (the day before). If Confirmation is on a Saturday, the
confirmation rehearsal will be that same morning.
• Sponsors are required to attend the Confirmation rehearsal so please plan
appropriately.
Who Needs To Attend The Rehearsal:
• The Confirmation rehearsal will be held for candidates and their
sponsors. It is very important for both the candidates and their sponsor to
attend the rehearsal. A parent may stand in for the sponsor, only if the
sponsor is absolutely unable to attend the rehearsal. The parent or
sponsor must notify Shaun Clyncke well in advance of the rehearsal if
this is the case.
What Will Happen At The Rehearsal:
• The rehearsal will include: a reflection for candidates and sponsors, Rite
of Confirmation rehearsal, and confession for candidates. Sponsors may
also go to confession after all candidates have gone. We will be walking
through the Rite of Confirmation in order to familiarize the candidates
and sponsors with the roles they will play on the day of Confirmation.
11Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
HOW TO CHOOSE A CONFIRMATION SPONSOR
The Confirmation sponsor must be chosen and the sponsor information form turned in by
December 12, 2019. The Eligibility certificate must then be turned in by January 30, 2019.
What Is A Sponsor:
• A sponsor is a person who encourages, assists, and walks the faith journey with a
Confirmation candidate to help them embrace, fall in love, and actively practice the
Catholic faith before and after Confirmation.
• The sponsor also presents the Candidate to the Bishop at the celebration of
Confirmation.
Who Can Be A Sponsor:
• Being a sponsor is a huge role and not just an honor or fancy name. The sponsor
must be an active, practicing Catholic who can be a role model for the Confirmation
Candidate. The ideal situation would be to choose one of your godparents from your
Baptism, providing that they meet all the guidelines. However, if your godparent is
someone you can’t choose to be your sponsor, then you want to ask someone who
you see as an example of a committed, practicing Catholic.
• If the sponsor cannot be at the Confirmation ceremony (i.e. they live in New York),
then a proxy will need to stand in for the sponsor. The proxy needs to meet all the
same requirements as the sponsor.
• The Catholic Church (per canon law) requires that a sponsor:
- May be either a man or woman. (Sponsor doesn’t have to be the same sex as
candidate.)
- May not be the parent of the candidate.
- Is a person who regularly comes to Sunday Mass & celebrates the sacraments.
- Must be at least 16 years old.
- If married, the marriage must be recognized by the Catholic Church.
- Must be a fully initiated Roman Catholic (Baptized, has made First
Communion, and Confirmed).
12Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
CELEBRATION OF THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION
Process of Scheduling A Date:
• Requested dates are submitted by Sacred Heart of Mary to the
Archdiocese in July.
• We then wait until the Archdiocese gives us our official date along with
the celebrant’s name (confirmation is not always performed by the
Archbishop).
Celebration of Sacrament Date Notification:
• As soon as we receive information about our assigned date of
Confirmation, an email will be sent out notifying parents, candidates,
and sponsor of this date. Ensure that all contact forms are turned in to
avoid miscommunication due to missing email addresses (especially for
sponsors).
• This email will let the candidates and sponsors know what time they
need to meet in the Saint Bernard Hall to sign in, review duties, and
meet with the confirmation celebrant.
o The email will also contain information regarding the rehearsal.
13Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
DRESS CODE FOR THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION
Ladies:
• Modest top with skirt or dress pants or modest dress
• Dress Shoes (please no flip-flops)
• Skirt/ dress must be below your fingertips or longer
o Tops/dresses must have sleeves- no strapless or spaghetti straps
please! If you have a sleeveless shirt or dress, you will need to
wear something over it to cover your shoulders such as a jacket,
sweater or shawl.
If you are unsure if an outfit is appropriate, either discuss it
with Shaun Clyncke or simply choose a different outfit. If
you are questioning it’s appropriateness, that may be a sign
that you should choose another outfit.
Gentlemen:
• Dress pants
• Dress shirt with collar (tie preferred)
• Dress shoes
• No jeans, low riding pants, tennis shoes or t-shirts.
If you are unsure if an outfit is appropriate, either discuss it
with Shaun Clyncke or simply choose a different outfit. If
you are questioning its appropriateness, that may be a sign
that you should choose another outfit.
**We want to see you wearing your Sunday best!**
14Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
FORMS Deadlines:
Candidate Information Form – October 24, 2018
Sponsor Information Form – December 12, 2018
Copy of Baptismal Certificate- January 16, 2019
Sponsor Eligibility Certificate – January 30, 2019
Saint Presentation – February 27, 2019
Confirmation Letter of Intent – March 6, 2019
Service & Parish Event Reflections – April 24, 2019
Please review all the provided forms and return them by their
designated due date or earlier! All forms are available online,
www.SacredHeartofMary.org, under the Sacraments tab for
Confirmation.
Thanks so much!
15Sacred Heart of Mary
Confirmation Program
Possible Dates for Confirmation
Please be patient with us until we know for sure the date for the
Confirmation Mass. We must submit several dates to the
Archdiocese and usually don’t hear back until January/Feb. I
have attached the possible dates so you can make sure to keep
them open in your calendar. As soon as I know the date, I will let
you know!
Dates:
Saturday May 4th 2019 @ 1pm
Saturday May 11th 2019 @ 1pm
Saturday May 18th 2019 @ 1pm
Thursday June 13th 2019 @ 6:30pm
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