Confirmation Promises

The word confirm means "to make firmer or stronger." Through baptism you were welcomed into the worldwide community of the Christian Church. God's covenantal claim of love, from the very beginning and extending throughout your life journey in gracious ways, was celebrated.  Parents, family, and community made promises to nurture you in the faith and accompany you in your journey of growth until you made your own decisions of faith. Our promises were to God and to one another.

Confirmation is the process through which you confirm your relationship with God and your growth in it, celebrating your God-given life and claiming your identity as a disciple of Jesus. You confirm the essence of the promises once made on your behalf. A Confirmand considers giving her/himself wholeheartedly to God, seeking to know God's will for your life.  You acknowledge Jesus as your Lord and Savior to follow all the days of your life.  You seek the Holy Spirit's guidance in all you do.  

When we celebrate The Rite of Confirmation, you, the believers, answer very specific questions.  They reflect promises made by disciples throughout the centuries, and the language has been made firmer and stronger by the members of previous Confirmation Classes.


QUESTIONS OF THE BELIEVERS

Do you desire to affirm your baptism into the faith and family of Jesus Christ, spirited in your identity as God's child, Beloved, living to God's pleasure?

I do.

Do you renounce the power of evil and desire the freedom of new life in Jesus Christ:

                 --your life unbound from the need to be privileged over others?

                 --set free to discover new calling and new purpose in your life shared with Jesus?

                 --your life graced and realized in self-giving rather than self-seeking?

                 --set free to love as we have been loved?

I do.

Do you promise, by the grace of God, to be the disciples of Jesus in  this time and place, to follow the Way of our Savior, to resist oppression and evil, to show love and justice, and to put the work and word of Jesus into action, as best you are able?

I promise, with the help of God.  

Do you promise, according to the grace given you, to grow in your faith and be a faithful member of Christ's Church, celebrating Christ's presence and continuing Christ's work throughout the world? 

I promise, with the help of God.


Consider each of these promises thoughtfully.  How do you plan to fulfill them?  Write down some impressions from each questions and some ways that you plan to respond.











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