Confirmation 2013
“Peace be with you.” John 20:19
When is the last time you said “thank you” to your parents? Don’t answer that question immediately. Think about it. In my own life, my last parent died 28 years ago. I am sure I told him “thank you,” but I cannot remember the exact moment. The simple fact of the matter is parents are always present to us, and we take them for granted. We see them every day. They provide us with just about everything, food, clothing, allowance, education, and advice. We just become too used to their being there. Familiarity leads to neglect. I think the same can be said about God in our lives.
God is everywhere. He sees everything. He knows everything. He also created us. We would have nothing, including our parents, unless God gave it to us. We have life because of our parents, but God ultimately is the origin of all life. This makes our parents co-creators. And after all this is said and done, how do we respond? We treat God exactly the way we treat our parents—with neglect. We begrudge Him an hour of our time on Sunday, if we even do that. We say a quick prayer before an exam or a football game, or when we are having relational problems, or when we need a favor. Then, just as with our parents, good times get in the way of knowing God better. Sports, clubs, our friends, fun—all this consumes our time. Who has time for God?
All the while God waits. But He doesn’t wait outside. He waits within. He is everywhere, remember. He is present. He loves us, and like a parent whose son or daughter never says “thank you,” He waits patiently for the moment.
Tonight you will be confirmed. God is entering your life in a very special way. Yes, you have prepared. You have gone on retreat. You have studied. We would hope you know what it is you believe—able to explain, defend and witness to the faith, we say. We would also hope you can live what you believe.
I would suggest to you that “thank you” is a good place to begin your relationship with God. As a matter of fact, it is a good place to begin every conversation you have with God for the rest of your lives. Every prayer we say should begin with a “thank you.” “Thank you” acknowledges God existence in our lives. It says, “You are there. You care. You are important to me.” It is interesting that the word eucharist comes from the Greek word for “giving thanks.” This is what worship of God is all about. Jesus gave us an example of this. Remember what Jesus did when He took the bread to become His Body. He gave thanks (I Corinthians 11:24). Giving thanks is what the Eucharist is all about, because giving thanks brings into the present the “real”, and in the Eucharist Jesus is really, truly present.
In a brief moment, I will anoint your head with oil. This is the sign of the Sacrament of Confirmation. God enters your life just as surely as my thumb will be placed on your forehead, just as surely as that blessed oil will enter the pores of your skin. We say, “The bishop confirmed me.” Well, yes, but we could just as easily say, “God confirmed me.” A sacrament, we believe, is what it signifies. What does that mean? It means that Jesus is present, and where He is present, God is present, and in this particular Sacrament of Confirmation, it is the Holy Spirit that does His work with you and in you. He will never leave you. Once confirmed, always confirmed. That is what sacramental character means.
I recall those days when, as a pastor, I would receive a letter from someone who had left the Catholic Church and joined another religion. This person would ask me to remove his or her name from the baptismal record of the Church. I would respond that I was so sorry he or she had left the Church and would pray for them, but I would also add that I could not remove any name from the baptismal record--once baptized, always baptized. “If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself” (I Timothy 2:13). Such is the fidelity of God to us.
I like to reflect on the first words of Jesus to His disciples following His Resurrection. He said, “Peace be with you” (John 20:19). After I anoint your forehead, I will repeat those words to you. They are “Resurrection” words. Just as Jesus was present to His disciples, He is present to you. God is with you. He fills your life with peace.
God surrounds us. He envelops us with Himself. But excuse me, He does more than that. He enters us. His “peace” is given to us. The reason “thank you” is so important is that it acknowledges God’s peace, His gifts, and His life in us. You life should be a “thank you” to God.
During this Easter Season I came across an old instruction to newly baptized. We call this “mystagogy.” Our Catechism calls it moving from the sign to the mystery. To receive the sacrament is never enough, and centuries ago the newly baptized would return to be instructed further so they could enter more and more into the mystery of what it is they lived and believed. Well, what I read was an ancient “mystagogy” dating back over 1,500 years. I thought I would end with it because it sums up what I have been saying:
But be sure not to regard the chrism merely as ointment [oil]. Just as
the bread of the eucharist after the invocation of the Holy Spirit is no
longer just bread, but the body of Christ, so when the Holy Spirit has
been invoked on the holy chrism it is no longer mere or ordinary ointment;
it is the gift of Christ, which through the presence of the Holy Spirit and
organs of sense with a symbolic meaning; the body is anointed with visible
ointment, and the soul is sanctified by the holy, hidden Spirit.
(Instructions to the newly baptized at Jerusalem, Mystagogy 3, 3)
For this gift, we give thanks to God.