“You received a spiritual seal, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of knowledge and reverence, the spirit of holy fear. Keep safe what you received. God the Father sealed you, Christ the Lord strengthened you and sent the Spirit into your hearts as the pledge of what is to come.”
Saint Ambrose
The Sacrament of Confirmation perfects our relationship with God through the Holy Spirit, which was first introduced at our Baptism. Confirmation completes the process of initiation into the Christian community and prepares us as His Disciples.
Before Jesus was put to death, He promised His apostles that He would send His Spirit to comfort and strengthen them. True to His promise, the Holy Spirit was poured out on them on Pentecost, forty days after His resurrection.
As in the first Pentecost, when we are confirmed we receive the Holy Spirit through the anointing with oil and the laying on of hands by the Bishop or a Priest appointed by him. Through confirmation, our mission becomes elevated from nurturing our own relationship with God, to bringing the truth of Christ to those around us by the way we live out our faith and share it with others.
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