CORPUS CHRISTI ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH |
Through confirmation we receive a special grace by which our faith is deepened and strengthened. |
Fullness of the Spirit was not to remain uniquely the Messiah's, but was to be communicated to the whole messianic people.94 On several occasions Christ promised this outpouring of the Spirit,95 a promise which he fulfilled first on Easter Sunday and then more strikingly at Pentecost.
The imposition of hands is rightly recognized by the Catholic tradition as the origin of the sacrament of Confirmation, which in a certain way perpetuates the grace of Pentecost in the Church.
Very early, the better to signify the gift of the Holy Spirit, an anointing with perfumed oil chrism- was added to the laying on of hands.
In the West, the term Confirmation suggests that this sacrament both confirms and strengthens baptismal grace.
Excerpted from the Catechism of the Catholic Church as published on www.vatican.va- |
Stained glass window in the church. |