Confirmation

The Sacrament of Confirmation is one of the three sacraments of initiation into the Roman Catholic Church. It is a time when youth seriously reflect on their faith and religion. With the help of their sponsors, family and Confirmation team leaders, classes, meetings and retreats, they engage in a process that will strengthen their relationship with God through the Holy Spirit and provides a basis for making mature decisions to become full members of a worldwide Catholic community. Confirmation comes at a critical period in a young person's faith development. Many questions arise dealing with the importance of God, faith, church and morality. The staff at St. Joseph seeks to provide an informative, enjoyable and rewarding Confirmation program.

Candidates eligible for Confirmation Preparation are high school students who attended one year of Parish Youth Ministry and our Youth Ministry retreat.

Meetings: Sunday afternoons before the Youth Mass. Please call 741-4900 ext. 210 for registration and further information.

Adults who have been baptized Catholic but have not completed their Christian initiation can prepare for the sacraments of Confirmation and/or Holy Eucharist. Celebrating these sacraments as an adult allows individuals the chance to learn more about the Church on an adult level and to truly make an adult commitment to their faith. These sacraments convey God's grace to us, affirm God's presence in our lives in the midst of all our challenges and joys, and strengthen us to follow Jesus Christ. It is never too late to celebrate these sacraments -- now is always a good time to seek a deeper relationship with God and a deeper commitment to His Church. 

At St. Joseph Parish, adults who wish to receive Confirmation and Holy Eucharist receive their preparation alongside adults who are preparing to join the Catholic Church. For more information please contact Eddie, Adult Faith Formation Coordinator, at em.sjcpinole@gmail.com or the Parish Center at (510) 741-4900. He will be delighted to meet with you and accompany you as you decide if you would like to prepare for Confirmation and/or Holy Eucharist.

At Confirmation we receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit and confirm our baptismal promises. Greater awareness of the grace of the Holy Spirit is conferred through the anointing of chrism oil and the laying on of hands by the bishop.

Confirmation perfects Baptismal grace; it is the sacrament which gives the Holy Spirit in order to root us more deeply in the divine filiation, incorporate us more firmly into Christ, strengthen our bond with the Church, associate us more closely with her mission, and help us bear witness to the Christian faith in words accompanied by deeds. (CCC 1316)

Bound more intimately to the Church by the sacrament of confirmation, [the baptized] are endowed by the Holy Spirit with special strength; hence they are more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith both by word and by deed as true witnesses of Christ. (no. 11)

In the Acts of the Apostles we read of the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. While baptism is the sacrament of new life, confirmation gives birth to that life. Baptism initiates us into the Church and names us as children of God, whereas confirmation calls us forth as God’s children and unites us more fully to the active messianic mission of Christ in the world.

After receiving the power of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the Apostles went out and confirmed others, showing confirmation to be an individual and separate sacrament: Peter and John at Samaria (Acts 8:5-6, 14-17) and Paul at Ephesus (Acts 19:5-6). Also the Holy Spirit came down on Jews and Gentiles alike in Caesarea, prior to their baptisms. Recognizing this as a confirmation by the Holy Spirit, Peter commanded that they be baptized (cf. Acts 10:47).