Works of the Right Rev. Bishop Hay of Edinburgh/Volume 1/Chapter 21
Chapter XXI
Of The Sacrament Of Confirmation
Q. I. What is the end or design for which confirmation was ordained?
A. The design of the sacrament of confirmation is to perfect and complete the sanctification received in baptism, by bringing down the Holy Ghost in a more particular manner to dwell in our souls, to fortify and confirm us in our faith, and enable us more effectually to resist all the enemies of our souls.
Q. 2. Can this be explained by any example?
A. It is most fitly explained by the example of the holy apostles; for though they had been for three years in the school of Jesus Christ, had enjoyed His blessed company, seen His holy example, and been witnesses of His miracles; and although, during all that time. He had instructed them, both in public and private, in the truths of His Gospel; yet it is surprising to see how imperfect they still were, how little they understood the great truths He had revealed to them, and how much less they practised the lessons He had given them. Insomuch that, even at the Last Supper, " there was a strife amongst them, which of them should seem to be greater," Luke, xxii. 24 , notwithstanding all the lessons of humility He had given them; and so far were they from profiting by His instructions about suffering for His sake, that when He was taken in the garden, " they all forsook Him and fled away," Mat. xxvi. 56. And a little after St Peter himself denied Him, and cursed and swore he knew Him not. All this shows how imperfect they still were; and the reason is, that the Holy Ghost had not yet come down upon them. But as soon as they received this Divine Spirit on Pentecost, they immediately became new men; their minds were enlightened to understand all that their blessed Master had taught them; their hearts were inflamed with a most ardent love for Him, and a zeal for His honour and glory; the grace of this Holy Spirit " endowed them with a power from on high," Luke, xxiv. 49 , which confirmed them in all good, and enabled them, in a most wonderful manner, cheerfully to undergo all dangers, to overcome all difficulties, and to suffer all torments, for the sake of their Lord and Master, so as even to " rejoice that they were accounted worthy to suffer reproach for the name of Jesus," Acts, V. 41. By which we see that the sanctification of our souls is, in a special manner, the work of the Holy Ghost. Now, as we are called, by our very vocation as Christians, to be saints, and to be perfect, according to that of our Saviour, " Be you perfect, as also your heavenly Father is perfect," Mat. v. 48 , therefore our blessed Redeemer was pleased of His infinite goodness to institute the holy sacrament of confirmation, as the never-failing means in His Church of communicating His Divine Spirit to His followers, to confirm them in His service, and enable them to attain the sanctity and perfection required of them.
Q. 3. Is confirmation a true sacrament?
A. It is; because it has all the three things necessary to constitute a sacrament.
Q. 4. What is the outward sensible sign used in confirmation?
A. Taking the whole of it, as laid down in the Holy Scriptures, it consists of three things: (i.) The bishop, to whom alone it belongs to give confirmation, stretching out his hands over those that are to be confirmed, prays for them all in general, that the Holy Ghost may come down upon them with his sevenfold graces. (2.) Coming to each one in particular, he lays his hand upon him; and, (3.) at the same time anoints his forehead with holy chrism in the form of the cross, saying these words, " I sign thee with the sign of the cross, I confirm thee with the chrism of salvation, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Q. 5. Where do we find in Scripture that this outward action is instituted by Jesus Christ, to be the means of bringing the Holy Ghost to our souls?
A. In the Acts of the Apostles, we are told that when St Philip the deacon had, by his preachings and miracles, converted the Samaritans, " they were baptized, both men and women," Acts, viii. 12 , which, when the apostles who were at Jerusalem had heard, " they sent to them Peter and John; who, when they were come, they (i.) prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Ghost... then, (2.) They laid their hands upon them, and they received the Holy Ghost," ver. 14. In which passage we see that prayer and the laying on of hands were the outward means used by these apostles for communicating the Holy Ghost; prayer as a preparation, and the laying on of hands as the immediate means appointed for that purpose.
Q. 6. Where do we find the anointing and confirming?
A. The Scripture speaking upon any subject does not always mention every circumstance relating to it in one place, but sometimes one circumstance, sometimes another; and it is by collecting these different passages together that we possess the whole. St Paul, speaking of this sacrament in his Epistle to the Corinthians, describes it thus: "Now He that confirmeth us with you in Christ, and He that hath anointed us is God, Who hath also sealed us, and given the pledge of the Spirit in our hearts," 2 Cor. i. 21. In which words he mentions both the confirming and the anointing us, and also the sealing us, or the sacred character which this sacrament imprints in our souls; and at the same time he declares that all this is the work of God - that is, that God is the author of it. From these two passages we have the whole of this sacrament explained to us, both as to the outward action as above described, and the inward grace, or the sacred effects which it produces in the soul.
Q. 7. What are the effects of the sacrament of confirmation?
A. (i.) It brings down the Holy Ghost in a particular manner to our souls with all His gifts and graces, increasing the justification of our souls, and making us more pure and holy in the eyes of God; see above, Chap, viii., Q. 34, 35. (2.) It confirms and strengthens us in our holy faith, and enables us to profess it before tyrants and persecutors, and to fight manfully against all the enemies of our souls, so as to bear all the crosses and trials of this life with Christian meekness and humility, after the example of Jesus. (3.) It imprints a sacred character or seal on the soul, which shows that we have been confirmed, and, as it were, enlisted in the service of Jesus Christ, to fight under His banner against all His and our enemies; and therefore, as is the case in baptism, this sacrament can never be received more than once, because this character once received can never be effaced.
Q. 8. As confirmation brings down the Holy Ghost to sanctify our souls, do all that receive confirmation become saints?
A. Happy would it be, indeed, for the world if this were the case; but, alas! this happens but too seldom: and the reason is that, in order to become a saint, two things are required - the assistance of the Holy Ghost, and our co-operation. Both these are absolutely necessary. Without the Divine assistance we can do nothing towards our salvation; and though Almighty God should bestow His chosen graces upon us, if we resist them, or do not co-operate with them, we shall never advance a single step towards Christian perfection. Hence St Paul says, " Not I, but the grace of God with me," I Cor. XV. 10 ; not I alone, nor the grace of God alone, but " the grace of God with me," the grace of God assisting, and I co-operating. Now, in the sacrament of confirmation God Almighty does His part; He gives us His Holy Spirit, with all the graces necessary to enable us to become saints if we co-operate with them; and if few become saints, even after receiving these graces, the fault is entirely our own, because we do not profit by them as we might. And, alas! how few make the proper use of them I
Q. 9. How is the outward action of confirmation a sign of the grace received?
A. The imposition of hands represents the communication of the Holy Ghost to the soul, and the anointing the forehead with holy chrism represents the nature and plenitude of the grace received by the internal unction of the Holy Ghost.
Q. 10. How so?
A. The chrism is a sacred ointment, composed of oil of olives, and balm of Gilead, solemnly blessed by the bishop on holy Thursday. The oil represents the fulness of the grace received; both because, as oil, when dropped upon anything, spreads itself upon it, and insinuates itself into all its parts, so the grace of this holy sacrament penetrates into the soul, and diffuses itself throughout all her powers; and also, because oil, being a mild substance, represents that spirit of meekness and patience under the cross, which is one of the principal effects of confirmation. At the same time, as balm has the peculiar property of preserving bodies after death from putrefaction, it fitly represents the fortifying grace received in confirmation, by which our souls are preserved from the corruption of sin, after our sins have been destroyed by the sacrament of baptism.
Q. II. Do all receive an equal grace in the sacrament of confirmation?
A. The sacred character imprinted on the soul by confirmation is the same in all; but the other graces are given in proportion to the designs which God has in view for the person who receives this sacrament, and to the dispositions with which he comes to receive it.
Q. 12. What are the dispositions necessary for receiving confirmation worthily?
A. These three: (i.) That the receiver be sufficiently instructed, according to his age and capacity, in the necessary knowledge of Christian doctrine; (2.) That he be in the state of grace; and, (3.) That beforehand he spend some time in prayer.
Q. 13. Why must he be instructed in his Christian doctrine?
A. Because without this he cannot have a proper sense of what he is doing, nor conceive those devout affections towards God which dispose the soul for receiving the grace of the sacrament. Besides, all are bound to acquire a knowledge of the essential and necessary truths of religion according to their age and capacity.
Q. 14. Why must he be in the state of grace?
A. Because the Scripture assures us that " the Holy Spirit of Wisdom will not enter into a malicious soul, nor dwell in a body subject to sins," Wis. i. 4 ; and therefore it would be a grievous sacrilege were a person, knowing himself to be in a state of sin, to presume to receive this sacrament without taking the necessary measures to put his soul into the state of grace, and be reconciled with God.
Q. 15. Why should he spend some time beforehand in prayer?
A. For two reasons: (i.) From the example of the apostles, who, during the ten days between the ascension of our Lord and the coming of the Holy Ghost on Pentecost, " continued with one accord in prayer with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brethren," Acts, i. 14. Now, if the apostles, by the particular inspiration of God, employed themselves in prayer to prepare themselves for the coming of the Holy Ghost, how much more ought we? (2.) Because our Saviour has assured us that our " Father from heaven will give His good Spirit to them that ask it," Luke, xi. 13. See also above. Chap, viii., Q. t,6.
Q. 16. What are the best prayers for this purpose?
A. The hymns and prayers appointed by the Church for invoking the Holy Ghost, and for begging His grace, contained in manuals and other books of devotion.
Q. 17. Is confirmation necessary for salvation?
A. It is not absolutely necessary, yet it would certainly be a sin to neglect to receive it when one can have it, especially if, by neglecting a present occasion, a person exposes himself to the danger of being deprived of the sacrament; and still more if he be exposed to temptations and persecutions on account of his holy religion; and it would be a very grievous sin if one should neglect it out of disregard or contempt.
Q. 18. What are the ceremonies used in confirmation?
A. Besides those used in the sacramental action, there are these following: -
(i.) The anointing of the forehead is made by the sign of the cross, to show that, being now confirmed in the service of Jesus Christ, and enlisted as His soldiers, we ought never to be ashamed of our Master's livery, but boldly profess ourselves disciples of a crucified Saviour, and members of His Church, in spite of all that the world can do against us, either by ridicule or persecution; being mindful of His words, " Whosoever shall be ashamed of Me and of My words, in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man shall be ashamed of him when He shall come in the glory of His Father with the holy angels," Mark, viii. 38.
(2.) Immediately after confirmation the bishop gives the person confirmed a little blow on the cheek, to teach him that, being now a soldier of Jesus Christ, he must manfully fight against all His enemies, and bear with meekness and patience all crosses, persecutions, and trials, for the sake and glory of his Lord and Master.
(3.) In giving him this little blow, the bishop says. Peace be with you, to teach him that the only way to true peace in this world, as well as in the next, is to suffer patiently for Christ's sake, and also to encourage him to do so from the hopes of the reward, according to our Lord's promise, " Learn of Me, for I am meek and humble of heart, and you shall find rest to your souls," Mat. xi. 29.
(4.) The person confirmed takes a new name, which ought to be the name of some saint, whom he chooses for his particular patron, and whose virtuous example he ought to strive to imitate.
(5.) The person confirmed has one godfather, if a boy, and one godmother, if a girl, of whom the same things are to be observed as of those in baptism.