See also:

• CONFIRMATION (Lat. confirmatio, from confirmare, to establish, make firm)

CONFIRMATION (See also:

• LAT

Lat. confirmatio, from confirmare, to establish, make See also:

• FIRM

firm)  , in the See also:

• CHRISTIAN
• CHRISTIAN, WILLIAM (1608-1663)

Christian sense, the initiatory rite of laying on of hands, supplementary to and completing See also:

• BAPTISM

baptism, and especially connected with the See also:

• GIFT (a common Teutonic word, cf. Ger. die Gift, gift, das Gift, poison, formed from the Teut. stem gab-, to give, cf. Dutch geven, Ger. geben; in O. Eng. the word appears with initial y, the guttural of later English is due to Scandinavian influence)

gift of the See also:

• HOLY

Holy See also:

• GHOST (a word common to the W. Teutonic languages; O.E. vest, Dutch, 'geest, Ger. Geist)

Ghost to the See also:

• CANDIDATE

candidate . The words " confirm " and " See also:

• CONFIRMATION (Lat. confirmatio, from confirmare, to establish, make firm)

confirmation " are not used in the See also:

• BIBLE
• BIBLE, ENGLISH

Bible in this technical sense, which has only grown up since the 5th See also:

• CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century, and only in the Western churches of Christendom and in. their offshoots, but the rite itself has been practised in the See also:

• CHURCH
• CHURCH (according to most authorities derived from the Gr. Kvpcaxov [&wµa], " the Lord's [house]," and common to many Teutonic, Slavonic and other languages under various forms—Scottish kirk, Ger. Kirche, Swed. kirka, Dan. kirke, Russ. tserkov, Buig. cerk
• CHURCH, FREDERICK EDWIN (1826-1900)
• CHURCH, GEORGE EARL (1835–1910)
• CHURCH, RICHARD WILLIAM (1815–189o)
• CHURCH, SIR RICHARD (1784–1873)

Church from the beginning . The See also:

• HISTORY

history of confirmation has passed through three stages . In the first ages of the Church, when it was recruited chiefly by converts who were admitted in full See also:

• AGE (Fr. age, through late Lat. aetaticum, from aetas)

age, confirmation, or the laying on of hands (Heb. vi . 2), followed See also:

• CLOSE
• CLOSE (from Lat. clausum, shut)
• CLOSE, MAXWELL HENRY (1822-1903)

close upon baptism, and in the See also:

• MAJORITY (Fr. majorite; Med. Lat. majoritas; Lat. major, greater)

majority of cases the two were combined in a single service . But only the highest See also:

• ORDER
• ORDER (through Fr. ordre, for earlier ordene, from Lat. ordo, ordinis, rank, service, arrangement; the ultimate source is generally taken to be the root seen in Lat. oriri, rise, arise, begin; cf. " origin ")
• ORDER, HOLY

order of ministers could confirm (see Acts viii . 14-17); whereas priests and deacons, and in an emergency laymen and even See also:

• WOMEN

women, could baptize . There was therefore no See also:

• ABSOLUTE (Lat. absolvere, to loose, set free)

absolute certainty that a believer who had been baptized had also received confirmation (Acts xix . 2) . But two circumstances tended to prevent the occurrence of such irregularities . In the first See also:

• PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place, there were in See also:

• EARLY
• EARLY, JUBAL ANDERSON (1816-1894)

early days far more bishops in proportion to the number of believers than is the See also:

• CUSTOM (from O. Fr. costume, costume or coustume; Low Lat. costuma, a shortened form of consuetudo)

custom now; and, secondly, it was the See also:

• RULE

rule (except in cases of emergency) to baptize only in the See also:

• SEASON (0. Fr. seson, seison, mod. saison, Lat. satio, sowing time, the spring, from serere, to sow; in Late Lat. the word is found with its present meaning, the spring being considered as particularly the season of the year)

season from See also:

• EASTER

Easter to See also:

• PENTECOST

Pentecost, and the See also:

• BISHOP (A.S. bisceop, from Lat. episcopus, Gr. irio-Korros, " overlooker " or " overseer ")
• BISHOP, ISABELLA (1832-1904)
• BISHOP, SIR HENRY ROWLEY (1786-1855)

bishop was always See also:

• PRESENT

present and laid his hands on the newly baptized . Moreover, in the third and See also:

• FOURTH

fourth centuries the infants of Christian parents were frequently See also:

• LEFT

left unbaptized for years, e.g .

See also:

• AUGUSTINE, SAINT (354-430)
• AUGUSTINE, SAINT (d. c.613)

Augustine of See also:

• HIPPO

Hippo . Later, when the Church had come to be tolerated and patronized by the See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

state, her See also:

• NUMBERS, BOOK OF
• NUMBERS, PARTITION OF

numbers increased, the rule that fixed certain days for baptism See also:

• BROKE, or BROOKE, ARTHUR (d. 1563)
• BROKE, SIR PHILIP BOWES VERE, BART

broke down, and it was impossible for bishops to attend every baptismal service . Thereupon See also:

• EAST
• EAST, ALFRED (1849- )

East and See also:

• WEST
• WEST, BENJAMIN (1738-1820)
• WEST, NICHOLAS (1461-1533)

West adopted different methods of See also:

• MEETING (from " to meet," to come together, assemble, 0. Eng. metals ; cf. Du. moeten, Swed. mota, Goth. gamotjan, &c., derivatives of the Teut. word for a meeting, seen in O. Eng. Wit, moot, an assembly of the people; cf. witanagemot)

meeting the difficulty . In the East greater emphasis was laid on the See also:

• ANOINTING

anointing with oil, which had See also:

• LONG, GEORGE (1800-1879)
• LONG, JOHN DAVIS (1838– )

long been an See also:

• ADJUNCT (from Lat. ad, to, and jungere, to join)

adjunct of the laying on of hands: the oil was consecrated by the bishop, and the See also:

• CHILD
• CHILD, FRANCIS JAMES (1825-1896)
• CHILD, L
• CHILD, LYDIA MARIA (1802-1880)
• CHILD, SIR FRANCIS (1642-1713)
• CHILD, SIR JOHN (d. 1690)
• CHILD, SIR JOSIAH (163o - 1699)

child anointed or " sealed " with it by the See also:

• PARISH (Gr. irapouda, district, neighbourhood; 7r&poucos, one dwelling near or beside, from crap&, OtKOS, house; Lat. paroecur, Late Lat. parochia; cf. Fr. paroisse)

parish See also:

• PRIEST (Ger. Priester, Fr. pretre)

priest, and this was reckoned as its confirmation . With its baptism thus completed, the See also:

• INFANT (in early forms enfaunt, enfant, through the Fr. enfant, from Lat. infans, in, not, and fans, the present participle of fari, to speak)

infant was held to be capable of receiving holy communion . And to this See also:

• DAY (O. Eng. dreg, Ger. Tag; according to the New English Dictionary, " in no way related to the Lat. dies")
• DAY, JOHN (1574-1640?)
• DAY, THOMAS (1748-1789)

day in the Eastern Church the infant is baptized, anointed and communicated by the parish priest in the course of a single service; and thus the bishop and the laying on of hands have disappeared from the See also:

• ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

ordinary service of confirmation . The West, on the other See also:

• HAND
• HAND (a word common to Teutonic languages; cf. Ger. Hand, Goth. handus)
• HAND, FERDINAND GOTTHELF (1786-185r)

hand, deferred confirmation, not at first till the child had reached years of discretion, though that afterwards became the theory, but from the necessities of the See also:

• CASE
• CASE, JOHN (d. 1600)

case . The child was baptized at once, that it might be admitted to the Church, while the completion of its baptism was put off till it could be brought to a bishop . Western canons insist on both points at once; baptism is not to be deferred beyond a See also:

• WEEK (from A.S. wicu, Germanic *wikon, probably=change, turn)

week, nor confirmation beyond seven years . And to give an See also:

• HISTORICAL

historical example, See also:

• HENRY
• HENRY (1129-1195)
• HENRY (c. 1108-1139)
• HENRY (c. 1174–1216)
• HENRY (Fr. Henri; Span. Enrique; Ger. Heinrich; Mid. H. Ger. Heinrich and Heimrich; O.H.G. Haimi- or Heimirih, i.e. " prince, or chief of the house," from O.H.G. heim, the Eng. home, and rih, Goth. reiks; compare Lat. rex " king "—" rich," therefore " mig
• HENRY, EDWARD LAMSON (1841– )
• HENRY, JAMES (1798-1876)
• HENRY, JOSEPH (1797-1878)
• HENRY, MATTHEW (1662-1714)
• HENRY, PATRICK (1736–1799)
• HENRY, PRINCE OF BATTENBERG (1858-1896)
• HENRY, ROBERT (1718-1790)
• HENRY, VICTOR (1850– )
• HENRY, WILLIAM (1795-1836)

Henry VIII. had his daughter, afterwards See also:

• QUEEN
• QUEEN (O.E. cwen, wife, related to "quean," O.E. cwene, a hussy; cf. Gr. yvvi7: from root gan-, to produce; cf. genus, " kin," &c.)

Queen See also:

• ELIZABETH
• ELIZABETH (1533-1603)
• ELIZABETH (1596-1662)
• ELIZABETH (1635–1650)
• ELIZABETH [ AMELIE EUGENIE ] (1837—1898)
• ELIZABETH [1lisabeth Philippine Marie Helene of France] (1764—1794)
• ELIZABETH [PAULINE ELIZABETH OTTILIE LOUISE] (1843– )
• ELIZABETH [PETROVNA] (1709-1762), EMPRESS
• ELIZABETH, SAINT (1207-1231)

Elizabeth, both baptized and confirmed when she was only a few days old . And still the rubrics of the See also:

• ENGLISH

English See also:

• PRAYER (from Lat. precari, entreat; Ital. pregaria, Fr. priere)
• PRAYER, BOOK OF COMMON

Prayer-See also:

• BOOK

Book See also:

• DIRECT

direct that the See also:

• PERSON, OFFENCES AGAINST THE

person who is baptized as an adult is to " be confirmed by the bishop so soon after his baptism'as conveniently may be." But theologians in the West had elaborated a theory of the See also:

• GRACE (Fr. grace, Lat. gratia, from grates, beloved, pleasing; formed from the root cra-, Gr. xav-, cf. xaipw, x6p,ua, Xapts)
• GRACE, WILLIAM GILBERT (1848– )

grace of confirmation, which made its severance from baptism seem natural; and at the See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time of the See also:

• REFORMATION
• REFORMATION, THE

Reformation, while neither See also:

• SIDE
• SIDE (mod. Eski Adalia)

side favoured the Eastern practice, the reformers, with their strong sense of the See also:

• CRUCIAL (from Lat. crux, a cross)

crucial importance of faith, emphasized the See also:

• ACTION

action of the individual in the service, and therefore laid it down as a rule that confirmation should be deferred till the child could learn a See also:

• CATECHISM (from Gr. Karnxeiv, teach by word of mouth)

catechism on the fundamentals of the Christian faith, which See also:

• CALVIN, JOHN (1509-1564)

Calvin thought he might do by the time he was ten . Many of the See also:

• PROTESTANT

Protestant bodies have abandoned the rite, but it remains among the See also:

• LUTHERANS

Lutherans (who, whether episcopal or not, attach See also:

• GREAT

great importance to it) and in the See also:

• GROUP

group of Churches in communion with the Church of See also:

• ENGLAND
• ENGLAND, THE CHURCH OF

England .

In the See also:

• CATHOLIC (Gr. KcaBoXuK6s, general, universal)

Catholic Apostolic Church (" Irvingites ") confirmation is called " sealing," and is administered by the "'angels." Among the See also:

• ROMAN

Roman Catholics it is reckoned one of the seven sacraments, and administered at about the age of eight: in many cases less emphasis is laid on the confirmation than on the first communion, which follows it . At the last revision of the Book of See also:

• COMMON

Common Prayer an addition was made to the service by prefixing to it a See also:

• SOLEMN (Lat. sollemnis, sollemnis, less correctly solennis, yearly, annual; from sollus = totus, whole, entire, Gr. Mos., and annus, year)

solemn renewal of their baptismal vows by the candidates; and, in the See also:

• TEETH (O.E. Eel); plural of tooth, O.E. top)

teeth of history and the wording of the service, this has often been taken to be the essential feature of confirmation . Practically, the preparation of candidates for confirmation is the most important and exacting See also:

• DUTY (from " due," that which is owing, O. Fr. deu, dil, past participle of devoir; Lat. debere, debitum; cf. " debt ")

duty of the See also:

• ANGLICAN

Anglican parish priest, as the See also:

• ADMINISTRATION (Lat. administrare, to serve)

administration of the rite is the most arduous of a bishop's tasks; and after a long See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period of slovenly neglect these duties are now generally discharged with great care: classes are formed and instruction is given for several See also:

• WEEKS, EDWIN LORD (1849-1903)

weeks before the coming of the bishop to See also:

• LAY

lay on hands " after the example of the Holy Apostles " (prayer in the Confirmation Service) . Of See also:

• LATE

late years there has been a controversy among Anglican theologians as to the exact nature of the gift conveyed through confirmation, or, in other words, whether the Holy Spirit can be said to have come to dwell in those who have been baptized but not confirmed . The view that identifies confirmation rather than baptism with the Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit on the Church has had to contend against a long-established tradition, but appeals to Scripture (Acts viii . 16) and to patristic teaching .