Is There a Better Way to Confirm?

Abstract

Though the title of the essay points toward the rite of confirmation, the catechetical instruction before the rite provides invaluable training to understand the core beliefs of the Christian faith. Such catechetical instruction was mentioned in the third and fourth centuries. Catechumens were baptized after three years of instruction, the laying of hands to receive the Holy Spirit. Thomas Aquinas would then adopt the sacrament of confirmation in the middle ages, taking the basis of the laying of hands. In the Age of Orthodoxy, Luther opposed the sacramental aspect proposed by the Roman Catholic Church with confirmation, but he sought to preserve the practice. Shifting toward the Age of Pietism and Rationalism, confirmation became a necessary complement to baptism for young teenagers and acquired elaborate ceremonies. To aid instruction, Luther wrote the Small Catechism to explain doctrines in a small, plain, simple form. He included explanations in the Ten Commandments, the Apostles’ Creed, and the Lord’s Prayer, for he saw these as significant components for all Christians to know. Later with the more thorough Large Catechism, Luther intended the Catechism primarily for parents to instruct their children in Scripture. This fulfills God’s directive to thoroughly teach the Bible in that the church and parents work cooperatively to raise Christian children. Thus, Luther purposefully utilized the question-and-answer format to navigate the different topics and gain biblical answers easily. This is an example of his adaptive teaching method to engage the audience, contrasting the lecture-based instruction of the time. In the WELS today, we follow the same format of catechizing our grade-schoolers and adult confirmands with sound doctrine. However, one can give attention to a parent-focus model of ministry and instructions using logical language over predominantly anecdotal and picture language to determine the best practice to foster faith.