A sponsor for a Catholic Confirmation candidate is intended to be a spiritual guide and mentor to the candidate (Catechism 1311). During preparation for Confirmation, the sponsor should build a strong spiritual relationship with the candidate because the role is not ceremonial – it is intended to be a lifelong commitment! Being a Catholic Confirmation sponsor is a blessing, and great honor, and an even greater responsibility.
The candidate is allowed to choose only one sponsor and, although the Church recommends it, the sponsor need not be one of the candidate’s godparents. The sponsor’s role, according to the Code of Canon Law (892), “is to take care that the confirmed person behaves as a true witness of Christ and faithfully fulfills the obligations inherent in this sacrament.”
The Church requires that Confirmation sponsors be full members of the Christian community and that they be mature people. The Apostolic Constitution on the Sacrament of Confirmation actually describes three activities for sponsors.
- Sponsors are asked to bring their candidates to receive the sacrament of Confirmation.
- Sponsors must present their candidates to the Bishop or the priest for the anointing.
- Sponsors must help their candidates fulfill their baptismal promises.
The first two are pretty clear but there’s a lot that goes into that third activity!
Not sure how do you do that? Would you like to learn what you need to KNOW so that you CAN do that?
Then sign up for our FREE Confirmation Sponsor Mini Course and we’ll get you headed in the right direction on this amazing journey of faith!
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