Confirmation

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In the Christian churches, confirmation is a sacrament. It is seen, in western churches, as an adult sequel to the rite of Baptism, usually administered in infancy: in Confirmation, people who have reached maturity confirm the vows that were made on their behalf, and thus become full communicant members of their church. Confirmation usually follows a course of teaching of Christian doctrine: in many parishes, schools etc there is a set programme of confirmation classes. These are often based on the catechism, as a result of which candidates for confirmation may be called 'catechumens'.

  • In the Eastern Orthodox Churches, Confirmation is usually administered immediately (by a priest) after Baptism, allowing the sacrament of the Eucharist to be given, as it customarily is, even to the very young.
  • In the Roman Catholic church, the appropriate age for Confirmation (by a Bishop or a Priest) is seen as the "age of reason", i.e. 7 years old.
  • In the Anglican church, confirmation is performed by a Bishop, usually at around the age of puberty.

Confirmation is also called chrismation in the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches, in reference to the practice of anointing the confirmand with chrism. or consecrated oil.

Confirmation is also used as a technical term in the study of Rhetoric: see Large-scale Figures of meaning. It also has technical meanings in the studies of Law, Logic and various financial fields.