Affirmation of Baptism: Confirmed in Community

June 2009

By Jennifer Phelps Ollikainen

I was just about 14 years old in May of my eighth-grade year. It was Pentecost Sunday—though I don’t think I realized that at the time. It was the day of my confirmation. As I think back on the day, the memo­ries that stand out for me are not about deep issues of faith or what I had learned in two years of classes every Tuesday evening. Rather, I remember what I wore—a new blue dress and grown-up high heels for the first time. I remember that I was nervous standing in front of the congregation (those shoes—would I wobble, or worse, trip?). And I remember the moments of celebration. During worship, the congregation applauded us confirmands and we exchanged warm hugs during the passing of the peace of Christ. After church, there were endless congratulations in the receiving line, as well as cake and gifts presented by various members of the congrega­tion. And that afternoon, there was even more celebrating at home with relatives and members of the congregation—more food, more cake, more conversation, more hugs. I remember the joy and I remember the community celebration.

The rite of public Affirmation of Baptism, often called confirmation, traditionally marks a transition point in our Christian lives. The rite encourages the community to recall things that are past and to look forward to new possibilities. Affirmation of Baptism is not just about the young people who stand before the congregation. The rite offers the whole community an occasion to come together to celebrate our connectedness in the One through whom we are named children of God, Jesus Christ.

Celebrating a Shared Promise

In the community of faith, we are essential members of the body of Christ. We are named by Holy Bap­tism as “children of God.” We share the joy and responsibility of shaping one another in the Christian faith. Affirmation of Baptism is a moment of public accountability and a celebra­tion during a young person’s forma­tion in the faith. It marks a milestone in the community that is shaping that journey as well.

When young people in the con­gregation publicly affirm the gifts God has given through baptism, the whole community recalls and celebrates gifts given both to the young person and the other members of the community. This is a time when we especially recognize our connect­edness in the body of Christ.

The public nature of confirma­tion assumes the full involvement of the community. During the rite of Affirmation of Baptism, the voices of the congregation join with the voices of the confirmands—sharing the pro­fession of faith in the Apostles’ Creed. Together, our common witness pro­claims what we believe. When we say these words in community, the strong voices buoy up the tentative; those who are still learning are steadied by the practiced cadence of those who know the creed by heart; each voice offers a unique nuance to the sound of the whole.

Celebrating a Shared Life of Faith

After the confirmands profess their faith together with the whole com­munity, they affirm the covenant God made with each one of them in Holy Baptism:

to live among God’s faithful people, to hear the word of God and share in the Lord’s supper, to proclaim the good news of God in Christ through word and deed, to serve all people, following the exam­ple of Jesus, and to strive for justice and peace in all the earth. (Evangelical Lutheran Worship, p. 236)

But this covenant is not theirs to carry all alone. The rite of affirma­tion continues by addressing the whole assembly:

People of God, do you promise to support these sisters and brothers and pray for them in their life in Christ? We do, and we ask God to help and guide us.

The community also affirms the covenant God made with each one in Holy Baptism. Living among God’s people means walking in faith with one another: hearing the word of God and sharing in the Lord’s Supper, proclaiming the good news of God in Christ in cooperative minis­try, serving one another, and striv­ing for justice and peace beyond the boundaries of the community gath­ered together in worship. In the rite, the congregation then turns to prayer for the whole community and for the individual confirmands. We pray in thanksgiving for the gifts the community has received through Holy Baptism.

Let us pray.
We give you thanks, O God, that through water and the Holy Spirit you give us new birth, cleanse us from sin, and raise us to eternal life.

The presider then prays for each confirmand that the gift of the Holy Spirit will be stirred up in his or her life.

Living Out a Shared Mission

The rite of Affirmation of Baptism concludes with a note of celebration as the community joins voices with words of mutual encouragement:

Let us rejoice with these sisters and brothers in Christ. We rejoice with you in the life of baptism. together we will give thanks and praise to God and proclaim the good news to all the world.

We conclude with these words that speak of the joy we share as the baptized community—the joy we are called to share with all the world as we proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. We are sent out, renewed in the assurance of God’s love in Jesus Christ and rejuvenated in our com­mitment to participate in the mission we are called to in Jesus Christ.

As I think of the day of my confirmation at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Victor, New York, my clearest memories are the moments of celebration with the faith com­munity of which I knew that I was a part.

That community took their call­ing seriously both in celebration and in responsibility. Before and after the day of my confirmation, they shaped my life of faith. I continue to celebrate those who gathered around me on that day— and the days afterward, when those saints endured my difficult teenage years. They supported my parents in their struggle with my adolescent forays into independent life.

I give thanks for those saints who sacrificed their weekends to host the youth group, those who invited me to participate in vari­ous ministries, those who took the time to talk to a young person after Sunday worship.

I live with gratitude to those who encouraged my vocation as a musician—even on those Sundays when I filled in for the organist and

made huge mistakes. I am grateful for those who invited me to be a Sunday school teacher, and for those who cheered me into seminary.

Perhaps it is surprising to admit that I didn’t remember the content of my catechetical classes on the day of my confirmation. Yet I realize now that those classes were but one step in a longer journey in which I continue to learn about the content and shape of my faith. The Affirmation of Baptism rite that summer was also simply one pause for celebration on the long journey of faith that I share with the whole community of Christ.

Many years later, I delight in every opportunity to affirm, or to witness another’s affirming, the covenant God made with us in baptism. I anticipate how God will teach me and shape my faith through the gift of community in the body of Christ. And I take every opportu­nity to celebrate the fellowship we share together.

The Rev. Jennifer Phelps Ollikainen is associate for worship resources at the ELCA churchwide offices. She lives with her husband, the Rev. Matthew Ollikainen, and their two children in Rolling Meadows, Ill.