Confirmation

What is the Sacrament of Confirmation?

“The prophets of the Old Testament foretold that God’s Spirit would rest upon the Messiah to sustain his mission. Their prophecy was fulfilled when Jesus the Messiah was conceived by the Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus on the occasion of his baptism by John. Jesus’ entire mission occurred in communion with the Spirit. Before he died, Jesus promised that the Spirit would be given to the Apostles and to the entire Church. After his death, he was raised by the Father in the power of the Spirit. Confirmation deepens our baptismal life that calls us to be missionary witnesses of Jesus Christ in our families, neighborhoods, society, and the world. . . . We receive the message of faith in a deeper and more intensive manner with great emphasis given to the person of Jesus Christ, who asked the Father to give the Holy Spirit to the Church for building up the community in loving service.” (USCCB)

It’s worth reiterating: The Sacrament of Confirmation deepens our baptismal life that calls us to be missionary disciples of Jesus Christ in our families, neighborhoods, society, and the world. Through Confirmation, our personal relationship with Christ is strengthened. However, our faith is not meant to be a private faith. We receive the message of faith in a deeper and more intensive manner with great emphasis given to the person of Jesus Christ, who asked the Father to give the Holy Spirit to the Church for building up the community in loving service.

The Holy Spirit bestows seven gifts (wisdom, understanding, knowledge, fortitude, counsel, piety, and fear of the Lord) to assist us in our mission and witness. The impact of these gifts accompanies us in the various stages of our spiritual development. Confirmation is not just another milestone in our faith. It’s not a “graduation” or “coming of age” moment. It’s not the “end” of something. It’s the beginning of a new and exciting phase in our journey of life! We are commissioned by the Holy Spirit to become soldiers of Christ.

Preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation

High School and Above (15+)

If you are a baptized Catholic aged 15 or above but never received Confirmation, we would like to invite you to join OCIA to prepare for Confirmation in the spring. Please visit our OCIA page for more information.

8th Graders

At St. Jude, youth in 8th grade are eligible to continue preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation, which typically takes place at the cathedral in the spring. Confirmation prep for all 8th grade students occurs during our Sunday night Faith Formation classes beginning in September.

Public School/Home School Families: Students not enrolled in ASA must have attended our 7th grade Faith Formation class in the previous year. If they did not attend the 7th grade class, we invite them to attend the 7th grade class this year and then proceed with the second part of our Confirmation program next year. Our 7th grade curriculum prepares students with the knowledge of the faith. Our 8th grade Confirmation curriculum helps to prepare them spiritually.

ASA Families: Students enrolled in ASA must attend our 8th grade Confirmation program which will help prepare them spiritually to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation. Since you already have your child(ren) enrolled in a Catholic school, we know you take the faith seriously and understand the importance of extra preparation for this once in a lifetime special encounter with the Holy Spirit. See FAQs for ASA families below.

ASA FAQs:

This one can be confusing at first, but once explained it makes sense. Per the Diocese, Sacramental prep is the responsibility of the parish. Often times when a parish also has a school, Sacramental prep is done at that school under the direction of the parish. ASA is a somewhat unique case since it is a conglomeration of four parishes. As a result, while the children are receiving an education at the school that includes religion classes, they are not receiving the necessary preparation for the reception of the Sacrament as required by each individual parish. Sacramental prep is still done by the respective parishes per the diocese’s requirements. This is true for St. Jude, Blessed Sacrament, St. Alphonsus and St. Isidore.

The diocese schedules Confirmation Masses by parish, not by school. Therefore, the children will receive the Sacrament of Confirmation at a Mass with other children from St. Jude parish, not through the school and not with ASA children from other parishes (unless the diocese happens to schedule them at the same Mass).

This program is run by and financed by St. Jude, not ASA. Members of the St. Jude staff facilitate it and St. Jude purchases all of the required materials and supplies.
Registration, paperwork, and record keeping is done by the respective parishes, not the school.
The tuition you pay to ASA stays at ASA – it does not go back to the parish.
When you receive parish support from St. Jude, the parish pays for nearly half of your child’s tuition (if you have more than one child, the percentage increases to more than half). Parish Support isn’t just a “discount” for you; St. Jude actually pays more than $4000 per St. Jude student to ASA (https://asagr.org/tuition-investment). This is real money going from St. Jude to ASA to pay for a large percentage of your child’s tuition.
The St. Jude Religious Education department relies on registration fees and goodwill donations made directly to the department to fund its programs. Weekly Mass attendance and tithing are way down since 2020 and St. Jude is regularly experiencing a shortfall (as you may have noticed in the bulletin), so we are unable to absorb the cost of the program into the St. Jude budget.

We experimented with this unique arrangement (no other ASA parish had this) in the past, but due to several factors, unfortunately, we are unable to continue to offer this option.

Requirements for the Reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation

Students attend weekly Confirmation prep classes at St. Jude.
Children should be at least 13 years old and be in the 8th grade.
Families attend Sunday Mass weekly.
Students write a Saint Paper (2 pages) to learn more about their chosen Confirmation Saint (more details given when classes start).
Students perform service hours (8) (more details given when classes start).
Parental involvement at home, attendance at meetings and scheduled special events are essential.

Required Documents

Complete the Sacrament Registration Form.

Baptismal Certificate. If your child was not baptized at St. Jude, parents must provide a copy of your child’s baptismal certificate to the parish office. Confirmation cannot be done validly on unbaptized persons, so it’s imperative for us to verify that a valid baptism has occurred. If your child has NOT been baptized, please reach out to us ASAP.

Checklists

As the faith formation year progresses, please use this checklist to make sure your child is prepared for their Confirmation.

Checklist is forthcoming…

Helpful Information

Parents are the primary educators of their children in all aspects of life, including faith. Whether you send your kids to ASA or to our Religious Education classes at St. Jude, what they learn at school or in class will have a much better chance of lasting if it’s also being lived at home. Check out this Parenting Tips document for some simple steps every family can take to make our Catholic faith come alive at home.

FORMED has lots of resources that can help us grow in faith and understanding. All of the videos to the right are on FORMED. If you don’t have a free subscription to FORMED, click here to find out how to get one. Normally there is a cost for this, but St. Jude pays an annual subscription so our parishioners can enjoy free access.

2026-2027 Important Dates

September 27, 2026: First day of classes at 5:30pm. More info and registration here.

TBA: Sponsor meeting at 4:30pm in the Brophy Center

TBA: Retreat at St. Jude. Begins with Mass at 10:30am.

Only students attend the full retreat (10:30am – 5:00pm)
Parents/Sponsors:
- Attend Mass with the students at 10:30am.
- Rejoin the retreat at 3:15pm for parent/sponsor meetings.
Adoration will be available for everyone following the parent/sponsor meetings (app. 4:00pm).
Confession is available for students during Adoration (4:00pm – 5:00pm).
- All students should attend Reconciliation before receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation.
Retreat ends at 5:00pm.

TBA: Confirmation Mass at the Cathedral at 7pm. Please arrive no later than 6:30pm. You may want to arrive earlier to find a place to park.

Preparing at Home

We have selected videos from FORMED to help you prepare at home. The parish has paid for your subscription to FORMED, so please take advantage of this great resource! Find out how to set up your account here. Below is a suggested schedule to help your entire family prepare for these important Sacraments.

Confirmation

What is the Sacrament of Confirmation?

Preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation

High School and Above (15+)

8th Graders

ASA FAQs:

If my child attends ASA, why do I have to send them to extra classes at St. Jude?+

Will my child receive the Sacrament of Confirmation with his/her ASA classmates?+

I already pay tuition to ASA; why do I have to pay a registration fee for the Confirmation prep?+

Doesn’t St. Jude have a Confirmation program during the school day at ASA?+

Requirements for the Reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation

Required Documents

Checklists

Helpful Information

2026-2027 Important Dates

Preparing at Home

September

October

November

December

January

February

March