At this Mass I would like to welcome all those who will soon be confirmed; I also welcome your sponsors, parents, and teachers. Today in the presence of all the people of God gathered in this Church you will sign your name to a book stating your intention to prayerfully continue your studies towards the sacrament of confirmation. This sacrament which you will soon receive is often misunderstood as being a sacrament of maturity. Instead this is a sacrament of initiation which is owed to all of you from the inheritance of your baptism. By the fact that each you have been baptized, you are already a member of the Church. According to the Rite of Confirmation we hear similar words from St. Paul's letter to the Thessalonians that was heard today: "by the sacrament of Confirmation, [the baptized] are more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed."
In your preparation for this sacrament do not take your faith lightly. Our faith is not a passing feeling, but instead is something that will always hold firm. If we need any example to this truth we can look towards the life of the Christian Martyrs. They understood how important the faith truly was and they were willing to spill their blood on behalf of this truth. They came to understand the truth of the resurrection that was being addressed in today's Gospel and realized that this truth was worth dying for. They followed in similar steps to the seven brothers and their mother who were put to death in our reading from second Maccabees. To all those in this Church who have been or will be confirmed we must remember always to spread and defend the faith by our word and deed. The martyrs were willing to defend this truth by their lives and we in like manner should put to death each disordered passion and fear in our life and be willing to defend the faith by our word and deed.
Being Catholic in eastern Tennessee is not always easy. Being Catholic while in high school is not always easy. These facts are true, but we must also remember that the martyrs willingness to die for the truth was not easy. It is my prayer for each of you today who will sign your name to this book upon the altar of sacrifice that you will truly enter into the study of the faith and do so through prayer. May you also follow in the footsteps of the martyrs in realizing how important that the faith truly is to live and defend. May your teachers, parents, and sponsors be true examples of the faith to you. May they teach the truth that the martyrs were willing to die for without bias and also teach by their example of how to live out the faith. This means the example of praying, being Christ like towards others, attending the Sacrifice of the Mass every Sunday, and the humble example of returning to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Also, may this community of faith who is drawn here today also be inspired by the martyrs and the sacrament of confirmation in seeing the importance of defending the faith by our word and deed. It is from the truth of the Resurrection of Christ's Body that showed that Jesus was both fully God and fully human, and from this truth the martyrs were willing to die, the faith was keep burning brightly for the world to see, and all of us are strengthened in every word and deed.
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