This week in Confirmation Preparation:

IMPORTANT DATES

Middle School Confirmation Retreat: Friday, April 26 from 5:00 - 9:00 PM

High School Confirmation Retreat: Saturday, April 27 from 9:00 AM - 4:30 PM (including the 5pm Vigil Mass)

Confirmation Mass: Friday, May 10 at 6:00 PM.

All candidates and sponsors must also attend the rehearsal on Thursday, May 9 at 6:00 PM.

Here is the latest from the Youth Confirmation classes

Session 8: The Holy Spirit (DECISION POINT by Dynamic Catholic)

• Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit to us and that he would be with us.
• We worship one God, but threefold in persons; the Holy Spirit is the third person.
• We receive the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit at Baptism; these same gifts may be strengthened at Confirmation.
• Embracing and using the gifts leads to the fruits of the Holy Spirit
• We are prompted, or encouraged, by the Holy Spirit to move forward in our path of discipleship, especially in prayer.

Since Pentecost, the Church has had a lot of time to unpack who the Holy Spirit is and how He works. But even right after Pentecost is recounted in Scripture, we have insight into the transformative power of the Holy Spirit. We recall the event of Pentecost as the first Confirmation; Pentecost is the birth of the Church as we know it. Since then, Jesus has made good on his promise to be with us until the end of time. The disciples, having received the Spirit, went out and preached the gospel, spreading the good news to the ends of the earth. Many more would follow in their path. A now, in the Sacrament of Confirmation, candidates will be strengthened with the Holy Spirit's seven gifts given at Baptism.

The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity and is the one who sanctifies us, moves us to love, and enables us to live a life of holiness. The life of discipleship carries with it the promise of eternal life, which is why discipleship is a supernatural life — it goes beyond what we are naturally capable of. The life Jesus invites us to is only made possible because the Holy Spirit infuses sanctifying grace in our souls. Sanctifying grace is freely given to us at our baptism and perfects our soul so we can act as disciples of Jesus. The process of sanctification — being made holy, or whole — is a process of healing and restoration. We are healed of the effects of sin in our life, which harm us and the people around us.

As we are healed and restored, we are moved to love in greater degrees than we could ever imagine. The Holy Spirit fills us with special graces — called “charisms” — that bring to life our personal vocation. They are gifts that continue to sanctify us and simultaneously contribute to bringing about the fullness of the Kingdom of God within the Church. The Holy Spirit also strengthens us to live a life of holiness. It is probably no surprise that living the vocation to love and staying resolved in saying, “yes, and” to God can be difficult at times. It is hard to recognize and acknowledge where we are wounded and how we need to grow.

We prompted by the Holy Spirit, in other words, encouraged, inspired, and reminded, to develop and grow in the Christian life. We can begin to learn to listen to the Spirit's promptings by praying — a few minutes each day will suffice. We are all free to accept or reject God's Holy Spirit in our lives, but remember, there are consequences. When we embrace the Holy Spirit, we find peace, joy, order, and purpose. When we reject the Spirit, we find anxiety, chaos, and the despair of purposelessness. The Holy Spirit is the great encourager. When life gets difficult, we need encouragement daily.

The 7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit:

1. Wisdom: The ability to discern what is true, right, and lasting. Wisdom enables us to see life from God’s perspective. It helps you to establish the right priorities in your life, and leads you to think and act in mature ways. 
2. Understanding: Allows you to look beyond the shallowness of the world and see the lasting truth in every situation, by recognizing how God is working in our lives. 
3. Counsel: The right judgment that allows us to see what is right and what is wrong, and the prudence to act accordingly.
4. Fortitude: The courage and strength of will to do what you know you should, even if that means personal loss or suffering.
5. Knowledge: The ability to see things from a supernatural viewpoint. In particular, to know what God is asking of you.
6. Piety: A loyalty to God that manifests as generous love and affectionate obedience. This is the gift that allows you to love and worship God as he deserves to be loved and worshipped
7. Fear of the Lord (reverence): Helps us to grasp God’s greatness and our dependence on him. As a result, we are filled with enormous respect for God and we dread above all offending him or being separated from him. Our Jewish ancestors believed that fear of the Lord was the beginning of wisdom. Of course, it is not a fear like we usually think of fear today. It is more like an overwhelming sense of not wanting to disappoint the One who has done (and continues to do) so much for us. 

The 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit:

1. Love: To love God above all things and to love others as God calls us to.
2. Joy: This is more than just being happy. It is a feeling awakened by the possession or expectation of something good. And this joy can be present deep within us even when things don’t go our way. 
3. Peace: The serenity and tranquility that flows from order. The world can make our lives disordered and chaotic. God wants to bring order to our lives – and with that order comes a deep and abiding peace.
4. Patience: Enables us to endure inconvenience, difficulties, and hardship without complaint.
5. Kindness: Concern for others who are in trouble or in need.
6. Goodness: Doing what is good and right in every circumstance.
7. Generosity: To give freely of our time, talent, and treasure beyond what justice requires.
8. Gentleness: To be submissive to God and considerate of others.
9. Faithfulness: To be reliable and trustworthy.
10. Modesty: The moderation of our speech, dress, and behavior.
11. Self-control: The control of our desires so that we can focus them on what is good and right.
12. Chastity: The moderation of desire for sexual pleasure according to right reason, faith, and state in life.

"If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it remains with you, and will be in you."

"I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that told you."

-John 14:15-17, 25-26

“Let's ask ourselves: are we open to the Holy Spirit?"

-Pope Francis

Discussion Questions

• In your words, who is the Holy Spirit?
• Would you like to learn how to experIence joy even In the mIdst of great sufferIng lIke SaInt Paul? What do you thInk hIs secret was?
• Have you ever gIven someone a gIft and he or she was ungrateful? How dId that make you feel?
• WhIch of the seven gIfts of the Holy SpIrIt do you feel most In need of at thIs tIme In your lIfe?
• How would your lIfe be better If you really opened yourself up to the gIfts of the Holy SpIrIt?
• When was the last tIme you felt the Holy SpIrIt promptIng you to do somethIng? Or not to do somethIng?
• Are you going to welcome the Holy Spirit into your life?

Students, how are your assignments? Please see the list below and complete any missing assignments.

Catechism of the Catholic Church online version:

https://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/catechism/catechism-of-the-catholic-church