Welcome to the Youth Confirmation Page!
9/26/2021 Why ‘confess Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior’?
10/24/2021 What is the big story of the Bible?
11/21/2021 How might God speak to us through a passage of Scripture?
12/19/2021 What are the ministries of Ascension and how can you get involved?
1/23/2022 What unites the Anglican church worldwide?
2/27/2022 How do morning and evening prayer help unite us to Christ?
3/27/2022 How does our liturgy of Holy Communion help us live out the story of salvation?
4/24/2022 Ascension ministry capstone presentations + Final Exam.
The presentations involve a short reflection on the capstone ministry experience. Prompt questions will be provided nearer the time. The Final Exam requires written answers to the questions posed in September-November, January-March.
5/22/2022 Confirmation Sunday!
There are three written assignments, all in the first half of the course.
1) Why ‘confess Jesus as Lord and Savior’? If a friend asked, how would you answer? And what difference does following Jesus make in your life?
The Bishop needs a written response to these questions before he confirms you in May, so make a start now! After the first class on September 26, write your 500-ish word answer at home, and arrange a time to meet with your confirmation mentor before October 24, compare your answers, and be prepared to share similarities and differences in the opening time of the October 24 Confirmation Lunch.
2) What is the Big Story of the Bible? If a friend asked, how would you answer? After the October 24 presentation, write your 500-ish word answer at home, and arrange a time to meet with your confirmation mentor before November 21, compare your answers, and be prepared to share similarities and differences in the opening time of the Nov 21 Confirmation Lunch.
3) How might God speak to us through a passage of Scripture? Based on the material of November 21’s Confirmation Lunch, meet with your mentor and prayerfully engage with a Bible passage of your choice, writing down any key insights or applications that emerge through the conversation, and be prepared to share those at the opening time of the December 19 Confirmation Lunch.
There is one practical assignment, shared as a presentation
“Strengthen these your servants for witness and ministry…” One way we can prepare for this part of the Bishop’s confirmation prayer is to try our hands at a particular ministry, and Ascension has a few you can choose from!
After Marilyn’s presentation on December 19, we will negotiate a ministry opportunity for you in early 2022, the fruit of which will be discussed in a presentation you make on April 24. That ministry’s leader serves as your mentor.
The Confirmand will have TWO mentors in this course.
The first meets with them three times between September 26, October 24, November 21, and December 19
The second serves in an Ascension ministry and the confirmand works alongside them in the Spring of 2022 for their ‘ministry capstone’. The confirmand then shares about their experience at the Capstone Presentation session on April 24.
Why have mentors?
The first mentor (fall 2021) helps the confirmand prepare for these essentials…
During the Confirmation service the Bishop declares: Dearly beloved, it is essential that those who wish to be Confirmed or Received in this Church publicly confess Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior; become his disciples; know and affirm the Nicene Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Ten Commandments; and have received instruction in the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments and the Catechism of the Church.
The first type of mentor helps by:
- meeting once a month with their confirmand between September 26, October 24, November 21, and December 19. So think early October, November and December.
- listening to the confirmands’ prepared answers to the questions below
- sharing their own
- discussing both
- and praying for their confirmands
- Ideally the mentors also join us for the three Sunday Lunches in September, October and November, but this isn’t a pre-requisite.
How do mentors prepare for these meetings?
1) Please write a five-hundred-ish word response to the two questions below to share with your confirmand, who will be answering the same questions. Yes, it is tempting just to turn up and chat, but the confirmands will be asked to write theirs, and writing demands a level of thoughtfulness that is invaluable!
- Why ‘confess Jesus as Lord and Savior’? If a friend asked, how would you answer? And what difference does following Jesus make in your life? Joining the confirmand cohort at the confirmation lunch (after the 11am service, till 2.30pm) on September 26 will stimulate your answer! But that is optional. What is essential is that you meet with your confirmand between September 26 and October 24 to compare your written answers.
- What is the Big Story of the Bible? If a friend asked, how would you answer? Joining the lunch on October 24 will again be helpful, but the most important thing is to meet with your confirmand and compare answers between the October 24 and the November 21 lunches.
2) How might God speak to us through a passage of Scripture? Based on the lecture at November 21’s Confirmation Lunch, meet with your confirmand and prayerfully engage with a Bible passage of your choice, writing down any key insights or applications that emerge through the conversation. These insights and applications will be shared by your confirmand at the lunch on December 19.
The second mentor (spring 2022) helps the confirmand learn what kind of service they are called into….
In Confirmation, God, through the bishop’s prayer for daily increase in the Holy Spirit, strengthens the believer for Christian life in the service of Christ and his kingdom.” [Book of Common Prayer, 2019]
They do that by including the confirmand in the Ascension ministry they serve in, ‘showing them the ropes’, and praying for them.
Church of the Ascension Youth Group 