Young people commit to a journey towards confirmation in the church
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Six St John’s teenagers began a journey of discovery on Sunday 26th October, one whose aim is to end in confirmation as full members of the Episcopal Church.
The program is called “Confirm Not Conform” and is designed more to allow young people a wide degree of autonomy, to attend classes, talk to mentors but ultimately to decide for themselves what their path should be.
The young people, the largest number to enter confirmation classes at St John’s for some time, stood before the congregation on Sunday to commit to a program of fifteen lessons, field trips, projects and a retreat.
All six have been assigned a mentor, a member of the church who has volunteered to support them during the program and will help them in considering any questions they might have.
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The young people and their mentors make their commitment during the eucharist service.
The group started the program on the 12th October, and will complete it on the 4th April next year at the Easter Vigil service at Christ Church Cathedral in Hartford. The Bishop of Connecticut, Jeffrey Mello, will confirm those who choose to take that path.
The Right Reverend Jeffrey Mello, the Bishop of Connecticut
Those who devised the program say that Confirm Not Conform is based on the belief that the Christian faith should be capable of honest examination, giving greater value to “formation over mere information (and) questions more than predefined answers”. In line with this approach, participants are completely free to decide whether they choose to be confirmed or not.
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The teenagers used the altar to sign documents committing to the Confirm Not Conform program.