Last week, I began a discussion of the premise behind children being prepared through the “Order of Christian Initiation for Adults” (OCIA), and celebrating any, or all, of the Sacraments of Initiation at the Easter Vigil. I’m continuing the conversation this week to give greater background to an often misunderstood process of sacrament preparation in the Church. After all, it seems crazy to many of us, when we hear that a student in second-grade is being confirmed, or that a fifth-grade student is being baptized. Welcome to the wild ride of handling children’s formation that follows the OCIA process!
First of all, as I stated last week, there is a premise in sacrament formation that says that individuals have to be prepared to receive them, but there shouldn’t be any undo obstacles placed in their way. The “regular” path takes into consideration a child’s age and maturity. For example, “having completed their seventh year of age” is the litmus test for celebrating First Eucharist (and First Reconciliation – in this diocese). This rule is based on a child’s ability to know right from wrong, and to understand that the Sacred Species (Eucharist) is special and different, even though it still tastes like bread and wine. They are called to trust that it is Jesus’ body, even if they don’t fully understand at this point. Confirmation, on the other hand, is conferred as a sacrament of maturity, which is open to a bit of interpretation of what “maturity” even means. A bishop determines the proper age for celebration of the sacrament in his diocese, based on his understanding of his people and their particular circumstances. That means the age can vary greatly from diocese to diocese. Some celebrate at the beginning of their eighth year of age, and others celebrate when they are nearing eighteen! (More on THAT next week.) So, having said all of this, if an older child comes to the parish, asking for all of their sacraments, their age is taken into consideration, but there is also a consideration for their family situation.
For example, families that ask for sacraments at times that are outside of the norm are often facing obstacles of their own. There may be situations of divorce, or disagreement among spouses regarding church participation. There can also be less negative reasons for delay. It can be that the parents weren’t raised within a faith community themselves, and they now want their entire family to join based on a friend or extended family member’s experience of faith. Whatever brings them to this point, our goal now is to support the family in making the process as obstacle free as possible. We want to bring them into full participation in order to support them and smooth what may have been an already bumpy path. As stated earlier, the children are likely older. To place them in a process that would take years, when their parents celebrated within a year or so, can mean that a family with new and tender roots in the faith are facing what can feel like a daunting task – a task that wears out their early excitement, causing them to fail in bringing it to completion, which none of us want.
To conclude, in the process of forming children for the reception of sacraments, a minimum age, the age of “reason” for Eucharist (Reconciliation), and Confirmation does matter, but the idea of a “maximum” age doesn’t. While “maturity” is a consideration, the main goal is to support a family who doesn’t, quite have the firm foundation that others might have. The desired result is for them to be able to grow in faith through full participation in the life of the community. When they are all able to fully participate, family members can be there to support each other. Arm in arm, they can walk forward, together, on their new journey of faith. We want to provide open doors, not closed ones. The focus is on love and support, not forcing families to run a “gauntlet,” of sorts.
