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DIRECTOR:  Bethanne Maus-Schaefer

The Sacrament of Confirmation - An Overview

Confirmation deepens our baptismal life that calls us to be missionary witnesses of Jesus Christ in our families, neighborhoods, society, and the world. Through Confirmation, our personal relationship with Christ is strengthened. We receive the message of faith in a deeper and more intensive manner with great emphasis given to the person of Jesus Christ, who asked the Father to give the Holy Spirit to the Church for building up the community in loving service.

The Holy Spirit bestows seven gifts—wisdom, understanding, knowledge, fortitude, counsel, piety, and fear of the Lord—to assist us in our mission and witness. The impact of these gifts accompanies us in the various stages of our spiritual development. When we are responsive to the grace of Confirmation and the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, we begin to bear the fruits of the Spirit. The tradition of the Church names twelve fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity.

The sacrament of Confirmation is conferred at St. Leonard following a two-year preparation process through anointing with chrism and the laying on of hands - a signing with the gift of the Spirit.

As at every parish in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, preparation for Confirmation includes the following components: catechesis; worship; community; service; sponsor involvement, retreat, interview, letter of Intent and ongoing formation.

Specific Requirements to receive the sacrament of Confirmation at St. Leonard as a high school Junior are as follows:

• Complete the Christian Formation program in grades 1-9 OR attend a Catholic school in grades 1-9
• Complete a two-year Confirmation Program, with required completion of coursework and attendance (14 of 16 classes). Note that Catholic High School students may attend Junior year only.
• Complete 8 Mass Reflections each year
• Attend 1 Youth Holy Hour each year
• Complete 15 service hours Junior year and 10 service hours Sophomore year, and submit the required Service Hours Form(s)
• Attend a 1-day retreat Sophomore year (see below)
• Attend a 1-day Confirmation retreat Junior year (see below)
• Write a letter if the Archbishop is presiding at the Confirmation Mass OR complete the Confirmation Candidate Questionnaire if a Bishop is presiding at the Confirmation Mass (Junior year)
• Complete a Confirmation interview (Junior year)

The Christian Formation office can be contacted at any time to verify the status of  student requirements.

Please visit our All Forms, Schedules, Booklets, Flyers Page for relevant links grouped under Youth Ministry and Confirmation.

Please note that Home Study is not available for the Confirmation program.

Sacraments at a Later Age (SALA) is a program for children and youth, grades 4 through 10, who have been delayed in the reception of the sacraments of Baptism and/or First Communion and/or Penance.  SALA is a two-year process.  During the first year, participants attend the parish's Religious Education classes only.  During this year, children and youth become familiar with religion classes, vocabulary, prayer, and ritual.  The second year of the process includes sessions from November to Easter in addition to regular elementary or youth ministry religion classes.  For specifics, phone the Christian Formation Office at 262-679-0880.

Please click on the link below for a complete explanation of our Sacramental Guidelines:

Sacramental Guidelines (pdf)

Service Hours

Service can be completed in a variety of ways: at the parish, in our community, and/or in the home.  We have a wide assortment of projects through our parish with all of the various activities, events and committees.  Information is provided, as it becomes available.  We also understand that students are involved in service elsewhere, outside the parish walls, and these activities can be (in most cases) recorded as service commitments.  Aside from this information being available at the time of Confirmation, these records can be used to provide letters of recommendation for colleges, job references, etc., but only if they are complete.  It is beneficial for all students to record their service for all of these reasons.  

If you are a member of the organization that benefits from, or are under obligation to perform the activity, the work does not count toward this Christian Formation requirement.
Community service hours performed to satisfy a court order may not be used toward this Christian Formation requirement.

Find the Service Hours Form Here

The information on the form should be as detailed as possible and will be recorded in the student file as part of his or her record.

We will keep an electronic copy of the completed Service Hour form.

Service opportunities that are available through St. Leonard:

•  Labor of Love (LOL) – ongoing
•  World Series to Strike Out Hunger – Fall
•  Souper Bowl of Caring – February
•  Mission Trip – Summer
•  VBS or Other Summer Events for younger children - Summer
•  Veggie Tales - multiple times 
•  Church Decorating - multiple times 
•  Knights of Columbus activities - multiple times 
•  Sunday morning Little Leo's (nursery) or Jr. Leo's (Preschool) during 9:00 am Mass - multiple times 
•  Additional opportunities are presented during class time and will be listed on our website under the 'Service Opportunities & Form' tab
  

If you have any questions on the service portion of your child's Christian Formation experience, please contact Bethanne Maus-Schaefer in the Christian Formation Office, 262-679-0880