Special Circumstances

When can a pastor administer the sacrament of Confirmation?

The ordinary minister of Confirmation is a bishop but priests can administer Confirmation either by mandate of the law or by delegation by the bishop. In the Archdiocese of Detroit priests have the following faculties:

    • To administer the sacrament of Confirmation to those persons who have attained the use of reason (adults and children) and whom they baptize in accord with the requirements of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.  (RCIA 232, 305)
    • To administer the sacrament of Confirmation to those persons who have attained the use of reason (adults and children) who are already baptized in another church or ecclesial communion, on the occasion of their profession of faith and admission into full communion with the Catholic Church.
    • To administer the sacrament of Confirmation at the Easter Vigil to Catholics who, although baptized earlier, have not been reared in the Catholic Church, on the occasion of their reconciliation with the Catholic Church provided that such individuals have participated in the catechesis of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults or its diocesan-approved equivalent. [Pontifical Commission for the Interpretation of the Decrees of Vatican Council II, reply, Dec. 21, 1979, AAS72(1980)105]
    • To administer the sacrament of Confirmation during the Easter Vigil liturgical services to any persons who were baptized Catholic and raised Catholic but had left the practice of the faith and are now returning to the faith.  This faculty is limited to the Easter Vigil liturgical service and may be used only for those who have been part of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults or an Archdiocesan approved equivalent. [Pontifical Commission for the Interpretation of Decrees of Vatican Council II, reply, April 25, 1975, AAS67(1975)348,Dol2532]
    • The priest does not have the faculty to confirm those baptized Catholics who have been "faithful" but for some reason or other have not been confirmed.  If the priest wishes to confirm these adults he would need to request a special faculty. However, the ordinary way for these persons to receive the sacrament of Confirmation would be at the Cathedral on the feast of Pentecost or Christ the King.