A generation may never make their confirmation
Extra onus on parents to arrange sacraments
IT is a rite of passage for generations of children, but the Covid-19 crisis means many may never make their confirmation.
The postponing of religious ceremonies due to Covid-19 means the onus will fall on parents to ensure the sacrament is delivered to children who were due to receive it before leaving primary school this year.
But now, with primary school nearly finished for the class of 2020, church officials concede some children may fall through the cracks as it is unlikely any religious ceremonies will be able to take place before autumn.
By then, the majority of this year’s cohort due for confirmation will have transitioned to second level.
Confirmation preparation is often a key part of a pupil’s sixth class learning and schools are seen as important stakeholders in delivering the sacrament.
While it is envisaged communions will be easily organised with schools once children return for the next academic year, this becomes more complicated for older children due to be confirmed.
Pupils leaving sixth class and moving on to various schools for first year makes arranging confirmations more difficult, particularly in rural dioceses.
In Dublin, officials are confident that they will be able to deliver the sacrament once restrictions are lifted. In other parts of the country there is concern that young people will miss out on their confirmation day because children in rural areas often travel further to attend secondary school.
Fr Diarmuid Hogan, the vocations director for the Diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora, believes parents will play a greater role in the confirmation of their children.
“It looks very likely we will not be able to facilitate large confirmation ceremonies before the autumn,” Fr Hogan said. “It seems likely that the onus may fall on families to ensure their child receives the sacrament of confirmation.”
The Bishop of Limerick Dr Brendan Leahy has previously suggested children should be confirmed at an older age but concedes this means fewer people will “opt in”.
Brenda Drumm, of the Catholic Communications Office, said she believes most parents will make the effort to ensure children receive the sacrament when it is safe to do so.
A spokeswoman for the Dublin Archdiocese said it believes people will be able to gather for confirmations later in the year.
Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has encouraged parishes “to find ways of keeping direct contact with candidates for the sacraments”, with priests and bishops frequently posting letters and videos online in recent weeks to maintain contact with parishioners.
There is a preference among some church officials and parents that communions would take place as soon as possible.
This will pose logistical challenges as it is unlikely communions or confirmations will be the grand-scale events people are used to as this would make social distancing and limiting numbers attending churches at any one time difficult.
There are also significant cost implications for the parents of younger children to be considered, Ms Drumm said.
“There are children wondering, for example, if their communion dress will still fit them by the time their day comes around again,” she explained.
“It is one of the little symbols that helps children remember the day and it is important to them.
“Another important consideration is that this is an important event for families and grandparents, uncles and aunties.
“You have to be mindful of vulnerable people in that age bracket and there is no final roadmap yet of when we will be able to gather together for communions and conformations because they involve such big numbers.”
Church leaders met with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar last week to share thoughts on the reopening of places of worship over the course of the summer. The Government’s roadmap for reopening society earmarks July 20 as the date churches may reopen if social distancing can be safely maintained.
One church official told the Sunday Independent there may be a preference in some dioceses for communions to take place as they do in other parts of the world.
“In America, very often a child might receive their first communion as part of a traditional Sunday mass, or a few children might do it together in a smaller setting.
“It is probably more likely that the communions will be broken up to take place in a smaller way but still allow children to have that experience of being part of an event, because it is a rite of passage.”