Catholic - VANITY - Confirmation Names...

18 April 2002

[history_matters]

What was your Confirmation name?

Why did you choose it?

[glorygirl]

LOL, although I haven't had too many "importunate suitors" lately, I remain unmarried, so it's possible she's been guiding me away from the bad ones!!!

Anyway, it's a very interesting story, and I'm glad you told me about it. When did all this supposedly occur, do you know?

[nickcarraway]

I chose Thomas, after my Grandfather. He does have something of the apostle Thomas in him.

[Slyfox]

12-year-olds don't always think things through.

I recieved Confirmation when I was in the third grade and I remember taking it seriously.
I was becoming a soldier of Christ. It was a very important day.

[glorygirl]

Wonder how many little girls in the 80s chose the name "Madonna?" :)

[history_matters]

I seem to remember it was in the third or fourth century. In any event, she was a great saint in the early years of our wonderful Church.

[history_matters]

You are most welcome here, Oxford. I always feel deeply moved by your posts. They are so heartfelt and honest. We could use another St. Bernard right now. I think you picked one of the super saints, as Bob and Penny Lord like to say.

[Salvation]

St. Anne

My sponsor was my Aunt Anna.

[Slyfox]

i'm curious, what is the reasoning for choosing confirmation names? i've never talked to anybody who knows the answer.

Interesting question. When we are baptised our name is given. When we marry the names of each spouse are linked to each other and the woman name changes to the man's. We add another name when we are confirmed. A Pope takes a new name. I'm sure it means something.

[sfousa]

In the Philippines in the 1950s, Confirmation was in assembly-line formation with the Bishop coming to town only during fiesta, when he then confirmed people from infancy to early adulthood by the hundreds. We never heard of "confirmation names."

I was baptized "Marie" because I was born on April 27, the feastday of Our Lady of Montserrat (patron saint of Barcelona), so when I started schooling, I wrote my name as "Marie Montserrat." I don't think Montserrat counts as confirmation name, but that's what's on my college diploma, lol!

But wait, there's more. When I was professed in the Secular Franciscan Order, I was given the name, "Marie Jean Vianney, sfo", after my Franciscan patron saint, St. John Vianney. Profession in the SFO is not sacramental, so I don't think that counts, either.

What can I do?

[american colleen]

I hope I'm not butting in since I'm not Roman Catholic yet, but in my very anglo-catholic Episcopal Church we followed this beautiful tradition.

Will you stop with the butting in talk! Of course you aren't butting in! (I hope that sounds nice, because that is the way I mean it). I'm sure a lot of Anglicans and Orthodox and Catholics can add to this thread. It's another "cool" thing about being a member of a sacramental religion.

I love Bernard, it is a warm, loving name. I wanted Agatha or Agnes, but I really got a hard time from friends and family. I took Eileen (a derivative of Helen of St. Helen of the Cross) but it was really in memory of my dear grandmother who raised me, my brother and sister.

I made my confirmation AFTER I got married, at age 28. I was married by a priest who also has uses "general absolution"... no, I don't go to that church anymore, I changed parishes. Funny, but the priest who uses general absolution is the one who is most often used by the Boston Globe when they need a priest to speak regarding the "scandal" in the Boston Archdiocese.

[sfousa]

Mine is Elizabeth Ann Seton. I chose her because she was a convert and she was converted by her friends as I was.

Great woman, that St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. She should be on every American woman's list of heroes. Congratulations!

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

Patrick as my brother Patrick was my sponsor.

[RobbyS]

As a matter of fact, I chose the name "Stephen." That was fifty years ago.

[Cap'n Crunch]

'Who is like unto God?'

St. Michael the Archangel

Patron of police officers also, picked him before I was a policeman. hmmm

[ThomasMore]

Mine is Michael. After St. Michael the Archangel. It must be the militant in me. As an altar boy, I was always defending my faith with my protestant friends. I hoped someday through his intercession to be as great a defender as he.

[GenXFreedomFighter]

I chose Joseph, my first name (I go by my middle name). I'm only now beginning to see just what an important decision that was and what a good choice I made. :-)

[nina0113]

I chose Martha, partly because I'm very home-oriented, and partly because, I sometimes let that interfere with "the better part".

[chatham]

I chose Michael because St. Michael is the defender of the faith.

We need St. Michael now more than ever to help put this mess the church is in back on track.

At Confirmation we became "Soldiers in the army of Christ to defend the Church from its enemies from within and without the church".

Assuming I learned and remembered my lessons correctly,so let's take Our Church back from the Infidels..

[NYer]

What a coincidence! I also considered Veronica since she is acclaimed to be the woman who wiped Christ's face as he carried His cross up to Golgotha.

Instead, I chose Magdalene - the first woman to see Christ after He rose from the dead. Magdalene is also my godmother's name.

[pegleg]

I chose John after St. John Chrysostom. Reading his works were a major reason I am a "revert" to the faith and finally receiving the sacrament of Confirmation as an adult.