Confirmation
Confirmation at Plymouth
The Plymouth Confirmation Program is a two-year spiritual journey for 7th and 8th grade students that provides a safe place to explore the breadth of the Christian tradition, to ask questions and express their doubts, and to begin to discover what they truly believe.
Some of our young people enter confirmation confident in their faith and hungry for more information before being confirmed. Some enter with lots of questions and uncertainty about next steps on their own faith journey. And some enter pretty certain that they don’t believe in God, but either want to learn more about religion or satisfy their parents.
All of these are not just appropriate but welcome starting points for the confirmation journey.
We hope to help our young people articulate their questions and beliefs, wrestle with the doubts that accompany faith, and make the next steps on their discipleship journey independent of their parents and with full support of the church.
If you’re an interested adult, whether or not you have children this age, we are always looking for small group guides to accompany our young people on this exciting leg of the journey.
Confirmation Requirements
Confirmation is a high-commitment program. When this commitment is honored through regular and active participation, youth reap the benefits of a tightly woven community where they are loved and can grow in the life of the spirit. With this goal in mind, we take seriously the following requirements:
Attendance at all scheduled lessons, fellowship nights and service projects. Four absences are permitted during the year. Please tell your small-group leader if you know in advance that you will have to miss any event.
Weekly attendance at worship. All students must attend one of Plymouth’s worship services each week: Saturday at 5:30 p.m. and Sunday at 8, 9, or 11 a.m. This is an important way to practice what they learn on Wednesday nights and discern whether they want to be confirmed into the community.
Confirmation Retreats. A Fall half-day retreat and Spring weekend retreat will be required for all 8th grade students who plan to be confirmed. The importance of this time apart for the students to make their decisions about their Confirmation cannot be overstated.
Confirmation Rehearsal. A mandatory, brief rehearsal is essential for 8th grade students to learn the choreography for the confirmation ceremony.
Baptisms. Students must be baptized before they are confirmed.
Confirmation Day. All students who choose to be confirmed are to be in the Confirmation Service at 9 a.m. on the first Sunday in May. Everyone will meet at 8:30 a.m. that morning to organize for the procession.