Attend Confirmation Class early?
My child is very faithful and loves going to church and loves God. He recently said something to the point of, "I understand Communion and what reflection means. Why can't I take it?" I asked him what it meant and he really described it! This brought up a question. What can I do if my child, 12, wants to take the Lord's Supper? Can I put him in Confirmation Class early?
The Bible of course does not speak of the rite of Confirmation. It speaks of training children in God’s word (Psalm 78:1-8; Proverbs 22:6; 2 Timothy 3:14-16), confessing Jesus Christ as Savior (Matthew 10:32), examining ourselves before receiving the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:28) and partaking of the Lord’s Supper often (1 Corinthians 11:25). Established in Christian freedom, Confirmation—the rite and the formal course of instruction that precedes it—addresses these important areas.
The common practice in our church body associates the time of confirmation with a child’s education in eighth grade. Good order in the congregation (1 Corinthians 14:40) is maintained when the youth of the congregation attend Confirmation Class at the time the class is normally offered.
It is wonderful that your son has a basic understanding of the Lord’s Supper. Thorough instruction in Confirmation Class will enable him to profess at the time of Confirmation that what he has learned is what the Bible teaches. Through the rite of Confirmation he will become a communicant member of the congregation. Among other privileges, that will enable him to partake of the Lord’s Supper.
Perhaps your son can use his desire to receive the sacrament and his Christian maturity to encourage his peers to be faithful in their Confirmation Class instruction. May he and we always cherish God’s gospel in word and sacrament. God’s blessings to you and your family!