“Why do you want to be confirmed? What does it mean to you?” These questions were asked of young parishioners preparing to be confirmed on Pentecost Sunday, May 20, and its vigil, May 19. The responses were compiled by Betsey Gunderson of the Hawaii Catholic Schools office and Lisa Gomes of the Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry.
I’m excited for May 19th! It’s special because I will receive Jesus for the first time and the Holy Spirit will give me seven gifts. I have the Holy Spirit with me, but it will make me stronger. It’s like chocolate milk. When I was baptized, the Holy Spirit entered me like chocolate squeezed into milk. When I am confirmed, the Holy Spirit will stir in me and I will become transformed just as milk transforms when I stir the chocolate.
—Mikayla, grade 2, Our Lady of Good Counsel School, Pearl City
I want to be a bigger Catholic.
—Trystan, grade 2, Our Lady Queen of Angels Parish, Kula, Maui
I want to receive the gift of knowledge and kindness.
—Adrian, grade 3, St. Benedict Parish, Honaunau, Big Island
This (confirmation) means so much for me in many ways. This will further my faith and will enable me to build a stronger relationship with my Lord, my family and my church.
—Paulo, grade 9, Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa, Honolulu
I want to be confirmed because I feel like I have a calling for God to be a bigger part of my life. Now I can stand up for my faith when someone challenges me because I have God in my life.
—Eli, grade 5, St. John Vianney School, Kailua
I want to be confirmed because I want to get closer to God and learn more about all the good things that he does for us. I want to thank him for the blessings that he has given me and continue to be happy with God. To me, confirmation means that I will become one of God’s servants to get others to become Catholic. It means that I will be closer to God and Jesus.
—Cody, middle schooler, St. Elizabeth Parish, Aiea
I want to be confirmed because the Holy Spirit will come to me and bless me. I also can be closer to God and Jesus!
—Mya, grade 5, Our Lady of Lourdes, Honokaa, Big Island
I want to be confirmed to be with the Spirit.
—Fernando, grade 5, St. Benedict Parish, Honaunau, Big Island
I’ll get to be closer to God. Not only do I believe in him but I love him and trust him and I also love going to church.
—Fatima, grade 5, Maria Lanakila Parish, Lahaina, Maui
I want to be confirmed because this is a big milestone in my faith journey. I have grown up in a Catholic school all my life and my faith has always been a big part in my life. Everyone in my family is already confirmed and I look to them for inspiration in living a life gifted with the Holy Spirit. I want to be sealed with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I want to have my faith to keep growing.
—Ahsbie, grade 9, Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa, Honolulu
I want to be confirmed because not only in the church but also in my family it is a big thing, and it is a really big step in the life of a Catholic because it helps me get a better understanding of what Jesus and God has done for us and if we understand this we can love others like God loved us, and spread the good news that Jesus has risen from the dead and that we are the people of God.
—Ryan, grade 6, Our Lady Queen of Angels, Kula, Maui
I want to be confirmed so I can be closer to God and Jesus; I want to learn more about God and our religion to each other about how important it is to receive confirmation. God will be by my side always and I can be a better Catholic, a better person.
—Selene, grade 6, St. Michael Parish, Kailua-Kona, Big Island
I am currently an altar server, and at school Masses I have served in the music ministry and as a lector. But once I am confirmed, I will be able to be a cantor and a lector at Sunday Masses as well. I love to sing, and I love to proclaim the Word of God, so I’m really looking forward to that!
—Reagan, grade 6 St. John Vianney School, Kailua
“I want to learn more about Jesus’ life, to confirm my Baptism in the church. There are a lot of things I want to know about Jesus.”
—Melchor, grade 6, Maria Lanakila Parish, Lahaina, Maui
What confirmation means to me is that my bond with Christ will be stronger.
—Iokepa, grade 5, Our Lady of Lourdes, Parish, Honokaa, Big Island
What being confirmed means to me is being sealed with the Christian faith.
—Samuel, grade 6, Annunciation Parish, Waimea, Big Island
To be confirmed is to be truly a part of the church, like a Medal of Honor, but for the church. To truly unite with God.
—Caleb, grade 6, St. Augustine Parish, Waikiki
I will establish a better relationship with God. Confirmation will help me to become a better person for my community. Confirmation will change me to become a true child of God.
—Zachary, grade 7, Maria Lanakila Parish, Lahaina, Maui
Confirmation is a sacrament where I receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I want to be confirmed because I want to go to Heaven, and to be one of Jesus’ followers. Confirmation means that I’m a child of Jesus and I’m going to receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I’m looking forward to do this because I want to be nice, respectful, and I want to be just like Jesus.
—Mikayla, grade 3, Our Lady of Good Counsel School, Pearl City
The reason I want to be confirmed is because I want to be closer to God. I want to know what it feels like to be with God more often. Also, when I get older, I might be able to be someone else’s sponsor. I chose St. Marianne Cope (as my saint name) because she helped many patients at Molokai and I one day would like to do something like that. She gave so much love to them. She was beatified in the year of my birth.
—Malia, grade 7, St. John Vianney School, Kailua
The reason I want to be confirmed is because I want to bring myself closer to my God and Savior. To me confirmation means to be closer to God and I want to pray to him more than I do today.
—Elyssa, middle schooler, St. Elizabeth Parish, Aiea
Confirmation means to me that I will become more united with the church, with God and with my religion. I want to be confirmed because it will admit me as a full member of the church, because I want to follow in God’s path.
—Daelyn, grade 8, Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Honokaa, Big Island
Getting confirmed to me is a step closer to what God has (planned) for us.
—Aletiha, middle schooler, St. Elizabeth Parish, Aiea
To me, being confirmed means that I am giving my heart and soul to our Father and to Jesus Christ.
—Tatum, grade 7, St. John Vianney School, Kailua
Confirmation makes me feel good and happy because it makes me feel like I am getting closer to be with Jesus.
—Felicity, grade 5, St. Benedict Parish, Honaunau, Big Island
Confirmation to me means I can finally feel that I can play a bigger role in helping my church and community. It can help me feel happy that people in my life can feel God’s presence around us, as I and they support each other. To me, confirmation doesn’t feel like the last time with God. It feels like the beginning of my journey of faith. There’s still much more to learn in my Christian life. I will continue to grow and do everyday tasks that will require my gifts received to help everyone.
—Jordan, grade 10, Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa, Honolulu
I feel that I will be able to hear Jesus more and more clearly. To me being confirmed is like growing wings to become an angel.
—La’i, grade 5, St. John Vianney School, Kailua
I want to be confirmed because I am very deep in my faith and want to be in the next phase to have a closer relationship with God. Each sacrament we accept, it opens a bigger chance to have that perfect relationship with God. This means everything to me because I think getting confirmed isn’t graduating but just the start of something that can be even better. And this also means I can help other people grow in this relationship with God too.
—Makayla, grade 10, Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish, Pearl City
I want to be confirmed because I want to have deeper relationship with God and just be a better Catholic. To me being confirmed means to deepen your faith in the church and to be closer to God.
—Luke, grade 10, Annunciation Parish, Waimea, Big Island
I want to be confirmed because I want to receive the Holy Spirit. Receiving the Holy Spirit is what I need to live a happy life, because the Holy Spirit is love, self-control, joy peace, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and patience. To live a happy life, one has to have all those characteristics that the Holy Spirit has. Being confirmed will help me be a better person.
—Deeann, grade 11, Ascension Mission, Puako, Big Island
Receiving confirmation means a lot to me because I get closer to God. My grandma was the one person in my family who believed that I’d be willing to be with God, serve God, and love him with all my heart. My grandma has always told me to turn to God through times that I couldn’t pick myself up. She is the one who wanted me to receive all my sacraments and live the life that my family could’ve live because they didn’t live the life that was meant to be lived. I am glad to be the first one in my family to receive confirmation because it gives me the chance to help the others in my family to find their way back to the Lord.
—Amaliko, grade, 7, Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa, Honolulu
