Saturday, April 13, 2013

Thursday, April 11, 2013 - Litany Lane Blog: Humble, Psalms 34, Acts 5:27-36, John 3:31-36, Pope Francis Daily Homily - Fighting Spiritual Poverty, , St Marguerite d'Youville, Grey Nuns, Catholic Catechism Part Two: THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH - Article 2:3 Sacrament of Confirmation - Effects of Confirmation

Thursday,  April 11, 2013 - Litany Lane Blog:

Humble, Psalms 34, Acts 5:27-36, John 3:31-36, Pope Francis Daily Homily - Fighting Spiritual Poverty,  Saint Marguerite d'Youville, Grey Nuns, Catholic Catechism Part Two: THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH - Article 2:3 Sacrament of Confirmation - Effects of Confirmation

Good Day Bloggers!  Wishing everyone a Blessed Week!

Year of Faith - October 11, 2012 - November 24, 2013

P.U.S.H. (Pray Until Serenity Happens). It has a remarkable way of producing solace, peace, patience and tranquility and of course resolution...God's always available 24/7.

The world begins and ends everyday for someone.  We are all human. We all experience birth, life and death. We all have flaws but we also all have the gift of knowledge and free will, make the most of these gifts. Life on earth is a stepping stone to our eternal home in Heaven. Its your choice whether to rise towards eternal light or lost to eternal darkness. Material items, though needed for sustenance and survival on earth are of earthly value only. The only thing that passes from this earth to Purgatory and/or Heaven is our Soul, our Spirit...it's God's perpetual gift to us...Embrace it, treasure it, nurture it, protect it...

"Raise not a hand to another unless it is to offer in peace and goodwill." ~ Zarya Parx 2012



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Prayers for Today: Thursday in Easter



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 Papam Franciscus
(Pope Francis)



Pope Francis April 11 Homily :

Fighting material and spiritual poverty


(2013-04-11 L’Osservatore Romano)

“Your efforts to advance the Church’s mission are helping to fight the many forms of material and spiritual poverty present in our human family, and to contribute to the growth of fraternity and peace”. The Pontiff stated this in his address to the members of the Papal Foundation, in Rome for their annual pilgrimage.

The Holy Father received them on Thursday morning, 11 April, in the Clementine Hall, after he met the Prime Minister of the Republic of Mozambique and then the Archbishop of Florence and various bishops of Tuscany, who were the first bishops to make their ad limina visit with Pope Francis.

Addressing the members of the charitable association from the United States  — which began in 1988 in order to support the Pope's mission through grants, scholarships and charitable works — the Bishop of Rome showed his appreciation for the initiatives launched during their 25 years of work.

“You have contributed significantly”, the Pope said, “to the growth of local Churches in developing countries by supporting, among other things, the continuing formation of their clergy and religious, the provision of shelter, medical assistance and care to the poor and needy, and the creation of much-needed educational and employment opportunities”.  The Pope underlined the 50th anniversary of John XXIII's encyclical Pacem in terris, promulgated on 11 April 1963. He then affirmed his hope that Pope Roncalli's teaching may be “an incentive for your commitment to promoting reconciliation and peace at every level. During this Easter season, when the Church invites us to give thanks for God’s mercy and the new life we have received from the risen Christ, I pray that you will experience the joy born of gratitude for the Lord’s many gifts, and seek to serve him in the least of his brothers and sisters”.



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Liturgical Celebrations to be presided over by Pope: April–May



Vatican City, 3 April 2013 (VIS)
Following is the calendar of celebrations scheduled to be presided over by the Holy Father in the months of April and May, 2013:

APRIL
7 April, Second Sunday of Easter, or Divine Mercy Sunday: 5:30pm,Mass in the Basilica of St. John Lateran for the Bishop of Rome to take possession of the Roman cathedra.

14 April, Sunday: 5:30pm, Mass in the Basilica of St. Paul Outside-the-Walls

21 April, Sunday: 9:30am, Mass and priestly ordinations in St. Peter's Basilica.

28 April, Sunday: 10:00am, Mass and confirmations in St. Peter's Square.


MAY
4 May, Saturday: 6:00pm, Recitation of the Rosary in the Basilica of St. Mary Major.

5 May, Sunday: 10:00am, Mass for Confraternities in St. Peter's Square.

12 May, Sunday: 9:30am, Mass and canonizations of Blesseds Antonio Primaldo and Companions; Laura di Santa Caterina da Siena Montoya y Upegui; and Maria Guadalupe Garcia Zavala.

18 May, Saturday: 6:00pm, Pentecost Vigil in St. Peter's Square with the participation of ecclesial movements.

19 May, Pentecost Sunday: 10:00am, Mass in St. Peter's Square with the participation of ecclesial movements.


Reference: 

  • Vatican News. From the Pope. © Copyright 2013 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Accessed 04/11/2013.


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April 2, 2013 Our Lady of Medjugorje Message to the World:"Dear children, I am calling you to be one with my Son in spirit. I am calling you, through prayer, and the Holy Mass when my Son unites Himself with you in a special way, to try to be like Him; that, like Him, you may always be ready to carry out God's will and not seek the fulfillment of your own. Because, my children, it is according to God's will that you are and that you exist, and without God's will you are nothing. As a mother I am asking you to speak about the glory of God with your life because, in that way, you will also glorify yourself in accordance to His will. Show humility and love for your neighbour to everyone. Through such humility and love, my Son saved you and opened the way for you to the Heavenly Father. I implore you to keep opening the way to the Heavenly Father for all those who have not come to know Him and have not opened their hearts to His love. By your life, open the way to all those who still wander in search of the truth. My children, be my apostles who have not lived in vain. Do not forget that you will come before the Heavenly Father and tell Him about yourself. Be ready! Again I am warning you, pray for those whom my Son called, whose hands He blessed and whom He gave as a gift to you. Pray, pray, pray for your shepherds. Thank you." 

March 25, 2013 Our Lady of Medjugorje Message to the World:
“Dear children! In this time of grace I call you to take the cross of my beloved Son Jesus in your hands and to meditate on His passion and death. May your suffering be united in His suffering and love will win, because He who is love gave Himself out of love to save each of you. Pray, pray, pray until love and peace begin to reign in your hearts. Thank you for having responded to my call.”

March 18, 2013 Message to the World via Annual Apparition to Mirjana:
"Dear children! I call you to, with complete trust and joy, bless the name of the Lord and, day by day, to give Him thanks from the heart for His great love. My Son, through that love which He showed by the Cross, gave you the possibility to be forgiven for everything; so that you do not have to be ashamed or to hide, and out of fear not to open the door of your heart to my Son. To the contrary, my children, reconcile with the Heavenly Father so that you may be able to come to love yourselves as my Son loves you. When you come to love yourselves, you will also love others; in them you will see my Son and recognize the greatness of His love. Live in faith! Through me, my Son is preparing you for the works which He desires to do through you – works through which He desires to be glorified. Give Him thanks. Especially thank Him for the shepherds - for your intercessors in the reconciliation with the Heavenly Father. I am thanking you, my children. Thank you."

 

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Today's Word:  humble  hum·ble  [huhm-buhl]  


Origin: 1200–50; Middle English  ( h ) umble  < Old French  < Latin humilis  lowly, insignificant, on the ground. See humus, -ile

adjective
1. not proud or arrogant; modest: to be humble although successful.
2. having a feeling of insignificance, inferiority, subservience, etc.: In the presence of so many world-famous writers I felt very humble.
3. low in rank, importance, status, quality, etc.; lowly: of humble origin; a humble home.
4. courteously respectful: In my humble opinion you are wrong.
5. low in height, level, etc.; small in size: a humble member of the galaxy.
 


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Today's Old Testament Reading -   Psalms 34:2, 9, 17-20


2 I will praise Yahweh from my heart; let the humble hear and rejoice.
9 Fear Yahweh, you his holy ones; those who fear him lack for nothing.
17 They cry in anguish and Yahweh hears, and rescues them from all their troubles.
18 Yahweh is near to the broken-hearted, he helps those whose spirit is crushed.
19 Though hardships without number beset the upright, Yahweh brings rescue from them all.
20 Yahweh takes care of all their bones, not one of them will be broken.


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Today's Epistle -   Acts 5:27-33


27 When they had brought them in to face the Sanhedrin, the high priest demanded an explanation.
28 'We gave you a strong warning', he said, 'not to preach in this name, and what have you done? You have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and seem determined to fix the guilt for this man's death on us.'
29 In reply Peter and the apostles said, 'Obedience to God comes before obedience to men;
30 it was the God of our ancestors who raised up Jesus, whom you executed by hanging on a tree.
31 By his own right hand God has now raised him up to be leader and Saviour, to give repentance and forgiveness of sins through him to Israel.
32 We are witnesses to this, we and the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.'
33 This so infuriated them that they wanted to put them to death.



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Today's Gospel Reading - John 3:31-36


John the Baptist said to his disciples: "He who comes from above is above all others; he who is of the earth is earthly himself and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven bears witness to the things he has seen and heard, but his testimony is not accepted by anybody; though anyone who does accept his testimony is attesting that God is true, since he whom God has sent speaks God's own words, for God gives him the Spirit without reserve. The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to his hands. Anyone who believes in the Son has eternal life, but anyone who refuses to believe in the Son will never see life: God's retribution hangs over him." 


Reflection
• During the month of January we meditated on John 3, 22-30, which shows us the last witness of John the Baptist concerning Jesus. It was a response given by him to his disciples, in which he reaffirms that he, John, is not the Messiah, but rather his precursor (Jn 3, 28). On that occasion, John says that beautiful phrase which summarizes his witness: “It is necessary that he grows greater and I grow less!” This phrase is the program for all those who want to follow Jesus.

• The verses of today’s Gospel are, again, a comment of the Evangelist in order to help the communities to understand better all the importance of the things that Jesus did and taught. Here, we have another indication of those three threads of which we spoke about before.

• John 3, 31-33: A refrain which is always repeated. Throughout the Gospel of John, many times there appears the conflict between Jesus and the Jews who contest the words of Jesus. Jesus speaks of what he hears from the Father. He is total transparency. His enemies, not opening themselves to God and because they cling to their own ideas here on earth, are not capable to understand the deep significance of the things that Jesus lives, does and says. In last instance, this is the evil one which pushes the Jews to arrest and condemn Jesus.

• John 3, 34: Jesus gives us the Spirit without reserve. John’s Gospel uses many images and symbols to signify the action of the Spirit. Like in the Creation (Gen 1, 1), in the same way the Spirit descends on Jesus “like a dove, come from Heaven” (Jn 1, 32). It is the beginning of the new creation! Jesus repeats the words of God and communicates the Spirit to us without reserve (Jn 3, 34). His words are Spirit and life (Jn 6, 63). When Jesus is about to leave this earth, he says that he will send another Consoler, another defender, to be with us forever (Jn 14, 16-17). By his Passion, Death and Resurrection, Jesus obtains for us the gift of the Spirit. Through Baptism all of us have received this same Spirit of Jesus (Jn 1, 33). When he appears to the apostles, he breathed on them and said: “Receive the Holy Spirit!” (Jn 20, 22). The Spirit is like the water which springs from the persons who believe in Jesus (Jn 7, 37-39; 4, 14). The first effect of the action of the Spirit in us is reconciliation: “”If you forgive anyone’s sins they will be forgiven; if you retain anyone’s sins, they are retained!” (Jn 20, 23). The Spirit is given to us to recall and understand the full significance of the words of Jesus (Jn 14, 26; 16, 12-13). Animated by the Spirit of Jesus we can adore God in any place (Jn 4, 23-24). Here is fulfilled the liberty of the Spirit of which Saint Paul speaks: “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Co 3, 17).

• John 3, 35-36: The Father loves the Son. He reaffirms the identity between the Father and Jesus. The Father loves the Son and places all things in his hand. Saint Paul will say that the fullness of the divinity dwells in Jesus (Col 1, 19; 2, 9). This is why the one who accepts Jesus and believes in Jesus has eternal life, because God is life. The one who does not accept to believe in Jesus, places himself outside. 


Personal questions
• Jesus communicates the Spirit to us, without reserve. Have you had some experience of this action of the Spirit in your life?
• He who believes in Jesus has eternal life. How does this take place today in the life of the families and of the communities? 


Reference: Courtesy of Order of Carmelites, www.ocarm.org.



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Featured Item of the Day from Litany Lane





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Saint of the Day:  St Marguerite d'Youville


Feast Day:  April  11

Patron Saint:  
Attributes:  n/a


Saint Marguerite d'Youville (October 15, 1701 – December 23, 1771) was a French Canadian widow who founded the religious order the Order of Sisters of Charity of Montreal, commonly known as the Grey Nuns of Montreal. She was canonized by Pope John-Paul II of the Roman Catholic Church in 1990.

Early life and marriage

She was born Marie-Marguerite Dufrost de Lajemmerais in 1701 at Varennes, Quebec, oldest daughter of Christophe du Frost, Sieur de la Gesmerays (1661–1708) and Marie-Renée Gaultier de Varennes. (Pursuant to Quebec naming conventions, she would have always been known as Marguerite, not Marie.) Her father died when she was a young girl; despite her family's poverty, at age 11 she was able to attend the Ursuline convent in Quebec City for two years before returning home to teach her younger brothers and sisters. Marguerite's impending marriage to a scion of Varennes society was foiled by her mother's marriage below her class to Timothy Sullivan, an Irish doctor who was seen by the townspeople as a disreputable foreigner.[1] On 12 August 1722 at Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, she married François d'Youville, a bootlegger who sold liquor illegally to Indians in exchange for furs and who frequently left home for long periods to parts unknown. Despite this, the couple eventually had six children before François died in 1730.[1] By age 30 she had suffered the loss of her father, husband and four of her six children. Marguerite experienced a religious renewal during and after her marriage; in the words of her Vatican biography:


Religious life


Marguerite d'Youville Sanctuary in Varennes
With her two surviving sons already in the priesthood, Marguerite and three other women founded in 1737 a religious association to provide a home for the poor in Montreal. At first the home only housed four or five members, but it grew as the women raised funds. As their actions went against the social conventions of the day, d'Youville and her colleagues were mocked by their friends and relatives and even by the poor they helped.[1] Some called them "les grises", which can mean "the grey women" but which also means "the drunken women",[3] in reference to d'Youville's late husband. By 1744 the association had become a religious order with a rule and a formal community. They were in 1747 granted a charter to operate the General Hospital of Montreal, which by that time was in ruins and heavily in debt. d'Youville and her fellow workers brought the hospital back into financial security,[4] but the hospital was destroyed by fire in 1765.[2] The order rebuilt the hospital soon after. By this time, the order was commonly known as the "Grey Nuns of Montreal" after the nickname given to the nuns in ridicule years earlier.[1] Years later, as the order expanded to other cities, the order became known simply as the "Grey Nuns". She always had a passion for singing and dancing


Legacy

Marguerite d'Youville died in 1771 at the General Hospital. In 1959, she was beatified by Pope John XXIII, who called her "Mother of Universal Charity", and was canonized in 1990 by Pope John Paul II. She is the first native-born Canadian to be elevated to sainthood by the Roman Catholic Church. Her feast day is October 16.[1] In 1961, a shrine was built in her birthplace of Varennes. Today, it is the site of a permanent exhibit about the life and works of Marguerite.[5]

A large number of Roman Catholic churches, schools, women's shelters, charity shops, and other institutions in Canada and worldwide are named after St. Marguerite d'Youville. Most notably, the renowned academic institution of higher learning, D'Youville College in Buffalo, NY, is named after St. Marguerite D'Youville.[6] The D'Youville Academy at Plattsburgh, New York was founded in 1860.[7]

Sir Louis-Amable Jetté’s wife, Lady Jetté, wrote a biography of Saint Marie-Marguerite d'Youville who founded the religious order the Order of Sisters of Charity of Montreal.[


Recognition

On 21 September 1978 Canada Post issued 'Marguerite d'Youville' based on design by Antoine Dumas. The 14¢ stamps are perforated 13.5 and were printed by Canadian Bank Note Company, Limited.

References

  1. Marie–Marguerite d'Youville at the Vatican Liturgy of Saints Project. Retrieved 26 August 2008.


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Featured Items Panel from Litany Lane




 

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Today's Snippet I:  Grey Nuns




Convent of Deschambault, held by Sisters of Charity of Quebec between 1861 and 1994.
The Sisters of Charity of Montreal, formerly called The Sisters of Charity of the Hôpital Général of Montreal and more commonly known as the Grey Nuns of Montreal, is a Canadian religious institute of Roman Catholic religious sisters, founded in 1738 by Saint Marguerite d'Youville, a young widow.[1]

The congregation was founded when Marguerite d'Youville and three of her friends formed a religious association to care for the poor. They rented a small house in Montreal on 30 October 1738, taking in a small number of destitute persons. On 3 June 1753 the society received royal sanction, which also transferred to them the rights and privileges previously granted by letters patent in 1694 to the Frères Hospitaliers de la Croix et de Saint-Joseph, known after their founder as the Frères Charon. At that time they also took over the work of the bankrupt Frères Charon at the Hôpital Général de Montréal located outside the city walls.


Mockery

The city residents mocked the nuns by calling them "les grises" – a phrase meaning both "the grey women" and "the drunken women", in reference to the color of their attire and d'Youville's late husband, François-Magdeleine You d’Youville (1700–1730), a notorious bootlegger. Marguerite d'Youville and her colleagues adopted the particular black and brown dress of their religious institute in 1755: despite a lack of grey colour, they kept the nickname once used to spite them.[2]


Constitution

The rule given to Marguerite d'Youville and her companions by the Sulpician priest, Father Louis Normant de Faradon, P.S.S, in 1745 received episcopal sanction in 1754, when Monseigneur de Pontbriant formed the society into an official religious community. This rule forms the basis of the present constitution, which was approved by Pope Leo XIII on 30 July 1880. Besides the three vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, the sisters pledge themselves to devote their lives to the service of suffering humanity.


Sister communities

The sisters undertook the first mission by a female religious institute to Western Canada in 1844, when a colony of Grey Nuns left their convent in Montreal and travelled to Saint Boniface, on the shore of the Red River.[2] Several sister communities branched off from the Sisters of Charity of Montreal:
  • the Sisters of Charity of Saint-Hyacinthe (1840)
  • the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa (1845) formerly the Grey Nuns of the Cross
  • the Sisters of Charity of Quebec (1849)
  • the Sisters of Charity of the Hôtel-Dieu of Nicolet (1886), branched off from Saint-Hyacinthe, united with Montreal (1941)
  • the Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart (1921), branched off from Ottawa, founders of D'Youville College
  • the Grey Sisters of the Immaculate Conception (1926), branched off from Ottawa


The 21st century

As of 2008 the various Grey Nun branches operate in Canada, the United States, Colombia, Brazil, Japan, Haiti, Central African Republic, South Africa, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Argentina, Uruguay, Bahamas, and the Dominican Republic.[3][4]

Hospitals

They once operated a number of major hospitals in Canada; as provincial governments and church authorities moved to standardize both ownership and operation of hospitals, many of these hospitals passed into the hands of Church corporations (or, in some cases, governmental organizations) and the Grey Nuns changed focus. The Grey Nuns' Hospital building built in 1765 in Montreal was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1973 to commemorate the Grey Nuns.[5] In 2011, the former motherhouse of the Grey Nuns in Montreal, now part of Concordia University, was also designated a National Historic Site.[6]

Shelters

They now operate shelters for battered women (with and without children), shelters for women in need, clothing and food dispensaries, centres for the disabled, and some health care facilities.[7] St. Boniface General Hospital in Winnipeg is still owned by the Grey Nuns;[8] hospitals previously owned, operated, or enlarged by the institute include the former Holy Cross Hospital in Calgary,[9] St. Paul's Hospital in Saskatoon,[10] and the Grey Nuns Community Hospital in Edmonton.[11] Many of these health care institutions were founded by missionary nuns sent out from convents in Quebec and Ontario.[11]

Other works

Grey Nuns may work with the incarcerated.[4] Some chapters are also dedicated to peace and justice; at least one chapter, the Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart, has declared its properties a nuclear-free zone.[12]


Classification as religious sisters

Although the institute's informal name contains the word "nuns", members are actually classified by the Roman Catholic Church as religious sisters, as they are not cloistered and belong to a congregation, not an order. They no longer wear their distinctive habit and now wear street clothes.[4]

Numbers

In 1993 it was estimated that there were just under 3,000 Grey Nuns in Canada, mainly in Quebec and Ontario.[2] By 2013 they will vacate their Mother House in downtown Montreal, after having sold the property to Concordia University in 2005.[13] The Quebec congregation has not recruited any new members since before 2000, Sister Bernadette said the nuns' legacy will live on in other ways.[14]


References

  1. Marie–Marguerite d'Youville at the Vatican Liturgy of Saints Project. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  2. Canadian Encyclopedia article on the Grey Nuns. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  3. ^ Grey Nuns ministries worldwide. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  4. (dead link)
  5. Grey Nuns' Hospital. Canadian Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 30 July 2011.
  6. Mother House of the Grey Nuns of Montreal. Directory of Federal Heritage Designations. Parks Canada. Retrieved 15 August 2011.
  7. Current ministries of the Grey Nuns. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  8. St. Boniface General Hospital. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  9. ^ University of Calgary Library Special Collection article on Holy Cross School of Nursing. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  10. Saskatoon Health Region article on St. Paul's Hospital. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  11. Alberta Heritage article on Grey Nuns. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  12. Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart mission. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  13. Peretz, Ingrid (24 December 2008). "Montreal nuns moving – with saint's remains". Globe and Mail (Canada). Retrieved 24 December 2008.
  14. CBC: Grey Nuns leave motherhouse for Concordia University takeover


 
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Catechism of the Catholic Church

Part Two: The Celebration of the Christian Mystery, 

Section Two: The Seven Sacraments of the Church 

Article 2:3  Sacrament of Confirmation



SECTION TWO
THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH 


Article 2
THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION

1285 Baptism, the Eucharist, and the sacrament of Confirmation together constitute the "sacraments of Christian initiation," whose unity must be safeguarded. It must be explained to the faithful that the reception of the sacrament of Confirmation is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace.Cf. Roman Ritual, Rite of Confirmation (OC), Introduction 1. For "by the sacrament of Confirmation, [the baptized] are more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed."LG 11; Cf. OC, Introduction 2


III. The Effects of Confirmation

1302 It is evident from its celebration that the effect of the sacrament of Confirmation is the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit as once granted to the apostles on the day of Pentecost.

1303 From this fact, Confirmation brings an increase and deepening of baptismal grace:
- it roots us more deeply in the divine filiation which makes us cry, "Abba! Father!";Rom 8:15
- it unites us more firmly to Christ;
- it increases the gifts of the Holy Spirit in us;
- it renders our bond with the Church more perfect;LG 11
- it gives us a special strength of the Holy Spirit to spread and defend the faith by word and action as true witnesses of Christ, to confess the name of Christ boldly, and never to be ashamed of the Cross:Council of Florence (1439) DS 1319; LG 11; 12

Recall then that you have received the spiritual seal, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgment and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence, the spirit of holy fear in God's presence. Guard what you have received. God the Father has marked you with his sign; Christ the Lord has confirmed you and has placed his pledge, the Spirit, in your hearts.SL Ambrose, De myst. 7, 42 PL 16, 402-403

1304 Like Baptism which it completes, Confirmation is given only once, for it too imprints on the soul an indelible spiritual mark, the "character," which is the sign that Jesus Christ has marked a Christian with the seal of his Spirit by clothing him with power from on high so that he may be his witness.Council of Trent (1547) DS 1609; ⇒ Lk 24:48-49

1305 This "character" perfects the common priesthood of the faithful, received in Baptism, and "the confirmed person receives the power to profess faith in Christ publicly and as it were officially (quasi ex officio)."St. Thomas Aquinas, STh III, 72, 5, ad 2



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