CONFIRMATION
219
CONFIRMATION
giips? and when he saw that they did not speak with
tongues, was any of you so perverse of heart as to say
'These have not received the Holy Ghost?'" (In Ep.
Joan., tr. vi). He also speaks in the same way about
anointing: the sacrament of chrism "is in the genus of
visiljle signs, sacrosanct like baptism" (Contra litt.
IVtil., II, cap. civ. in P. L., XLI, col. 342; see Serm.
rrxxvii, Ad Infantes in P. L., XXXVII, col. 1100; De
IVm., XV, n. 46 in P. L., XL, col. 1093) ; " Of Christ it is
written in the Acts of the Apostles, how God anointed
Ilim with the Holy Ghost, not indeed with visible oil,
hut with the gift of grace, which is signified by that
vi.silile unction wherewith the Church anoints the bap-
tized". The most explicit passage is in the letter of
I'ope Innocent I to Decentius: "As regards the sealing
of infants, it is clear that it is not lawful for it to be
done by anyone but a bishop [non ab aliis quam ab
t'ptKcopo fieri liccre]. For presbyters, though they be
I'rirsts of the second rank (second priests), have not at-
t allied to the summit of the pontificate. That this
] pontificate is the right of bishops only — to wit: that
thoy may seal or deliver the Spirit, the Paraclete — is
rlinnonstrated not merely by ecclesiastical usage, but
- Iso by that portion of the Acts of the Apostles where-
in it is declared that Peter and John were sent to give the Holy Ghost to those who had already been bap- tized. For when presbyters baptize, whether with or n ithout the presence of the bishop, they may anoint tlii< baptized with chrism, provided it be previously roiisecrated by a bishop, but not sign the forehead with tluit oil, which is a right reserved to bishops [episcopis] only, when they give the Spirit, the Paraclete. The ^^•ords, however, I cannot name, for fear of seeming to liitray rather than to reply to the point on which you li.ive consulted me." Saint Leo in his fourth sennon on Christ's Nativity says to the faithful: "Having I" in regenerated by water and the Holy Ghost, you have received the chrism of salvation and the seal of cti^rnal life" {chrisma salutis et signaculum vitiv ceternw. — V. L., LIV, col. 207). The Blessed Theodoret com- menting on the first chapter of the Canticle of Canti- nli\<5 says: "Bring to thy recollection the holy rite of initiation, in which they who are perfected after the ronunciation of the tyrant and the acknowledgment of till' King, receive as a kind of royal seal the chrism of till' spiritual unction {(rippayiSa Tiva /SacriXiKTjv . . . Tor wyev^iaTiKoO fiipov rb xP^^f""-) as made partakers in til it tvpica! ointment of the invisible grace of the Holy .-l'irit""(P. G.,LXXXI, 60).
Among the homilies formerly attributed to Euse- Idus of Emesa, but now admitted to be the work of M line bishop of Soutliern Gaul in the fifth century, is a long homily for Whitsunday: "The Holy Ghost who conies down with a life-giving descent upon the waters of baptism, in the font bestows beauty unto innocence, ill I'onfirmation grants an increase unto grace. Be-
^e we have to walk during oiu- whole life in the ' ~t of invisible enemies and dangers, we are in bap- II regenerated unto life, after baptism we are con- lirinod for the battle; in baptism we are clean.sed, after I a Jit ism we are strengthened . . . confirmation arms and furnishes weapons to those who are reserved for the wre.stlings and contests of this world" (Bib. Max., SS. PP., VI, p. 649). These passages stifhce to show the doctrine and practice of the Church during the patristic age. For further information see "Diet, de theol. cath.", s. V. "Confirmation", coll. 1026-10.58.
1 3) After the great Trinitarian and Christological controversies had been decided, and the doctrine of Divine grace had been defined, the Church was able to devote attention to questions regarding the sacra- ments, the means of grace. At the same time, the sarramentaries were being drawn up, fixing the vari- ous rites in use. With precision of practice came greater precision and completeness of doctrine. "Chrisma", says St. Isidore of Seville, "is in Latin tailed 'unctio', and from it Christ receives His name,
and man is sanctified after the laver [lavacrum] ; for as
in baptism remission of sins is given, so by anointing
[unctio] the sanctification of the Spirit is conferred.
The imposition of hands takes place in order that the
Holy Spirit, being called by the blessing, may be in-
vited [per bcnedictionem advocntus invilelur Spiritus
Sanctus] ; for after the bodies have been cleansed and
blessed, then does the Paraclete willingly come down
from the Father" (Etj-m., Vl.c.xixin P.L.,LXXXII,
col. 2.56). The great Anglo-Saxon lights of the early
Middle Ages are equally explicit. " The confirmation
of the newly baptized", says Lingard (Anglo-Saxon
Church, I, p. 296), "was made an important part of
the bishop's duty. We repeatedly read of journeys
undertaken by St. Cuthbert chiefly with this object.
. . . Children were brought to him for confirmation
from the secluded parts of the country; and he minis-
tered to those who had been recently born again in
Christ the grace of the Holy Spirit by the imposition of
hands, 'placing his hand on the head of each, and
anointing them with the chrism which he had blessed
{manum imponens super caput singulorum, liniens
vnctione consecratd quam benedixcrat; Beda, "Vita
Cuth.", c. xxix, xxxii in P. L., XCTV, Oper. Min., p.
277)." Alcuin also in his letter to Odwin describes
how the neophyte, after the reception of baptism and
the Eucharist, prepares to receive the Holy Spirit
by the imposition of hands. " Last of all by the
imposition of the hands by the chief priest [summo
sacerdote] he receives the Spirit of the seven-fold grace
to be strengthened Ijy the Holy Spirit to fight against
others" (De bapt. ca'remon. in P. L., CI, col. 614). It
will be ob.served that. in all these passages imposition
of hands is mentioned ; St. Isidore and St. Bede men-
tion anointing also. These may be taken as typical
examples ; the best authorities of this age combine the
tW'O ceremonies. As to the form of words used the
greatest variety prevailed. The words accompany-
ing the imposition of hands were generally a prayer
calling upon God to send down the Holy Ghost and
confer upon the neophytes the seven gifts. In the
Gregorian Sacramentary no wortls at all are assigned
to the anointing; but it is clear that the anointing
must be taken in connexion with the words belonging
to the imposition of hands. Where special words are
assigned they sometimes resemble the Greek formu-
lary (signum Chrixti in vilnm ceternam, etc.), or are in-
dicative, like the present formula (signo, consigns, con-
firmo), or imi^erative (accipe signum, etc.), or depreca-
tory {confirmet vox Paler et Filius et Spiritus Sanctus,
etc.). St. Isidore is clearly in favour of a prayer:
" We can receive the Holy Ghost, but we cannot give
Him: that He may be given, we call upon God" (De
Off. Eccl., II, c. xxvi in P. L., LXXXIII, col. 823). In
contrast with this diversity as to the form there is
complete agreement that the sole minister is a bishop.
Of course this refers only to the Western Church. The
writers appeal to the Acts of the Apostles (e. g. St.
Isidore, " De Off. Eccl.", II, c. xxvi; St. Bede, "In
Act. Apo.st." in P. L., XCII, col. 961; " Vit. Cuth.",
c. xxix) ; but they do not examine the reason why
the power is reserved to the bishops, nor do they dis-
cuss the question of the time and mode of the in-
stitution of the sacrament.
(4) The teaching of the Schoolmen shows a marked advance upoh that of the early Middle Ages. The de- cision as to the number of the sacraments involved the clear distinction of confirmation from baptism ; and at the same time the more exact definition of what con- stitutes a sacrament led to the discussion of the insti- tution of confirmation, its matter and form, minister, and effects, e.specially the character impressed. We can follow the development through the labours of Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury, St. Anselm his successor, Abelard, Hugh of St. Victor, Peter Lom- bard (Sent., IV,dist. vii); then branching out into the two distinct schools of Dominicans (iVlbertus Magnus
