It's Confirmed: You're Confirmed!

This was a moment that Robert and I had to live vicariously: Confirmation of nephews Max and Andrew back east in Pennsylvania. From what we gathered from photos, they wore white robes, and looked most handsome in them. The cardinal wore red (aren't we astute). They were given new names that represent their spiritual adulthood and had demonstrated their knowledge of the scriptures to the Church. Grandma and Grandpa drove in from Red Bank to join the Verzilli family in celebration.

When I was 12, I had confirmed myself. My family wasn't Catholic, but I was desperately envious of my friends who got to hang out together at CCD after school. I also envied the fact that they got to rename themselves since I wasn't a fan of my own name back then. One day I took action: I held my own private little Confirmation ceremony in my closet. It was my sanctuary with two child sized built-in benches where I did all my secret thinking. Seated on a little bench, I asked God to rename me Elizabeth (after Queen Elizabeth I--never realizing since she was a devout Protestant who burned Catholics at the stake I was probably compromising the whole thing). I said a couple prayers, decorated little name cards to make it official and emerged a brand new girl ready to face the world. Was met with shock when nobody noticed a single thing different about me. A year later, at my friend Jennifer Perry's Bat Mitzvah, I decided to become a Jew. That's a whole other story.

The point being, there is something profound about commiting oneself to faith, whatever that faith they be. Faith in the context of loving others as children under a big ole God is a beautiful thing worthy of celebration. I grew up with parents who were academics of Religion and was exposed to all kinds of beautiful people of varied faiths. I'd ask them about the inner workings of their faiths: how do you believe people are supposed to behave? What is your God like? Aside from rituals, feasts, and specific texts, I was always greeted with fundamentally similar beliefs about forgiveness and love. To me, God is understood in different languages and stories. For the 6 billion different people on earth (is that right?), that makes sense to me.

I love my Catholic in-laws who are my family. They remind me how much love there is to give in the world--regardless of whether one is in or out of their faith. That feels like Jesus spirit to me. So while we couldn't join them on the day, congratulations Max and Andrew for taking a deeper step on your spiritual journey. May it be more clear to you than these pictures are!