Dear Parents/Carers,

On Wednesday 9^th March, the children in P7 will celebrate the ‘Sacrament of Confirmation, in St Teresa’s Church at 11.00am. Fr Lyons will celebrate Confirmation. The children have been working very hard alongside their teachers in preparation for this very special event in the life of our school. Please read the following guidance in relation to Confirmation:

• Due to the easing of restrictions we are delighted to invite two family members to the Confirmation Ceremony. This can be one adult and sponsor or if both parents wish to attend the sponsor can view the ceremony online. There is currently no social distancing in the church. In light of this, we ask that every adult wear a face covering whilst inside the church.

All other family members can join in the service Via the parish webcam by clicking the following link: https://www.stteresasparish.church/webcam.

• You may decide not to send your child to school on the day of Confirmation to allow you to prepare for the ceremony. All Primary 7 children will be marked present.
• All children must wear full school uniform, with a white shirt instead of the blue shirt, black shoes and grey tights for girls. The children will be presented with a blessed dove pin as a gift from the school and are asked to wear only this on their uniform for the Confirmation Ceremony. You could wear other rosettes etc. after the ceremony.
• P7A and P7B will be seated on the right hand side of the church and P7C will be seated on the left hand side.
• All children and sponsors need to be seated in the Church, in the correct place, at 10.45am. The children’s seat will be indicated by a small card with a letter and number on it.  Sponsors will sit directly behind the children and they will have a corresponding small card and number on it so that they know where to sit in the row. The children will inform you of this number once all seats have been allocated closer to the ceremony.
• For the actual Anointing with Chrism, the children will leave their seats, row by row. They will meet their sponsor or parent, who will accompany them as they walk to the altar. Teachers will be there to ensure sponsors/parents know what to do.  When the child approaches Fr Lyons, the sponsor/parent will stand behind him/her, with their right hand on the child’s right shoulder.  If the child has a fringe, the sponsor/parent should hold it back to allow Fr Lyons to anoint their forehead with the Chrism. The sponsor/ parent will also hand over a card with the child’s details for baptism and confirmation. These will be provided on the morning of the ceremony.

Unfortunately, we are still unable to provide refreshments in the school canteen after the ceremony but will provide some treats for the children as they leave the church. A group photograph will be taken at the end of the ceremony. We look forward to celebrating with you, this very important milestone in the children’s lives.

Yours Sincerely,

Miss Hardy

R.E Co-ordinator