When choosing your confirmation name, does the gender of the name matter? For example, I'm a girl, but am seriously considering Augustine as my confirmation name (after my grandfather). Is this ok?

-- Samantha (nbtrubl911@ameritech.net), February 27, 2005

Answers

Yes, that is perfectly acceptable. Some boys choose Mary or Theresa or some other female saint they find particularly inspiring.

-- Paul M. (PaulCyp@cox.net), February 27, 2005.

Doesn't one also have the option of adapting the name to one's gender, when possible?

Such as Augustina, Michelle, Petra, Paulette, etc.

The nuns who ran my high school used to do this all the time (Dennisita, Hughita, Honora), but then again, those weren't their confirmation names.

-- JJ (nospam@nospam.com), March 01, 2005.

The traditional custom many years ago had it that your godmother or godfather were OWED the privelege of naming you. It's something that's unfortunately denied very many good Catholics today, except in some Latin and European countries, where it's still observed.

Very often a godmother simply named her godchild after herself, and a godfather did that as well.

The godchild should honor her godparent by allowing him/her to decide on this important name. It's the Christian thing to do, IMO /

-- eugene c. chavez (loschavez@pacbell.net), March 01, 2005.

By "godmother" and "godfather," are you referring to the Confirmation sponsor or the Baptismal sponsors (who may or may not overlap)? Either way, though, a sponsor is certainly not "owed" this privilege, and my opinion is that a sponsor should not be asked to "decide on this important name" unless the person being confirmed doesn't even have any ideas of his/her own for a name!

The very fact that it is an "important name" indicates that the patron saint ought to be "important" to the person being confirmed. A saint chosen by a sponsor may not only not be "important" to the person being confirmed, but may be completely unknown (or even unattractive!).

No, let's keep things as they are now. It makes everyone a lot happier, including the saints, I feel sure.

-- (i@think.so), March 02, 2005.

Everybody can suit himself, obviously. I only told you what has been traditional through many centuries.

Godparents are, yes-- our sponsors. Now; we may ''owe'' the honor to them, and yet pick another name to bring to our Confirmation (and baptism) BESIDES the godparent's own choice. That would result in an extra one.

In many Latin countries, you'll recall,

-- A Catholic Senorita might say, ''I am Maria del Carmen Rosario, Elena, Margarita CHAVEZ!'' And it's considered comical, to many who are long separated from that CATHOLIC CUSTOM. But --it survives. And, it's a wonderful tribute paid to Catholic godparents who become spiritually related in God's sight, to their godchild.

-- eugene c. chavez (loschavez@pacbell.net), March 02, 2005.

The traditional custom many years ago had it that your godmother or godfather were OWED the privelege of naming you. It's something that's unfortunately denied very many good Catholics today, except in some Latin and European countries, where it's still observed.

Sir, I have already covered the error of naming being "owed" to anyone. Now I have to point out that your statement implies that this was a UNIVERSAL "traditional custom," retained only "in some Latin and European countries." In over 1/2 century of life, I have never heard such a thing, and it was certainly not true when I was confirmed in the 1960s. I believe that your statement is probably hyperbolic and that those countries in which the custom is found now are probably the only countries in which the custom was found "many years ago."

As to the long string of names in the example you mentioned, I don't find it "comical," but rather unfortunate, since it is not what the Church ever had in mind. It is instead a mild abuse of a good thing encouraged by the Church (taking ONE new patron saint at Confirmation time).

-- (i@think.so), March 03, 2005.

I can't believe your uppity tone, Friend. I've really offended you, haven't I? So you were confirmed in the 1960's. Excellent.

I received the sacrament of Confirmation in the 1930's. Nevertheless, I don't presume to speak for the Catholic Church, as you think you can: ''--it is not what the Church ever had in mind.''

Kindly don't tell us what the Catholic Church EVER had in mind. Just tell us what YOU think, they way I did. I spoke about long-standing customs, now disregarded. Not what the Church intends for you or me. And yesterday I stated clearly: ''Everybody can suit himself, obviously. I only told you what has been traditional through many centuries.''

-- eugene c. chavez (loschavez@pacbell.net), March 03, 2005.

On another thread, I recently your statement that you are about 67 or 68, so I already knew that you were confirmed long before I was. But you have just stated, indirectly, that you were confirmed before reaching the age of 4. If that was an exagerration, you were not "confirmed in the 1930s," but in the 1940s or 1950s. I realize that you could have been confirmed before the age of 4, but only licitly so if it had been done as an Eastern church sacrament (e.g., Byzantine).

Whatever the truth may be about that, though, it is not relevant to the significant point I made. Previously, you began a sentence with the words, "The traditional custom many years ago ...". Your use of the definite article ("The") shows that you were claiming that it was a Catholic custom throughout the whole world. I explained that, if your claim had been correct, I surely would have heard about it before.

Since you exagerrated (perhaps accidentally) by using "the traditional custom" instead of "a traditional custom in some places", you needn't have come back and dug a deeper hole for yourself by getting defensive and trying to punish me. Instead, all you needed to do was apologize for your original imprecision and admit that the "tradition" you speak of was not a universal one.

-- (i@think.so), March 03, 2005.

I think not, ''think so''--

getting defensive and trying to punish me. Instead, all you needed to do was apologize--''

I apologise? What have I done? HAHAHAHA!!! You punish yourself, acting the injured party. I said already; you should suit yourself.

As to the extent of the custom; and your determnation to call it provincial or regional; instead of universal:

These are ANCIENT customs that date back into antiquity. I would hesitate to say Confirmation itself, the Catholic sacrament-- isn't universal. Customs associated with it are likely enough equally universal and almost that ancient.

To confidently oppose something merely because it never appeared on your OWN radar-screen seems a bit self-absorbed, if you pardon my saying so. You had to discover the meaning of godparent just today, didn't you? And it's been around since before the Holy Bible, I'd estimate. Not that you're ignorant, OK? But these are all anachronistic matters in your book. So don't be so eager to judge.

-- eugene c. chavez (loschavez@pacbell.net), March 03, 2005.