Dear Confirmation Parents,

Welcome to Confirmation! Confirmation is a season of instruction that will hopefully reinforce Christian faith in our young people. We focus primarily on the Law of God, Ten Commandments, The Gospel, The Lord's Prayer, & the Apostles Creed. I encourage parents to learn along with the student during family devotions and study time.

Class time: Wednesday at 5:30 PM - (see the online syllabus for the schedule & assignments)

Purpose:
* Confirmation is Christian education that equips young people with good foundational tools for understanding and articulating the truths of the Christian faith. It is our hope and prayer that students equipped with this training will continue on in their walk with Christ and will grow in the faith throughout their lives.

Materials needed:
* Bible (there are Bibles at the church, but students are encouraged to use their own if they wish)
* Luther's Small Catechism - (definition) cat-e-chism 1. A book giving a brief summary of the basic principles of Christianity in question-and-answer form.
* 2 - Workbooks "Walking in God's Truth" & "Living in God's Grace"
* Notebook (the cost to the church for these books is $25 for the set... if you choose to help defray these costs, it's appreciated but not required)

Responsibilities for students each week:
* Attend church and Sunday School each week, taking sermon notes
* Attend class each week, taking class notes
* Come to class each week having read the scripture & catechism & textbook assignment for that day (2 lessons each week) and having memorized the assigned memory work. (click here to see the syllabus)

Quizzes:
* There will be a quiz each week on the class notes from the previous lesson, the previous Sunday sermon and on the reading and memory work assigned for that day. Please encourage your son/daughter to keep current on the weekly reading and memory.

Missed Classes:
* Students are responsible to arrange to meet with Pastor Pat to get caught up on any classes missed.

Completion:
* After Confirmation instruction is completed, we have a special Confirmation service honoring the students' achievement and emphasizing the importance of continuing on in the truth of God's Word. During that ceremony, students are given opportunity to share some of the memory work they have learned. Students receive a certificate of Christian knowledge and a Student Bible.

Confirmation instruction is not "easy", but it is enriching and fun for students who apply themselves to this good material. Martin Luther originally developed the catechism to be a tool for parents to teach their children. I hope you will be engaged in this instruction with your son/daughter throughout this year. Please reply with a quick acknowledgment that you received this email.

Thanks for your partnership in the Gospel!

Pastor Pat

PS. If your son/daughter is unable to attend church on a given Sunday, they can take sermon notes on one of the sermons on our church website.