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Changing Trends in Anglican Confirmation

Changing Trends in Anglican Confirmation 64 LESLIE J. FRANCIS DAVID W. LANKSHEAR CHANGING TRENDS IN ANGLICAN CONFIRMATION The implications for local church life. Summary This paper explores in detail the changing trends in candidates presented for confirmation throughout one Church of England diocese between 1981 and 1989 and models the impli- cations of these trends against indicators of local church life and church growth. It is evi- dent from these data that confirmation has ceased to be a rite celebrated primarily during the teenage years, that emphasis on confirmation during the pre-teenage years tends to be associated with signs of church decline, while emphasis on confirmation during the years of adulthood tends to be associated with signs of church growth. The practical pastoral re- commendation is made that, if the number of teenage confirmation candidates should con- tinue to fall, the Church of England is likely to build a stronger future for itself by reasserting confirmation as an adult rite of Christian commitment, rather than as a childhood rite of ad- mission to communion. 1. Introduction The Church of England remains the established church in England (Cornwell, 1985). As the established church, the Church of England has traditionally acted as if initiation into http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Journal of Empirical Theology Brill

Changing Trends in Anglican Confirmation

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Publisher
Brill
Copyright
© 1993 Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands
ISSN
0922-2936
eISSN
1570-9256
DOI
10.1163/157092593X00054
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

64 LESLIE J. FRANCIS DAVID W. LANKSHEAR CHANGING TRENDS IN ANGLICAN CONFIRMATION The implications for local church life. Summary This paper explores in detail the changing trends in candidates presented for confirmation throughout one Church of England diocese between 1981 and 1989 and models the impli- cations of these trends against indicators of local church life and church growth. It is evi- dent from these data that confirmation has ceased to be a rite celebrated primarily during the teenage years, that emphasis on confirmation during the pre-teenage years tends to be associated with signs of church decline, while emphasis on confirmation during the years of adulthood tends to be associated with signs of church growth. The practical pastoral re- commendation is made that, if the number of teenage confirmation candidates should con- tinue to fall, the Church of England is likely to build a stronger future for itself by reasserting confirmation as an adult rite of Christian commitment, rather than as a childhood rite of ad- mission to communion. 1. Introduction The Church of England remains the established church in England (Cornwell, 1985). As the established church, the Church of England has traditionally acted as if initiation into

Journal

Journal of Empirical Theology – Brill

Published: Jan 1, 1993

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