Folia Theologica et Canonica 3. 25/17 (2014)

IUS CANONICUM - Michael Carragher, O.P., The sacrament of confirmation and personal development

THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT 185

anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward”. The olive tree is always in bloom with leaves. The mixture of balsam adds a fragrance to the olive which is distinctive and recognizable and moreover pleasantly attractive. Given that the fashion and cosmetic industries invest qualified personnel, science, and finance to manufacture perfumes to suit all occasions and clients, it does not seem farfetched to regard chrism as suitable material to convey the personality of the candidate for confirmation. Men and women like to look well. And children follow their example. Teenagers are also targeted by the cosmetic firms. The image of a sweet smelling odour is not unknown in the New Testament (Matthew 6, 17: “When you fast anoint your head and wash your face”. John 12: 3: “Mary took a pound of costly ointment of pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair; and the house was filled with fragrance of the ointment”.

Incidentally although olive oil enjoys a pre-eminence among the other natural oils nevertheless these other oils can be used in its absence (canon 847§1).

The same canon (880§ 1 ) intimates what is the form of this sacrament to be used. This form determines the theological significance of the sacrament of confirmation. The Trinity is explicitly mentioned as principal cause of the fullness of spiritual strength communicated to the recipient: in the name of the Father (...) Additionally, this spiritual strength is signified by the words T confirm you by the chrism of salvation’. In baptism a human being is (re)generated and initially begins to live for himself, just as any new-bom baby attracts the attention of parents, guardians, and the medical profession. Under the title of the canonical status of the person the Latin Code ascribes five juridic facts to the newly-baptized, namely, age, domicile, consanguinity, affinity and (sui iuris) Church. Sandwiched among these five characteristics, there is a canon which states a principle about a person’s innate capacity to determine oneself. The term used is sui compos (canon 99). Obviously, this feature is not only a juridic fact but also an observable phenomenon which those concerned note as the new-born child gradually develops in exercising independently the functions of talking28 (ability to communicate, not necessarily reading nor writing, as these

28 Wallace, W. A., The Elements of Philosophy. A Compendium for Philosophers and Theologians, St. Pauls 1977. 179: “Language (note omitted) is a systematic means of human communication, particularly by arrangement of vocal sounds conventionally representing concepts, feelings, objects, etc. Like eating and sleeping it is common to all mankind; unlike them it is not instinctive but must be learned by every individual from other members of the social group to which he belongs. It is a kind of behaviour that is man’s alone, that he shares with no other living creature. Without it, man’s uniquely complex knowledge and control of his environment would be inconceivable.” See also Clanchy, M. T., From Memory to Written Record England 1066-1307, Oxford 1993.2 Introduction Being Prejudiced in favour of Literacy, 7—11. Gera, D. L., Ancient Greek Ideas on Speech, Language and Civilization, Oxford 2003.