Greetings from the St Bernard Parish Sacramental team. This letter comes to inform you about the sacrament of Confirmation which will be held in St. Bernard Parish in the spring of 2024. Please mark these important dates in your calendar. PARENT INFORMATION MEETING: Tuesday, September 19th, 2023, at 7:00pm It is mandatory that at least one parent/guardian attends this information meeting which will be held at St. Bernard Church. The meeting will cover the most important aspects of the upcoming celebration as well as the Sacramental preparatory requirements; registration forms are available on the parish website https://www.saintbernardparish.com/confirmation . Your children are also welcome as the meeting should be no longer than 45 minutes. If you can not attend this meeting, please advise the parish office (613-738-1943) as early as possible. Confirmation is a parish celebration, and not a school celebration, so the parents/guardians are responsible for getting all of the necessary information from, and to, the parish by the due dates in order for your child to receive this most important sacrament. Please check the parish website throughout the year for requirements and dates. CONFIRMATION SPONSOR: A sponsor for your child is necessary for the sacrament of Confirmation. The selection of your child’s sponsor is a very important decision; you and your child should discuss together about who should take on this role. The sponsor must be a practicing Catholic, who regularly attends Sunday Mass and is over the age of sixteen and has already been confirmed. Only one sponsor is needed, preferably one of your child’s godparents. The sponsor should be someone who your child respects and whose role will support the parents and child in the preparation for your child’s full initiation into the Church. The parents of the child cannot be the sponsor; and the sponsor does not necessarily have to be a relative. REGISTRATION: Your child must be registered in order to be confirmed in 2024. Registration is done by completing the Confirmation Registration Form available on the parish website https://www.saintbernardparish.com/confirmation All information must be filled in, including an email address (one that is regularly checked) for each parent and photocopies of your child’s Certificate of Baptism from a Catholic Church and proof that your child’s sponsor has been confirmed must be returned to the parish office by November 15th, 2023. If your child’s sponsor does not have a copy of his or her Confirmation certificate, the sponsor will have to request a copy of his/her certificate from the parish where they were baptised. If his/her Confirmation is not on record at that parish, then they will have to get in touch with the parish where they were confirmed. The required documents must be submitted to St Bernard Parish in either English or French. FEE: A $20.00 administration fee will be charged, as a stipend for the preparation of this sacrament; this must be included to ensure the registration form is complete. PLEASE NOTE: We will not accept incomplete registration forms so please ensure that you have submitted all necessary information by November 15th, 2023 to the parish office. MONTHLY SESSIONS: As part of your child’s faith formation in preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation, special sessions will be held once a month at St Bernard Church on December 10th, 2023, January 21st and February 25th, 2024. These sessions will be geared to Confirmation students; all students who register to be confirmed are expected to attend with their parents. Sponsors are also welcome. VIDEOS: Several videos will be reviewed during the preparation sessions. More information will be sent when available. BAPTISM: It is important to note that your child must have been baptised and have made their First Holy Communion, with knowledge and experience of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, according to the norms of the Catholic Church in order to be eligible for the Sacrament of Confirmation. If your child has not been baptised, take note that your child should be baptised before November 27th , 2023. Those who need to get their child/children baptised should get in touch with the parish office (613-738-1943) to register your child for Baptism at your earliest convenience. Baptisms are normally held on the last Sunday of every month at St. Bernard Church. You will also need to attend an information meeting at the church at 7pm on Tuesday, October 17, 2023, regarding the Sacraments of First Reconciliation and First Communion. Children who have not been baptised by November 27th will not be able to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation in the spring of 2024. The CONFIRMATION CEREMONY: Due to the large number of children from all 3 parish schools, the Confirmation ceremony is normally held at Notre Dame Cathedral on Sussex Drive. We will be advised of the date, time and location, in case numbers allow us to have the ceremony in our church, of the ceremony by January and will notify only those students who have been registered for the Sacrament of Confirmation at that time. DRESS CODE: The dress code for the ceremony is as follows: the boys normally wear nice pants with a shirt and tie if they have one. The girls should wear a nice dress; halter dresses or strapless dresses should be covered with a sweater or jacket; a skirt/dress pants and blouse are also acceptable. The dresses do not have to be white. Don’t let your child miss his/her chance to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation in the spring with the rest of the class so please be respectful of all of the above deadline dates. All information regarding the sacraments can be found at www.saintbernardparish.com so please check on our website throughout the year. If you have any questions or need clarification on any of the above, please direct any inquiries to the parish office, 613-738-1943, as early as possible. Finally, we would like to welcome you to St. Bernard Parish, and we look forward to a great Sacramental Celebration. We hope to see you all on Tuesday, September 19th 2023, at 7:00pm.
God bless you all. Fr. Eslin Pereira cmf, Pastor and the Sacramental Team of St Bernard Parish