Today is confirmation Sunday in our congregation. Seven candidates, assisted by their mentors have been working diligently to prepare for the rite of confirmation. In our tradition, children are welcomed fully into the body of Christ at their baptism. Confirmation is a rite that acknowledges that baptism and provides the candidate an opportunity to own the vows of membership. It is a ceremony of commitment.

A lot of attention will be focused on the candidates for confirmation today. They will receive gifts. They will shake hands with members of the congregation. They will receive many congratulations. It is appropriate.

But I have been thinking also about the congregation. It is a big day for us as well. It is not just because we have nurtured these young people as they grew from infancy to this point in their lives. We have done that. It is not because we have forged partnerships to support their parents in their difficult tasks. We have done that. It is not because was have partnered with these confirmands in their projects as they assumed leadership in the ministries of the church. We have also done that.

The real challenge, for our congregation is even more difficult.

We have to change our way of thinking. We have been talking and thinking for years of our youth as the “future of the church.” The covenant we make this morning, however, is not only about what will happen some day in the future. It is about the relationship we have right now. Today we promise to receive and honor these people as full members of the church today. Every new member changes the congregation. It is adjustment that we think we want. We give a lot of lip service to wanting new members. Sometimes, however, we are less than gracious about sharing power and allowing the ideas of new members to hold sway. It is a curious thing. We want new members, but sometimes we want them to be just like us. Sometimes we don’t want the change that comes with the new members.

Every class of youth preparing for confirmation is special. This group is wonderfully so. Susan and I have been pastors of this congregation for all of their lives. They can’t remember the pastors who came before us because we were already serving this church when they were born. To put it simply, we are the “old guard” from their perspective. We represent tradition and institutional stability. What they know of the church has us associated with it, so to them we are part of what has “always” been. Even though we know ministers come and ministers go, they have not yet experienced that part of church life.

The rite of confirmation itself is always a powerful moment. We lay our hands on the candidates as they kneel before the congregation. Their mentors and families gather around. The congregation reaches out to touch others as we pray. The prayers themselves are carefully crafted. We have been taking notes and revising the prayers for months, trying to find just the right words to make the connection between the history and traditions of the church and this new member who will shape its present and future.

I think that even after the words are forgotten the touch remains.

I remember the touch of the minister at my confirmation. I think of the touch of the pastors at our ordinations. The church has had times of misusing the power of touch. We all know of the destructive power of inappropriate touch and the pain caused by its cover up. But there have also been times when the power of touch was used to manipulate and control who could and couldn’t have their ministries recognized. Men have used the claims of apostolic succession to limit the ministries of women. At some points in the history of the church, bishops have claimed inordinate power to control who can and cannot become priests. Instead of marveling at the power of the community some have tried to consolidate their own power.

The strength and mystery of touch remains, however. The hands that will gently touch the shoulders and heads of our confirmands belong to people who have been touched by the grandmothers and grandfathers of our faith. Generations of church membership provide a direct line of touch to the founders of our congregation. Whether or not we can identify the exact chain of touch, the effect of people who have been touched by people who have been touched by people stretches back to the founding of the church – to Jesus’ simple act of washing the feet of the first disciples. We belong to that lineage. This is our family.

The chain does not only stretch backward. It can be overwhelming to think of the yet unborn generations of faithful people who will receive touch from those we confirm today. As they fold their hands in prayer, I am aware that those hands will one day hold new babies. Those hands will work on mission projects we have not yet imagined. Those hands will serve the bread and cup of communion to ones we will never meet face to face.

It is a powerful event.

No wonder we have worked so long and hard to prepare for this moment. To have done anything less would be unworthy of the trust that has been shared with our generation.

So it is natural that I worry about us. There is much that rests on how we show hospitality to these members of our congregation. We are defined by how we welcome each member into the Body of Christ.

There is a very important phrase that will be repeated today as we exchange our vows of membership. When asked to commit to these awesome promises we say, “I will, with the help of God.” In our very answer, we acknowledge that we cannot of our own power remain faithful to such great commitments. We will need to rely on assistance that comes from beyond ourselves. Our help lies in the generations who have come before. Our help lies in the generations that are yet to come. But even more than that, our help lies in God who created and who continues to create.

Today will be a day to remember.

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