2012 Youth Confirmation Information
Registration for 2012 is now closed
What Is Confirmation?
Confirmation is when a person stands to formally unite with the church and make a profession of faith. This is a time for youth to confirm the vows made on their behalf if they were baptized as infants. For those not baptized as infants, they too confirm their faith as youth and are baptized. At Arcola, confirmation is a program for students in 8th grade and up who wish to be confimed in the United Methodist Church. The program is designed to study the beliefs of the United Methodist Church and what it means to be a Christian. Our program has two broad goals: 1) to foster a vital relationship between the youth and Jesus Christ and 2) to build friendships among the youth and build community with the larger church.
General Schedule
Kick-off Dinner Feburary 3
Weekly Lessons Begin February 5
Mini Retreat February 25
Service Project Opportunities March 26 - April 14
Weekly Lessons End April 22
Retreat April 28 - 29
Confirmation Sunday May 6
Confirmation Requirements
Kick-off Dinner
We hold a kick-off dinner on Friday, February 3 at Arcola UMC. This dinner is for the confirmation class students and their families. An overview of the confirmation process is presented and youth have an opportunity to meet their mentors, fellowship together and participate in team building experiences.Weekly Lessons (9)
Lessons are held on Sundays from 10:45 AM to 12:00 PM. Students are expected to be on time and prepared to participate in the group's discussion. If a student misses a lesson, they must make-up the material with one of the Confirmation teachers.Retreats (2)
We hold a mini-retreat on Saturday, February 25 at Arcola UMC and a second retreat from April 28 - 29 at Camp Highroad. Each student is expected to attend both retreats in their entirety.Service Project (1)
Students must complete a service project during confirmation. Three service project options are provided during the weeks of March 26 through April 7. If a student is unable to participate in one of these three, they must find and complete an alternate project. Alternate projects must be approved by Katie Humphries.Worship Participation (1)
Students must actively participate in worship one time during confirmation as either a greeter, usher, reader or communion server. Contact Suzanne Lyles to sign up.Mentors
Students are assigned a mentor who they meet with weekly during confirmation. Mentors are active members of Arcola UMC.Confirmation Sunday
Confirmation will take place at the 11:00 worship service on Sunday, May 6 for students who decide to be confirmed at the end of the confirmation process. All students must be baptized before being confirmed. This can occur the day of confirmation during the confirmation service. If you are interested in this, please let Katie Humphries know as soon as possible.
Commitment
We recognize that the calendar for confirmation is very rigorous. In addition, our hope is that students would continue their other church commitments (Sunday School, Youth Group, etc.) during this time. As with anything, you will get out what you put into the process. We are aware of many competing claims to everyone's schedule, but would ask each family to make a full commitment to being part of the whole process. If your schedule makes this problematic at this time, you might want to consider doing confirmation next year.
Cost
The cost for confirmation is $100 per student. This includes the cost of all materials and both retreats. Scholarships are available. Please contact Katie Humphries or Pastor Chris Riedel for more information.