Baptism and Confirmation

“When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, and they went down there and prayed for them to receive the Holy Spirit, for as yet he had not come down on any of them: they had only been baptized in the name of Jesus. Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 8: 14 – 17)
In Acts of the Apostles, Luke the writer documents for us the faith and the practice of the early Christian community. The above scripture shows that the early Christians considered Baptism a distinct sacrament from Confirmation. The Samaritans were first baptized. Then the Church in Jerusalem sent Peter and John, bishops to confirm the people. The Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles and other New Testament passages show clearly the centrality of Baptism, Confirmation and the Sacraments in the faith and practice of the early Church. Today, only the faith of the Catholic tradition maintains this teaching of the early Church.