why does the bishop slap you at confirmation
Confirmation in the Catholic Church
The `` soldier of Christ '' imagery , remains valid but is downplayed if seen as part of the once common idea of Confirmation as a `` sacrament of maturity '' , was used as far back as 350 , by St Cyril of Jerusalem . In this connection , the touch on the cheek that the bishop gave while saying `` Pax tecum '' ( Peace be with you ) to the person he had just confirmed was interpreted in the Roman Pontifical as a slap , a reminder to be brave in spreading and defending the faith : `` Deinde leviter eum in maxilla caedit , dicens : Pax tecum '' ( Then he strikes him lightly on the cheek , saying : Peace be with you ) ( cf . the knightly custom of the accolade ) . When , in application of the Second Vatican Council 's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy , the Confirmation rite was revised in 1971 , mention of this gesture was omitted . However , the French and Italian translations , indication that the bishop should accompany the words `` Peace be with you '' with `` a friendly gesture '' ( French text ) or `` the sign of peace '' ( Italian text ) , explicitly allow a gesture such as the touch on the cheek , to which they restore its original meaning . This is in accord with the Introduction to the Rite of Confirmation , 17 , which indicates that the episcopal conference may decide `` to introduce a different manner for the minister to give the sign of peace after the anointing , either to each individual or to all the newly confirmed together . '' 
The `` soldier of Christ '' imagery , remains valid but is downplayed if seen as part of the once common idea of Confirmation as a `` sacrament of maturity '' , was used as far back as 350 , by St Cyril of Jerusalem . In this connection , the touch on the cheek that the bishop gave while saying `` Pax tecum '' ( Peace be with you ) to the person he had just confirmed was interpreted in the Roman Pontifical as a slap , a reminder to be brave in spreading and defending the faith : `` Deinde leviter eum in maxilla caedit , dicens : Pax tecum '' ( Then he strikes him lightly on the cheek , saying : Peace be with you ) ( cf . the knightly custom of the accolade ) . When , in application of the Second Vatican Council 's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy , the Confirmation rite was revised in 1971 , mention of this gesture was omitted . However , the French and Italian translations , indication that the bishop should accompany the words `` Peace be with you '' with `` a friendly gesture '' ( French text ) or `` the sign of peace '' ( Italian text ) , explicitly allow a gesture such as the touch on the cheek , to which they restore its original meaning . This is in accord with the Introduction to the Rite of Confirmation , 17 , which indicates that the episcopal conference may decide `` to introduce a different manner for the minister to give the sign of peace after the anointing , either to each individual or to all the newly confirmed together . ''
In this connection , the touch on the cheek that the bishop gave while saying `` Pax tecum '' ( Peace be with you ) to the person he had just confirmed was interpreted in the Roman Pontifical as a slap , a reminder to be brave in spreading and defending the faith : `` Deinde leviter eum in maxilla caedit , dicens : Pax tecum ''
In this connection , the touch on the cheek that the bishop gave while saying `` Pax tecum '' ( Peace be with you ) to the person he had just confirmed was interpreted in the Roman Pontifical as a slap , a reminder to be brave in spreading and defending the faith : `` Deinde leviter eum in maxilla caedit , dicens : Pax tecum '' However , the French and Italian translations , indication that the bishop should accompany the words `` Peace be with you '' with `` a friendly gesture '' ( French text ) or `` the sign of peace '' ( Italian text ) , explicitly allow a gesture such as the touch on the cheek , to which they restore its original meaning .
The touch on the cheek that the bishop gave while saying ``Pax tecum'' (Peace be with you) to the person he had just confirmed was interpreted in the Roman Pontifical as a slap, a reminder to be brave in spreading and defending the faith: ``Deinde leviter eum in maxilla caedit, dicens: Pax tecum''.
In this connection , the touch on the cheek that the bishop gave while saying `` Pax tecum '' ( Peace be with you ) to the person he had just confirmed was interpreted in the Roman Pontifical as a slap , a reminder to be brave in spreading and defending the faith : `` Deinde leviter eum in maxilla caedit , dicens : Pax tecum ''