Editorial note — Chapter XXVII · THE HOLY GHOST.—HOW IMPARTED.
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[Footnote H: It is a mistake to suppose all Christendom have neglected the practice of this ordinance. The Catholics teach that "Confirmation [by the laying on of hands] is a sacrament instituted by our Lord, by which the faithful, who have already been made children of God by baptism, receive the Holy Ghost by prayer, unction (or anointing with holy oil called chrism), and the laying on of the hands of a bishop, the successor of the apostles. It is thus that they are enriched with gifts, graces and virtues, especially with the virtue of fortitude, and made perfect Christians and valiant soldiers of Jesus Christ to stand through life the whole warfare of the world, the flesh and the devil. The first recorded instance of confirmation being administered to the faithful is in the eighth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, where St. Peter and St. John confirmed the Samaritans who had been already baptized by St. Philip. "They prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Ghost. * * * Then laid they their hands on them and they received the Holy Ghost" (Catholic Belief, Bruno pp. 97, 98). The Church of England, and of course the Episcopal churches in the colonies and the United States teach practically the same.]
[Footnote I: Heb. vi: 1, 2.]
[Footnote J: II. John: 9.]