Smoking and vaping have been added to the Confirmation pledge taken by young teens, which formerly only included a reference to alcohol and illicit drugs.
Bishop Michael Router, Liaison Bishop with the Irish Bishop’s Drug Initiative, explained the rewording of the pledge on The Joe Finnegan Show on February 16, citing that the decision came from feedback from educators, parents, and students themselves.
“The decision was made, first of all, to highlight the dangers of vaping, because it’s kind of unregulated,” said Bishop Router. “No one is quite sure what’s in a
lot of vapes.”
“I think under 18s have to be very careful because the brain is only developing in young people, and we just don’t know what effect these substances can have upon them.”
The bishop noted that the pledge is not mandatory, explaining that it is up to the children to make the pledge during their Confirmation ceremony or not. “It’s something that we place in front of young people,” he said.
According to Bishop Router, around one third of young people who are participating in the Confirmation ceremony are taking the pledge. Regardless of whether or not they do, the bishop is hopeful that the inclusion of vaping and smoking will illuminate the risk for young teens.
“I wouldn’t care too much just about getting bogged down on the figures and percentages of who actually keeps their pledge…But if it can save a few people from the destructive influence of drugs, vaping, alcohol…that would be great.”
