by Cindy Wooden

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Administering the sacrament of Confirmation to 44 people, including two teenagers from the U.S. and two from Ireland, Pope Francis encouraged them to “swim against the tide; it’s good for the heart.”

In a partially improvised homily at Mass April 28 in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis encouraged young people to hang on to their ideals and pursue them. “We Christians weren’t chosen by the Lord to do little things,” he said.

After making the sign of the cross with chrism oil on the foreheads of those being confirmed, Pope Francis rubbed the oil all over their foreheads, sealing them with the Holy Spirit. After wishing them peace, he gave each a quick kiss on the cheek.

The two U.S. teens confirmed were Brigid Miniter, 14, and Anthony Merejo, 17, from Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish, Ridgewood, N.J. The young people from Ireland were Edmond Roche, 13, and Emily Mulcahy, 12, from the Diocese of Cloyne.

Msgr. Ronald J. Rozniak, pastor of the Ridgewood parish, said he didn’t know how his community was chosen by the archdiocese, and he did not ask. “You don’t look a gift horse in the mouth,” he said.

An estimated 70,000 young people who were confirmed or will be confirmed this year also were present for the Mass in St. Peter’s Square, one of the major events scheduled months ago for the Year of Faith. The Vatican said over 100,000 people gathered in and outside the square, and in neighboring streets for Mass and the recitation of the “Regina Coeli” prayer afterward.

The 44 people receiving confirmation came from 22 countries and ranged in age from 11 – two Italians and a Romanian – to 55-year-old Maria Silva Libania from Cape Verde. The usual age for receiving Confirmation is set by local bishops, not the Vatican. Malia Petulisa Malani, 18, traveled the greatest distance for the Mass; she is from Tonga in the South Pacific.