The confirmation sponsor may be either male or female, regardless of the sex of the candidate. (Parents MAY NOT be sponsors for their own children. God Parent is preferred.) The sponsor needs to be able to fulfill the following requirements: 1) The sponsor must be sufficiently mature for the responsibility (emotionally and spiritually) and at least 16 years of age. 2) Ideally, the sponsor should be the godparent at Baptism to more clearly express the relationship of the two sacraments. However, the sponsor must have experiences in common with the candidate and be actively involved in the life of his/her parish. 3) The Church requires that the sponsor be an active, practicing Catholic who has already celebrated the sacrament of Confirmation. The Church recognizes that a person cannot transmit what the person does not have. 4) The sponsor should be a person who already has a trusting relationship of some sort with the candidate.