As elect and candidates kneel, sponsors with the rest of the assembly extend their hands in prayer over them during the Rite of Election on Feb. 21 at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.Detroit — Reflecting on this year’s Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion, Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron pulled in the theme of the Academy Awards.
“Part of being baptized, part of being initiated into the Church, is a free choice to shape the script of one’s life,” said the archbishop in his homily at the 11 a.m. Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion on Feb. 21, at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.
This celebration was one of four held that weekend, totaling 2,344 catechumens, candidates, Catholic candidates — those who were raised Catholic but did not receive First Communion or confirmation — as well as sponsors and parish representatives.
This year, 385 catechumens, 282 candidates and 207 Catholic candidates, bringing a total of 974, expressed their desire to enter full communion with the Catholic Church.
Auxiliary Bishops Arturo Cepeda and Francis R. Reiss presided over the Sunday 2 p.m. celebration and the 5 p.m. celebration, respectively, while Archbishop Vigneron presided over the Saturday 2 p.m. as well.
The Saturday 11 a.m. celebration was attended by 210 catechumens, candidates and Catholic candidates. Together with their sponsors and three members of each parish RCIA team, a total of 531 people filled the cathedral that morning.
RCIA refers to Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults.
Continuing on the “Academy Awards” theme, Archbishop Vigneron said that in one sense, Catholic faithful become “co-stars with Christ in the work of salvation.”
“What we say is, ‘Lord, I want my story to be your story. I want what your life means to be what my life means,’” said the archbishop. “That’s what’s accomplished by the sacraments of initiation: the history of Jesus Christ becomes my history.”
And this decision to follow Christ is not a “fairytale,” but very real, he added.
“It’s the truth, it’s the real history of the world,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “You become actors, agents, participants, in this sacred drama.”
A catechumen signs the Book of the Elect as a little girl looks on Feb. 21.St. Frances Cabrini Parish of Allen Park served as the host parish for this celebration, providing liturgical ministries and helping with setup and hospitality. The other three celebrations were hosted by Our Lady of Refuge Parish, Orchard Lake; St. Thomas a’Becket Parish, Canton; and St. Martin de Porres Parish, Warren.
At the end of the celebration, Archbishop Vigneron mentioned the recent killings of 21 Coptic Orthodox Christian men by ISIS in Libya. He explained that he didn’t want to scare anyone away from following Christ, but added that “it is a reminder of what it means to belong to Christ.”
“(Christ) is always first, and the most precious one we have,” said the archbishop, urging prayer for the Coptic Christians who are now suffering in the aftermath. “Let us very much hold all Christians in prayer these days of Lent: that we will be faithful to Jesus, because Jesus cannot be unfaithful to us.”
After the celebration, a few incoming Catholics and their sponsors shared thoughts with The Michigan Catholic.
Kimberly Filippi was baptized Catholic as a child, but is now “completing my journey,” by receiving First Communion and confirmation, she explained.
Filippi will enter full communion with the Church at the Easter Vigil at St. Benedict Parish in Waterford.
She said the Rite of Election was “amazing,” adding it was her first visit to the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.
A sponsor at St. Benedict, Kim Mosier, said he had gone through the parish’s RCIA four years ago, but stayed on to help others becoming Catholic.
“The (candidates and catechumens) are all going to walk out a little bit changed,” he said.
Linda Romero, who will enter full communion with the Church at St. André Bessette Parish, Ecorse, befriended her sponsor, Maureen Dillon Egan, more than 30 years ago.
In the early 1980s, Egan was asked to serve as the godmother for Romero’s daughter, and they have grown to become “best buds,” said Egan. Last year, Romero realized she had never been confirmed, and asked her friend to be her sponsor.
“We’ve been so close,” said Egan.
This year’s incoming Catholics
385 catechumens (those who have never been baptized)
• 262 adults, 123 children
382 candidates for full communion (those baptized in other denominations)
• 353 adults, 29 children
207 Catholic candidates (adults who were baptized Catholic, but did not receive confirmation or first Holy Communion)
You’re invited
What: Corpus Christi Mass
When: Sunday, June 7, at 11 a.m.
Where: Cathedral of the Most Blessed
Sacrament, 9844 Woodward Ave., Detroit, MI, 48202
All are welcome to attend this Mass celebrating the Body and Blood of Christ, especially those who entered the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil.
