Bishop to preside at Rite of Election, Feb. 18 in Cathedral

People in parishes throughout the diocese are moving into the intense, final stages of preparation to receive Sacraments of Initiation at Easter.

They will mark an important milestone on Sunday, Feb. 18, when they and those who are accompanying them join Bishop W. Shawn McKnight for the Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion.

This impressive gathering will be held at 3 p.m. at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Jefferson City.

All in the diocese, especially family members and fellow parishioners who are helping with the initiation process, are invited to attend.

Held in cathedrals throughout the world on the First Sunday of Lent, the Rite is a significant step in preparing to receive the Easter sacraments and become committed, active members of the Roman Catholic Church.

A day to remember

76 catechumens and 121 candidates plan to take part in this year’s Rite.

Catechumens have never been baptized.

Candidates have been baptized into the Catholic Church or another Christian faith community and now hope to come into full communion with the Catholic Church.

The candidates and catechumens have been preparing for several months — some for an even longer time — through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA).

Accompanying them to the ceremony at the cathedral will be their sponsors, parish RCIA teams and family members.

The catechumens’ names will be entered into the Book of the Elect, signifying their becoming God’s chosen people.

Bishop McKnight will hear testimony from their godparents and sponsors.

He then will declare the catechumens to be among the elect of God, which is the entire Church.

The candidates, who through their Baptism have already been counted among the chosen, will be called to continuing conversion in Christ.

Their sponsors will give testimony for their readiness to proceed toward the Sacraments of Confirmation and Holy Eucharist at the Easter Vigil.

Bishop McKnight will ask them to join the whole Church during Lent in a spirit of repentance.

All Catholics are encouraged to hold these people up in prayer through these last, most intense weeks of preparation.

Pressing forward

During Lent, the candidates and catechumens will contemplate the Scrutinies, a powerful prayer of the Church through which the strength of all that is good in a person is lifted up, and whatever keeps him or her from God is cast out.

For that reason, the readings at the Rite of Election are focused on Lenten themes: temptation, sin, death and repentance.

At the Easter Vigil Mass on March 30, the catechumens will be baptized, and they and the candidates will be confirmed and receive their First Holy Communion.

The primary symbols of fire, light, water, oil, bread and wine will be highlighted in a Mass filled with some of the Church’s richest traditions and rituals.

Neophytes, as newly initiated members of the Church are known after the Easter Vigil, will continue meeting weekly through Pentecost, celebrated 50 days after Easter.

This period, called Mystagogy, is a time to “savor the mystery” of Easter and to experience a full and joyful welcome into the community.

Conversion and camaraderie

Dating from the early days of Christianity, RCIA is the process through which adults enter the Catholic Church. The process is focused on conversion to Christ.

Once considered an essential component of life in the early Church, the RCIA faded out of existence during the Middle Ages but was reinstated shortly after the Second Vatican Council.

During the RCIA process, the candidates and catechumens and their sponsors and catechists tend to become very close. Most are sorry to move beyond the process and do not wish to leave the camaraderie behind.

But ideally, each parish is a living, vibrant faith community that is centered around Christ and the Gospel — not just in Scripture but also in all their life’s experiences.

Parish communities that have the same exuberance for Christ that their RCIA process has are welcoming environments for new Catholics.

As a result, many people who experience RCIA, volunteer to serve as catechists and sponsors in subsequent years.