On the weekend of 16 & 17 February, 675 people from 115 parishes
in the Diocese of Westminster underwent the Rite of Christian Initiation
of Adults’ (RCIA) Rite of Election in Westminster Cathedral.During the Rite of Election the 675 adults made a public commitment to entering into the communion with the Catholic Church.
Presiding over the ceremony was Bishop Alan Hopes, along with Bishops John Arnold, John Sherrington and Canon Paschal Ryan, Episcopal Vicar in the Diocese.
At Easter, of those adults undergoing RCIA, 335 will receive the sacraments of Confirmation and the Holy Eucharist, and 340 adults will be baptised.
Bishop Alan praised those undergoing the Rite of Election saying: “Election is a translation of a Latin word for chosen. Today you are being elected, chosen, called to salvation...Along with the whole Church, this Lent is a time for you to be renewed through an examination of your lives and a deepening of your commitment to God. We are called to turn to the Lord - we are called to holiness – we are called to be saints.”
Antony Curran, Director of Catechetics said: “RCIA, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, is an exciting process by which adults become members of the Catholic Church, and through the Church deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ. It is a process of prayer, discussions, study and celebration. “
“The RCIA process helps assimilate adult men and women into the Catholic way of life so that they can comfortably pray and serve with the Catholic community. It is not a hurried process, but a deliberate, personal process of growth and understanding that takes as long as it takes. Typically, the process takes about 9 months to one year - but it may be longer if that is what a person is more comfortable with.”
Canon Stuart Wilson, Dean of the parishes of Kensington & Chelsea, who presented the Candidates and Catechumens from his Deanery, said of the meaning of the service to the wider Catholic Church: “What you see speaks volumes. A Cathedral full of enthusiastic people, many of them young adults, publically proclaiming that they want to become Catholics. It will be the same at the second Celebration. 700 people happy to be Catholics. Our Church is blessed indeed.”
The Church of Mary, Mother of God in Ponders End had 14 Catechumens and seven Candidates. Speaking about why people had chosen to undergo the RCIA programme to become Catholics, Parish priest Fr John B Shewring said: “Many of this year’s RCIA Group had already been coming to our church for some time. For them having experienced the faith, the worship and the life of the Church, there was a desire to know more about the Church and its teaching. Others had been touched by the faith of friends or partners and wanted to experience more.
Having spoken on several occasions to the members of our RCIA programme and who had been part of our community for some time it was easy to discover that there was a deep yearning within them to be fully committed to the faith and to receive the Sacraments of the Church – particularly the Eucharist.”
Because of the large numbers of people taking part, with their parish priests, catechists, familes and friends, the Rite of Election was held in two services - at 3pm on Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 February at Westminster Cathedral.
The ’Rite of Election’ is an ancient ceremony for adults choosing to be Catholics. The ceremony sees both Catechumens (those who are preparing to be baptised) and Candidates (those who are already baptised in another Christian tradition) being “sent forth” by their bishops to prepare to be received into parish churches across the Diocese of Westminster at Easter.
Bishop Alan Hope’s full homily from the service is available below:
“Each year, on the First Sunday of Lent, the Church recalls the forty days the Lord spent in the desert in preparation for his mission which would lead to his Passion, Death and Resurrection. The Church also recalls the devil’s efforts to tempt Jesus away from his path of obedience to God.
This time of forty days is foreshadowed in the journey of the people of Israel through the desert to the Promised Land, after their exodus from Egypt. This journey took forty years. Unlike the people of Israel, Jesus does not cry out to God in anger when he is hungry. Nor does he give up his vocation of obedience to the one true God, by succumbing to the flattery of the devil in the hope that he would give him effortless power and fame. Nor does he become a slave to the devil by testing God.
The Lord’s resolute courage in standing up to the devil comes at a great cost. His obedience to his Father in the wilderness already foreshadows that obedience which will lead him to the Cross.
Lent, then, is not simply our attempt to imitate Jesus in resisting temptation. It is an opportunity to journey with Him to the Cross. For in the Cross is our salvation. In one of his letters, St Paul calls the Cross a stumbling block for many but, he says, to those who are called, the Cross is the power of God and the wisdom of God.
Dear Catechumens and Candidates, dear brothers and sisters, these words are addressed to you! This Rite of Election which we celebrate today is a celebration of your hope and trust in Jesus Christ, to whom you turn for salvation. The word, Election is a translation of a Latin word for chosen. Today you are being elected, chosen, called to salvation. The Church rejoices with you as she numbers you amongst all those who have been called and chosen. These holy days of Lent are a time of final preparation which will reach their climax at the great Vigil of Easter when those of you who are Catechumens will be baptised, and then together with the Candidates will be confirmed and receive the Eucharist for the first time.
Along with the whole Church, this Lent is a time for you to be renewed through an examination of your lives and a deepening of your commitment to God. We are called to turn to the Lord - we are called to holiness – we are called to be saints.
This is not just for special people – but for all of us! How do we become holy? We have to strive to become like Jesus Christ, the Son of God - to imitate the One who gave his life to God and for his neighbour.
Holiness is rooted in the Sacrament of Baptism. Baptism moulds us into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Baptism gives us a share in the life of God himself.
Striving to become like Jesus Christ is a great challenge. There will be moments when we will be tempted, like the Lord, to give up and to take the easy way out! But take courage, for God’s grace is always given to us to strengthen us and especially in the sacraments. As we seek to become holy, we are actually learning to rely on and trust in that grace and to co-operate with God. Because this is what holiness is – a lifelong journey of seeking God through his Son Jesus Christ.
Today marks one step for you on this lifelong journey.
During this special Year of Faith, Pope Benedict has invited the Church to ponder more deeply on the treasure of the Faith we have received. You have been doing this during your time of preparation. This is the Faith which you will embrace at Easter. This is the Faith which the Church guards and cherishes. It is also something which she hands on to and shares with every generation.
As Jesus said to those first disciples whom he had called and chosen : You will be my witnesses, to the ends of the earth. He will address these words to you at the moment of your Baptism and Confirmation.
Dear Catechumens and Candidates, dear friends, throughout your lives Jesus will call you to live lives of holiness - to become saints. He will offer you God’s grace to strengthen you - through prayer, through the Mass, through the Sacraments, the Scriptures, the teachings of the Church, the commandments that give life and through all the opportunities to serve and to love others as Christ loves you.”
You have indeed been called and chosen. You are indeed the elect of Jesus Christ. And you too will become his witnesses in the world.
In cathedrals around the UK, more than 3,000 people took part in the RCIA this year. The total numbers will be published after Easter. For more information, and prelimnary statistics see: http://www.catholicnews.org.uk/rite-of-election-2013