Rite of Election to be Celebrated by Bishop Barron

By TODD GRAFF

The diocesan Rite of Election of Catechumens and of Calling the Candidates to Continuing Conversion, celebrated by Bishop Robert Barron, will take place on Sunday, March 9 (the First Sunday of Lent), at 3:00 p.m., at Queen of Angels Parish in Austin. All members of our diocesan Church are invited to participate in this significant liturgy of our local Church of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester.

This rite marks a significant moment in the spiritual formation of those people who are preparing to become fully initiated members of the Catholic Church. Their journey takes place within the Church’s Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA), a process which prepares and forms women and men for initiation and reception into the Catholic Church.

As the Church’s guiding text for the OCIA states, “The Order of Christian initiation is designed for adults who, upon hearing the proclamation of the mystery of Christ as the Holy Spirit opens their hearts, consciously and freely seek the living God and undertake the journey of faith and conversion.” (Order of Christian Initiation of Adults [OCIA], #1)

This journey of formation in the life of faith unfolds in several stages and is marked by several liturgical rites. After completing an initial time of inquiry into the Faith, called the “Period of Evangelization and Precatechumenate,” an unbaptized person is accepted into the “Order of Catechumens” and enters the “Period of the Catechumenate.” In this period, the faith of the catechumens, and their conversion to God, is nurtured and grows. They “receive pastoral instruction and practice appropriate disciplines” (OCIA, #75).

The completion and conclusion to this period is celebrated liturgically in the Rite of Election as “the Church makes her ‘Election’ … of catechumens, who by their dispositions are fit to take part in the next celebration of the Sacraments of Initiation” (OCIA, #119).

This rite is “the focal point of the Church’s concern for the catechumens” (OCIA, #107).

For those women and men participating in the OCIA who have already received the Sacrament of Baptism and are preparing to complete their initiation (as baptized Catholics), or to be received into the Catholic Church (from another Christian faith community), the Church celebrates the “Calling to Continuing Conversion.”

Celebrated on the First Sunday of Lent, this rite also marks the beginning of the period of final, more intense preparation during which the elect [which the catechumens are now called] will be “encouraged to follow Christ with greater generosity” (OCIA, #118). For the baptized candidates as well, this rite marks the beginning of their final preparation to receive the Sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist, and (for baptized non-Catholics) to enter into the full communion of the Church.

The faith community plays an important role in this rite. During the rite, the bishop asks parish members present if they support the testimonies of both the godparents and sponsors on behalf of the catechumens and candidates in affirming their readiness to receive the Sacraments of Initiation. Not only is it important that parishioners take the time to come to know those who are going through the OCIA process so that they can confidently answer this question, they are also called by the bishop to support them with their prayers and to accompany them as they journey closer to the Easter Sacraments.

Following the Rite of Election, the elect (formerly the catechumens) enter into the “Period of Purification and Enlightenment,” which takes place during the Lenten season and includes the celebration of the “scrutinies” on the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Sundays of Lent. This period, which immediately precedes their reception of the Sacraments of Initiation at the Easter Vigil, “is given to a more intense preparation of spirit and heart” (OCIA, #139).

Please consider joining our diocesan Church for this year’s celebration of the Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion. And, whether you are able to be present or not, please do pray for these sisters and brothers of ours in Christ who are preparing to become one with us in our Catholic faith community.

Todd Graff is the director of the OCIA for the Diocese of Winona-Rochester.