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Rites
of Election My dear Brothers and Sisters: What a great joy it is to greet you in the Name of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. As I look out over this large congregation, I am thrilled to see so many of you – catechumens, candidates, deacons, priests, sponsors and catechists. I wish to welcome all of you and to thank you for your response to God Who is calling all of us to live the fullness of the Catholic faith. Your presence here at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Cathedral is truly inspiring, hopeful and assuring. You have come from many of our parishes located all across central and western Oklahoma. Despite your different personalities, ages and backgrounds, you are all responding to a special invitation. It is the invitation of Jesus Who offers you a new and better life. His offer and invitation come to you through the holy Catholic Church which He established for our salvation. The Catholic Church is now observing the penitential season of Lent in preparation for the solemn celebration of the Paschal Mystery, designating this First Sunday of Lent for the Rite of Election. Through this liturgical ceremony, I as your Archbishop officially enroll you as members of the Elect to be reborn in baptism or candidates already baptized to be able to enter fully into the life of the Catholic Church through Confirmation and the Eucharist. Jesus speaks to us through the Scriptures and through the Church. In this way, He guides us and leads us daily on the journey of life. Today in the First Reading, we heard Saint Paul reveal the plan of God for us by pinpointing our true identity. On behalf of all of us, he said: “Our citizenship is in heaven and from it we also await our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Phil 3:20) What does it mean that we are citizens of heaven? It means that we have been created by God in His own Image and Likeness. He made us out of love and in such a way that we can receive His love and love Him in return. By the grace and mercy of God we are called, we are elected to share life in love with God forever. This sharing of life with God begins in faith when we are baptized. It is fulfilled perfectly and completely when we stand face to face with Him forever in heaven. Saint John the Apostle says: “Behold what manner of love God our Father bestows on us that we are called children of God. (1 John 3:1) This gift, surpassing all other gifts, is the fact that God calls a human being His child and a human being can call God his Father! It is by an individual act of love that God has created each of us and has called us by baptism to Divine Adoption. By a special act of loving kindness, God has chosen each of us. He has elected us. He raises us up to new life, a share in His own life through baptism. Thus we enter His Church and become pilgrims on this earth even as the Apostles and saints did. Now they are joyfully in heaven forever and we hope that we shall be there for we too are citizens of heaven. You who are to be officially chosen today as Catechumens or Candidates have been enrolled in the RCIA program in your parish for many months. You have learned much about the Catholic Church’s teachings, doctrines and traditions. You have been introduced to our prayer life and our beautiful liturgical ceremonies. But, above all, I hope you are experiencing the Presence of the Lord more personally as you faithfully discern God’s Will. Your own personal presence here today tells me that you sincerely intend to continue your journey of faith. Very soon in this ceremony, your pastors, sponsors and catechists will testify to your readiness. You yourselves will simply, but positively, publicly affirm your intentions to enter fully into the life of the Catholic Church. We, your brothers and sisters, your pastors and teachers, your friends and associates, welcome you with great joy. We encourage you. We support you. And we pray with you and for you. But the very best response to your sincere search for God and for eternal life was heard in today’s Gospel. Jesus said: “Whoever wishes to come after Me must deny himself, take up his cross and follow Me.” For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” The world in which we live was created beautifully by God. Human beings mar that beauty when we sin. Sin is disobedience to God. Sin is the rejection of God’s plan. Sin is always evil and always affects us negatively and brings us misery. In the history of mankind, the cross was used for executions. It was used to snuff out human life. Therefore, it became a sign of evil and a symbol of death. Jesus came to overturn sin and evil in the world so He accepted the cross. He died on the cross to redeem us, to set us free from sin, to bring us new life. Therefore, when Jesus directs us to take up the cross and to follow Him, it is because the cross is the sign and the instrument of His perpetual love for us. He wants us to accept His love and gift of new life and to overcome sin and evil in our own lives. Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, I urge you to accept the crosses in life, always remembering the cross on which Jesus died. Never doubt God’s love. He truly loves each one of us and desires to share His life with us forever. God made His choice when He sent His Son Jesus into our world. Jesus ratified the plan of God when He died for us on the cross. Now we respond to His loving invitation and commit or re-commit ourselves to Jesus by pledging to live the fullness of the Catholic faith. Most Reverend
Eusebius J. Beltran |