One of the great joys for a priest is the celebration of
baptism. One of the most joyous baptisms
I’ve been able to celebrate here at Saint Columbkille was when 5 baptisms, that
is 5 different children, from 5 different families were all huddled around the
baptismal font. But it was a great
celebration of new life—both new life brought into the world through two loving
parents, but also the new supernatural life which God was bringing into those
children’s souls through the Sacrament of Baptism.
Last night at the Easter Vigil, 3 adults, received the
Sacrament of Baptism and became members of the Catholic Church. Since the most ancient days of Christianity
there has been this connection between Baptism and Easter. For on Easter we celebrate Christ rising from
the dead, and baptism parallels Jesus’ death and resurrection. In baptism, one goes down into the waters,
desiring to put an end to death, and rises to new life washed clean of sin and
made a member of the Church.
From time to time I meet a college student or older adult
who, though baptized as an infant has left the practice of the Catholic faith:
they aren’t coming to mass and they are publically at odds with teachings of the
Church. I ask them why they’ve left the
practice of the faith in which they were raised. And
they often say, “well, I was baptized as a baby, so I didn’t get a choice to
become Catholic or not.”
Well, to all of you, who didn’t get a choice as infants,
today, and every Easter, we renew the promises of our baptism, we renew our
faith that Jesus rose, we renew our belief in all the Church teaches in his
name. And the priest then sprinkles with
water all those gathered as a renewal.
And really, every time we come to Mass and receive Jesus’
Body and Blood in Holy Communion we are renewing our Faith that Jesus is risen
from the dead.
This is why the Early Christians celebrated every Sunday as
a “little Easter” because EVERY SUNDAY the Church gathers to Christ’s
victory. Let me repeat, every Sunday
Catholics are to gather to celebrate the Lord’s Day.
Without this weekly participation of the “Little Easter” of
Sunday Mass, our lives will never contain the joy we long for, our families
will never have the harmony we long for, the griefs and pains and wounds of our
many Good Fridays will never be healed as they could be, the happiness that we
seek in life will never be found. Sunday
Mass is at the very heart of the Christian life because Easter as at the very
heart of the Christian life. Without
Easter, everything we do as Christians
is in vain, and without Sunday Mass everything we do during the week is in
vain.
So today, the priest will ask every one of you here six questions
for the renewal of your baptismal promises.
The first three have to do with Sin.
Christ’s victory was a victory
over sin, so the Christian is to seek to be rid of anything that has to do with
sin. So the priest will ask, “Do you
renounce sin, so as to live in the freedom of the children of God. Do you
renounce the lure of evil, so that sin may have no mastery over you? Do you
renounce Satan, the author and prince of Sin?”
What are we saying, when we say “I do” to these questions? I’m promising to do everything in my power,
with the help of power of Christ’s victory, to put an end to sin in my life, to
put an end to all self-absorption and all selfishness. I’m promising to do everything
in my own power to change my life, to alter my daily and weekly routines, that
they can better reflect the Christian faith as taught by the Catholic
Church. I’m renouncing all of those
excuses of laziness which hinder me living my faith.
The last three questions of the baptismal promises concern
the doctrines of the Faith. Do you
believe in God the Father, do you believe that Jesus Christ suffered and died
and rose again, do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church and
so on.
These are teachings we profess every Sunday when we profess
the Creed. These are the truths upon
which our religious life rests. These
are the truths that give us strength in the face of temptation, courage in the
face of death. Amidst all of the
confusions in the world, all of the winds of error perpetuated through modern
media, the Christian can say, I know these things to be true.
We renew our baptismal promises today, taking personal
responsibility for living and practicing the faith, and we do so in the midst
and together with our brothers and sister Catholics.
For all those already having received their First Holy
Communion in the Catholic Church, it is a duty to receive Holy Communion at
least once during the Easter Season. If
you are not in a state of grace as of this moment, because of missing Mass or
other serious sin, please make a good confession this easter season, so that
you can receive Our Blessed Lord worthily in Holy Communion and fulfill this
precept of Our Faith.
For when we receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion the
power of his victory over death becomes unleashed in us, freeing us from all
that keeps us from loving God and others as we should, he frees us from all
that keeps us from reaching the perfection for which he made us, and all that
keeps us from witnessing to his truth and goodness and beauty.
I’d like to conclude with the words offered by Pope Francis
last night at the Easter Vigil in Rome: “Let the risen Jesus enter your life,
welcome him as a friend, with trust: he is life! If up till now you have kept
him at a distance, step forward. He will receive you with open arms. If you
have been indifferent, take a risk: you won’t be disappointed. If following him
seems difficult, don’t be afraid, trust him, be confident that he is close to
you, he is with you and he will give you the peace you are looking for and the
strength to live as he would have you do.”
Jesus is Risen, indeed he is Risen, let us rejoice and be
glad. Alleluia, Alleluia.
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