Rite of Election

PATERSON  On March 10, the First Sunday of Lent, in dioceses around the world, the Rite of Election took place as catechumens journeyed closer to receiving the Sacraments of Initiation — Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation — at the Easter Vigil celebration on Holy Saturday evening, April 20.

The 114 catechumens, who will be welcomed into the Church on Holy Saturday, came to the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist here on Sunday where Bishop Serratelli formerly selected — or elected — them. The Rite of Election formally sets the catechumen on the path toward full sacramental unity with the Church. These catechumens are now known as the elect.

At the start of the Rite of Election, Bishop Serratelli acknowledged the catechumens, telling the congregation, “We gather with great joy at the Rite of Election. It’s a sign of God’s Holy Spirit calling more and more people to salvation in the Church. The Church is the very sign and sacrament of salvation that Jesus himself established. So we join together in great prayer and joy turning to God and opening our hearts to his grace.”

The catechumens have been studying the tenets of Catholicism through their parish’s Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) program, the Church’s official process by which new members are prepared for the Sacraments of Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation.

The children in the process of RCIA will be baptized while some will also receive First Communion. Adults in the process will receive all three Sacraments of Initiation. The Rite of Election ceremony was coordinated by Father Pawel Tomcyzk, diocesan director of RCIA at St. Paul’s Inside the Walls: the Diocesan Evangelization Center, in Madison.

Delivering the homilies at the Rite of Election Sunday afternoon were Father Joseph Boykow, parochial vicar at St. Philip Parish in Clifton, and Father Jorge Castano, parochial vicar of St. Mary and St. Nicholas Parishes in Passaic, who delivered the homilies in English and Spanish respectively.

In his homily, Father Boykow said, “Each and every one of you has been called by Jesus to undertake this journey to come to know him and experience the love that he has for all of us. This calling you have received may have happened through the words or example of a friend, of a co-worker or maybe a family member. Whoever it was, the light of Christ was able to shine forth through them to touch your hearts, drawing you out to discover something much greater. As catechumens, who will be soon known as the elect, it becomes then a task given to you by God to continue to grow in your relationship with him.”

Following the homilies, the catechumens were presented to the Bishop and both the catechumens’ godparents and the congregation made an official affirmation of their worthiness for reception of the Sacraments of Initiation. Then, recognition of the enrolled names was presented to the Bishop in the Book of Elect. The catechumens were then asked to stand as an act of admission or election toward becoming the elect.

After the Rite of Election, a light reception was held in the Bishop Rodimer Center at the Cathedral of St. John that brought the elect together. Many of them took the opportunity to take a photo with Bishop Serratelli.

Marquis White, who has been going through the RCIA process at Sacred Heart/Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Parish in Dover, said his reason for wanting to become a Catholic was because “I wanted a little more Jesus in my life.”

White hopes to be married in the Church to his girlfriend Jacquie Marcano and found the community of Sacred Heart/Our Lady of the Holy Rosary to be very welcoming. “Coming from a non-religious background, I think they are very accepting, loving and non-judgmental. Father Brendan Murray (pastor) has been very easy to talk to and he answers all my questions,” he said.

Also among the elect at the reception was Alexis Avdoyon from Assumption Parish in Morristown, who attended the Rite of Election with her husband, Rich. A registered nurse, she said working in the medical field played a role in her decision to become Catholic. She witnessed the value of faith many of her patients had. “They would pray for miracles that couldn’t be explained. Seeing that really drew me to the faith,” said Avdoyon.

She and her husband, who is a Catholic, were married last October. “This is something I thought about for a long time. When we met, we both were going in the same direction in terms of faith. We hope to raise our kids in the Catholic Church.”

Javier Rosado will receive the Sacraments of Initiation at St. Anthony Parish in Paterson where he and his fiancé, Virginia Lopez, hope to be married on New Year’s Eve this year. She said, “My religion and my faith are a big part of my life. We hope to follow God’s path and God’s will.”

At the conclusion of the Rite of Election, Bishop Serratelli said to the newly elect: “I want to share my gratitude to the newly elect. Your presence here today is a sign of God’s grace. The Church is alive and the Church is growing. I congratulate you. I thank you for hearing God’s call and I ask in the days ahead that all of us join in praying for those who will be baptized and receive the Sacraments of Initiation.”