The Catholic Experience
May is sacrament season: this weekend’s Adult Confirmations and the Reception of one individual into the Church caps off several weeks of sacraments including last weekend’s First Communion and our Youth Confirmation the week before. My thanks to all who assist in making sacramental preparation possible and who ensure that faith formation continues year after year! Each liturgical celebration invites and even challenges us to remember the sacramental graces present in our own lives. With each Baptism, we renew our baptismal vows to turn away from sin and cling more firmly to God. With each Confirmation, we turn to the Spirit to strengthen our witness of the faith to others. With each First Communion, we renew our love for Jesus in the Eucharist and reject whatever leads us away from communion with him. These challenges are baked into the liturgies this time of year. But what if you’re looking for a more intentional way to renew your faith? What if you missed one of those sacraments along your faith journey when you were younger? What if you’re not Catholic but perhaps your spouse or significant other has inquired about you becoming Catholic? What if you stumbled into church today and have never thought about becoming Catholic until the moment you’re reading this bulletin?
Starting this July, we’ll be debuting a renewed process for adults looking to be baptized, be received into the Church, catch up on the sacraments, and grow in their faith. “The Catholic Experience” (as we’re calling it) aims to do much more than just impart information. “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up,” as St. Paul correctly stated (1 Cor. 8:1). Our goal is comprehensive and holistic: we want participants to believe in and love the Lord Jesus with their heart, mind, soul and strength, choose to be his disciples, and grow in the habits and lifestyle that will enable them to witness his love to others. Each session (meetings every other week) will empower each person to know the faith and learn practically how to pray, grow in community, and practice stewardship. We hope and pray that this opportunity will benefit those hoping to receive sacraments and those desiring to grow deeper in their relationship with the Lord. So, do you know anyone that fits these categories? Let them know about the information session on Sunday July 13th after the 10:30am Mass where we’ll discuss more specifics and give a roadmap for the upcoming sessions. Until then, please direct any questions to Dawn Thiele at dthiele@saintstephenmil.org. God bless and happy sacrament season!