MADISON — The Office of Worship is excited to announce two new diocesan liturgies that will take place this spring: Adult Confirmation and a Mass for new Catholics.
Adult Confirmation
The first of these, Adult Confirmation, will take place at 2 p.m. on Pentecost Sunday, May 23, at St. Dennis Church in Madison.
Why hold a Mass to confirm adults? Because, as the Catechism states, “. . . the reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace.” (CCC 1285)
The adults who will be Confirmed have already been Baptized and received Holy Communion. They are practicing members of their parish community and have studied and learned about Confirmation and the Catholic faith with their pastor or RCIA director.
This third and final Sacrament of Initiation will bind them more closely to the Church, and they will be sealed and strengthened by the Holy Spirit.
Anyone wishing to receive the Sacrament should contact their parish RCIA director or pastor for adequate preparation. Those adults who are prepared to receive the sacrament can register at www.madisondiocese.org/confirmation or call the Office of Worship at 608-821-3080.
This will become an annual diocesan liturgy, so encourage the adults in your life who are not confirmed to prayerfully consider seeking out this sacrament next year.
Mass for new Catholics
“You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy people: praise God who called you out of darkness and into his marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9
Did your parish welcome any new members, or neophytes (from the Greek neóphytos meaning “newly planted”), into the Church at the Easter Vigil this year?
Around the world, the Catholic Church receives new members every Easter through the ancient rites and Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Eucharist, and Confirmation).
They grew in faith through prayer, study, and preparation by way of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). But their new lives as Christians do not end on Easter! The final period of conversion for these neophytes (the period of mystagogy) is taking place now:
“This is a time for the community and the neophytes together to grow in deepening their grasp of the Pascal mystery and in making it part of their lives through meditation on the Gospel, sharing in the Eucharist, and doing the works of charity.” (244, Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, Study Edition.)
The passage goes on to encourage the bishop to meet the recently baptized at least once a year and to preside at a celebration of the Eucharist with them.
On Sunday, June 13, at 10 a.m. at the Holy Name Oratory at Holy Name Heights in Madison (702 S. High Point Rd.), Bishop Hying invites all the newly baptized Catholics, together with their sponsors and families to celebrate Mass.
A small outdoor reception will take place afterward.
For more information, contact the Office of Worship at 608-821-3080.