Redemptive Waters
Christ’s resurrection celebrated at Vigil
METUCHEN — Bishop Paul G. Bootkoski urged the faithful to cultivate a relationship with the resurrected Lord through prayer, Scripture, worship and helping the needy during the Easter Vigil at St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral.
Worshipers packed the cathedral for the Easter Vigil, a time when Christians renew their baptismal promises and accept new Christians into the faith.
The Service of Light was followed by the Liturgies of the Word, Initiation and Eucharist.
In his homily, the bishop cited Christ’s resurrected life, which was given to us in the flowing waters of baptism. “Each year as we mature, hopefully, and reflect on this initiation into the Christ life, we see its effect in the elect, our catechumens; those who are baptized during the Easter vigil who will become our brothers and sisters through the redemptive waters of baptism,” the bishop said.
Methodist Church and God has always been a central part of his life. He became a member of the Catholic Church because he is engaged to Angela Raimondo, a member of the cathedral parish. The couple will be married in the cathedral Aug. 18.
“It is a long
, rewarding journey,” Hajduk said. “It is more than words can describe when the bishop anoints you. It all comes together; what you are really doing, but it is just a beginning.
“We are going to raise our children Catholic and we want to make sure our family is united in faith. We can experience the same thing on Sunday . . . you are missing something when you can’t take the sacrament of communion.”
Sharlow added that missing from the Liturgy of Initiation was Susan and Spencer Schneider, a married couple who were catechumens. The day after the Rite of Election, Spencer, who works for the Department of Homeland Security, was deployed to Honduras. Schneider’s wife and their two children moved there with him.
“We wrote to the Diocese of San Pedro Sula where they were moving to find an English-speaking priest who would accompany them to baptism,” Sharlow said. “Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga wrote back with the name of a Maryknoll priest who spoke English. We contacted him to ask him what he needed from us and put the Schneiders in touch with him. Susan and Spencer will be fully initiated in Honduras at the Chapel of Catholic University.”
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law