Bishop Ryan invited candidates to be active witnesses
Once again, it is this time of the year when hundreds of our young parishioners around the diocese joyfully and excitedly receive their First Holy Communion and Confirmation after two years of preparation in CCD.
This past weekend, the parishes on San Roque, San Jose in Tinian, Kristo Rai, San Antonio, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral and San Jose in Oleai have had either the celebration of First Holy Communion or Confirmation. Other parishes like St. Jude and Santa Soledad in Saipan and San Francisco de Borja and San Isidro in Rota have had their celebration of the Sacraments as early as end of May. The rest of the parishes will have their First Holy Communion and Confirmation by the end of June.
This year, the reception of these sacraments is a much later than usual because the parish CCD classes had to extend to compensate the weekends when classes had to be suspended after Super Typhoon Yutu hit and devastated Saipan and Tinian last October.
Bishop Ryan himself presided the First Holy Communion and of course the Confirmation at Mt. Carmel Cathedral last Sunday. The First Communion was in the morning and the Confirmation Mass in the evening. “It is a joyful day for us here in our parish of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral as our young boys and girls will receive the Holy Communion for the first time,” says Bishop Ryan as he greeted the First Communicants and their families who filled the Cathedral to witness the event. These events, First Communion and Confirmation are normally well attended because the receptions of these Sacraments are two important landmarks of every Christian’s journey of faith.
These events, however, are by no means a “graduation” from one’s Christian formation since essentially our journey of faith continues throughout the whole life. During his homily to the First Communicants, Bishop Ryan expressed his hope to see them come back and continue participate in the liturgical life of the Church.
One of the challenges in the CCD program is the continuation of catechetical formation. The majority of the First Communicants are hardly seen again after their First Communion. Most of them would return to the CCD program in preparation for their Confirmation. It is important to mention however, that some of them do continue to be part of the liturgical life of the parish by being a “tanores” or altar servers, thanks to the constant encouragement of their devoted parents.
In the course of his homily, Bishop Ryan complimented the young boys and girls who proclaimed the Word of God during the Liturgy and he encouraged them to serve as lectors in Mt. Carmel Cathedral especially in the Youth Mass on Sunday afternoon. This ministry, he said, “is one way of giving witness to the faith!” Other pastors also gave the same encouragement to the CCD students to continue and be part of the liturgical life of the parish. Many parishes now are also offering post-communion grade classes to provide continuity in the catechetical knowledge of the students until their Confirmation.
In his homily during the Confirmation Mass at Mt. Carmel Cathedral, Bishop Ryan recalled the message to the youth of Pope Francis during one of the World Youth Days: “You are not just the future of the Church! You are the “now”! He then encouraged the youths to be active witnesses now. “Do something today as witnesses of the Gospel, as witnesses of the Risen Christ!”
Just like in the First Holy Communion, one of the main challenges in the Confirmation years of the CCD students is the continuity of their Christian formation. It has always been the trend worldwide that after Confirmation, the majority of the youth are not seen any more in the Church. This is why Bishop Ryan highlighted the importance of the sense of active witness not only in the youths but even more on their parents and godparents. He recalled the words of St. Paul VI: “The world needs witnesses more than teachers!”
The celebrations of First Holy Communion and Confirmation mark the end of the CCD school year. And as the youth geared up for their summer break, the diocese still has in mind its continuing ministry to the young people even in their vacation. On July 19-21, the Youth Commission will launch its Annual Sports Fest to provide not only sportsmanship but above all to provide a sense of camaraderie and a continuous reaching out to the youths. More information is forthcoming regarding the upcoming Sports Fest in the coming North Star issue.
