Families are welcomed into the Catholic faith at Easter
By Elizabeth Landry, staff writer
At the Easter Vigil, parishes and dioceses around the world welcomed many new Catholics into the Church. And overall, the Catholic family across the globe is growing.
The Vatican recently published its statistical yearbook at the end of March, offering data “on the life and activity of the Church in the world in 2023,” which showed that the overall number of Catholics rose. At the end of 2023, there were approximately 1.405 billion Catholics worldwide, up 1.15% from 1.389 billion at the end of 2022.
In the Diocese of Syracuse, our Catholic family is growing, too. As we shared in our recent March 27 issue that covered the Rite of Election, the number of people in the OCIA program throughout the diocese has increased steadily in recent years, with this year’s group totaling just under 135 people.
The building block of society — the family — plays an important role in growing our larger Church family. In the document “Marriage and Family: Home of the New Evangelization,” the USCCB (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops) states, “The family is the heart of the New Evangelization, since it is where the faith is first encountered, passed down, lived, and sustained.”
Here in our diocese, the faith journeys of many who received sacraments at the Easter Vigil this year reflect this truth. For them, the importance of family is paramount in their journey to joining the wider family of the Catholic Church — whether they are joining the Church for the first time through Baptism, or taking on a more active role by coming back to the Church and receiving the rest of the sacraments.
Sharing faith through generations
At St. Paul-St. Bartholomew Parish in Norwich, one such newly-welcomed Catholic is 16-year-old Cheyenne, who spoke with the Sun as she prepared to receive the Sacraments of Initiation at the Easter Vigil. Cheyenne’s sponsor is her grandmother, Lorraine Franklin, who has been instrumental in Cheyenne’s interest in joining the Church.
“My relationship with my grandma is amazing,” Cheyenne shared with the Sun. “She took me to church with her, and when I wanted to become Catholic, she told me about the OCIA program. After that, I started going to [the program] and I enjoy it,” she said, adding that during the time leading up to Easter, she’d been looking forward to “gaining a closer relationship with the Lord.”
Lorraine shared that Cheyenne had been consistently inquisitive about faith for the last four years, and she had been taking Cheyenne to church with her for several months before Cheyenne decided to become Catholic. They would sit in the back of the church so that Lorraine could answer her granddaughter’s many questions during the Mass.
The OCIA program was a learning experience for Lorraine, too: “It was just a wonderful experience for me. Really, I was humbled when [Cheyenne] wanted me to be her sponsor,” she said.
Although Cheyenne’s immediate family doesn’t actively practice the faith, Lorraine described her as “this little granddaughter, stepping forward, leading the way by her life.” On the day of the Rite of Election, as Cheyenne signed the Book of the Elect, Lorraine recalled, “I just started crying big pink tears. I was so happy — it was just beautiful. I prayed for her for so long.”
An entire family of faith
The Morris family, parishioners at St. Michael-St. Peter’s on Onondaga Hill, journeyed through the OCIA program together. Megan, wife to Joseph and mother to Maggie, 19; Nolan, 16; Rylan, 15; and Logan, 11, was raised in a Catholic, but non-practicing family. She had been preparing to receive the sacraments of Communion and Confirmation at Easter, and all four of her children were preparing to be fully welcomed into the faith through receiving all the Sacraments of Initiation. Joseph, who already received his sacraments, has been “100% supportive” of the process, Megan said.
She shared how recent life events have been drawing the family closer to God and the Catholic faith. The family had gone through a particularly difficult time, including Joseph battling a degenerative brain disease, “and I feel like I was looking for answers and looking for peace,” Megan said. After attending her nephew’s baptism last summer as a family, Megan said they each became interested in joining the Church.
“It’s really brought us all closer. It’s strengthened our faith to do this as a family. We’re really proud of our children — I’m excited to make my sacraments, and I think my children are, too. There’s so much that we’ve learned. … Going to church, there’s a peace afterward that I have … I think it’s giving my husband peace, too. I think it really helps him — putting all our faith in God.”
And how do the kids feel about the OCIA process and joining the Church?
“The whole community is very welcoming and supportive of us coming into the Church. It’s been a very enlightening and meaningful process,” Maggie shared.
Nolan, who often brings his Bible to school with him, said, “There are a lot of people in my school who actually go to the same church, and I feel like everyone’s been very friendly. … I feel like it’s brought everyone, including my family, a lot closer.”
After expressing his excitement for Easter, Logan said, “I like to learn the stories and things about the Church in our Catholic class. I did like learning about the saints.”
Megan also shared that she’s looking forward to being able to relate more to Joseph’s large, Catholic family (he’s one of 13 siblings). “My husband was actually made the godfather of two of his nephews last summer. I look forward to maybe being a godmother to any future babies.”
