Pastor’s Corner for the Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, By Fr. Bruce Botha SJ
Confirmation in the Faith
We are happy to welcome our Archbishop on Sunday for the celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation. We have 24 young men and women, from our parish, and from Holy Angels, Bez Valley. We have students from WITS and UJ, from Holy Family College and McAuley House. It is a blessing to have people from so many different places coming together for this celebration because it is a reminder to us and an affirmation of our belief that the sacrament is about welcoming people into a faith wider than our own parish boundaries. They are being confirmed in the faith of Holy Mother Church, the Roman Catholic Church, a faith that spans millennia, a faith that is global in its reach. We belong to a big family, and our celebration on Sunday is just a little reminder of that.
Confirmation is a Sacrament of Initiation, and through this sacrament, those being confirmed are proclaiming their faith, they proclaim that they share the faith of the community of believers of whom they are part. This is not simply an occasion for the candidates to profess their faith and their desire to be part of the community of believers, it is also an opportunity for the community to express our faith in them.
After the gospel reading, the candidates are presented to the archbishop, the successor of the Apostles and our link with the universal Church. He is the reason why we can proclaim in the creed our belief in One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. In presenting these candidates it is we, the community of faith, that confirm our belief in their readiness to be part of the community of faith in a special way. They are now able to take up the mission that Christ has given to each of the baptised. Their sponsors act for the community in confirming their belief in the candidates readiness for this role and promise to support them in their journey of faith.
It is with great joy that the parish community of Holy Trinity Catholic Church welcomes these 24 men and women who are taking this significant step on their journey of faith as members of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church, under the guidance of our bishop, Archbishop Buti Tlhagale, and Francis our Pope.
Fr. Bruce Botha SJ