CHRISTIAN INITIATION OF CHILDREN (CIC) UPDATE

On November 17 at 5:00PM Mass, Felipe Acevedo and Claudia Araujo who are in their second year process of Christian Initiation of Children (CIC) celebrated their initial conversion and their first public welcome to the Church through the Rite of Acceptance. Felipe and Claudia declared their first intention to become members of the Catholic Church. The Church’s acceptance marks the beginning of their journey as Catechumens, to deepen their initial conversion through Catechesis based on the word of God. They will develop a familiarity with the Christian way of living through their reaction with the community and their participation with the liturgical celebrations. Their sufficient understanding of Christian teaching will take them to the second step in the initiation process. As they continue their journey to faith and commitment let us continue to pray for Felipe and Claudia.

At this time, we have 14 unbaptized children of catechetical age who are seeking initiation to become members of the Church. They are now receiving religious instructions from catechetical ministry with the help of their parents and godparents. Parents, godparents and children are required to attend a once a month catechetical instructions provided by the Christian Initiation of Children Ministry team. As they continue this early stage of the initiation process (the Evangelization and Pre-Catechecumenate period), their eagerness to learn more about God is visible. The children are send to attend the Liturgy of the Word during our Sunday worship (either 8:30 am, 10:00 am or 1:00 pm Mass) to connect the catechesis to the Word of God which will eventually lead them to developing faith and communion with Jesus Christ and the community.

---Nellie Martinez, CIC Coordinator
December 2001

ADVENT CUSTOMS: There are several Advent customs and traditions which help us observe this sacred Advent season.

1. The Advent wreath is a wreath with four candles—three violet and one rose in color. It is kept on the dinner table, and at dinner the number of candles is lit corresponding to the week of Advent. (The rose candle is for Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday in Advent.) As the candle is lit, the eldest at the table reads the Sunday Opening Prayer or the daily Opening Prayer.

2. Christmas carols are traditional. Though commercial forces bring in Christmas carols early and forget them after Christmas, it is more liturgical to have Christmas carols between Christmas and Epiphany—during the “Twelve Days of Christmas.” If it is necessary to play or sing Christmas carols before Christmas, one should wait until after Dec. 17, if possible. Before that date, Advent hymns are appropriate.

3. Christmas lights, the Christmas tree, the exchange of Christmas cards and presents—these traditional customs are all the more valuable if they are joined to the liturgy and to the basic spiritual meaning of the feast.

4. Manger or crib set at home. This is set up on Christmas eve, with appropriate decorations. On the feast of Epiphany the Three Kings are added to the scene.

(From the Vatican II Weekday Missal)

NEWS FROM THE CONFERENCE OF CHURCH MINISTERS

Called to be the Family of God…is this year’s theme of the Conference for Church Ministers held on October 26, 2001 at the San Diego Convention Center. Twenty-six catechists and some members of the other ministries of St. Charles Parish attended the celebration and listened to the inspirational homily of Bishop Robert Brom of the Diocese of San Diego. Bishop Brom talked about the importance of having the virtues of Love, Obedience, and Confidence in a Christian family: that God’s children are to love, to be loved, and to be loving. We are challenged to answer the call to serve the family of God. We must “bring to birth in each of us, a child that can be trusting, loving, and obedient.” For Jesus said: “Whoever does the will of my Father is my brother, my sister, and my mother.”

. The keynote speaker, Sister Helen Prejean, C.S.J. talked about her book “Dead Man Walking”. She told her story how she was called to bring Christ to inmates who are sentenced with death penalty; how the dealings with them opened her heart to make a campaign and call on the people of Faith to work against the death penalty.

During the conference, there were Exhibits of different religious bookstores and suppliers

Postcards with Pope John Paul II messages: “Remember the past with gratitude. Live the present with enthusiasm. And look forward to the future with confidence” were distributed. The conference ended with the commissioning of the church ministers during the closing prayer service.

Harry Potter Movies & Books... Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, .O.F.M, Cap. of Denver, Colorado, wrote a Dec. 5, 2001, column on the subject of Harry Potter. He writes in part: “So what’s the verdict on Harry Potter? That’s a matter for parents, not bishops, to decide. I think Harry Potter can be happily enjoyed as a children’s fantasy movie. Nothing in the film attacks the Christian faith, and good does win out over evil. At the same time, unfortunately, characters in the Potter books do sometimes accomplish good things by doing bad things, like lying.”. Archbishop says it’s up to parents to determine merit of Harry Potter.

HOLY DAY vs. HOLIDAY

Christmas is a holy day and Jesus Christ is the central figure, while a holiday can be called Consumas and the central figure is Santa Claus

While Jesus Christ gives us love unconditionally, Santa Claus gives us things if we’ve been good. Obviously, there’s a big difference. Almost everything that Santa Claus brings has to be bought.

Celebrating CHRISTmas is not easy but here are some suggestions from the Catholic Update Magazine: (1) Be aware: recognize the commercial Christmas is a non-Christian celebration. That is why Consumas is a good descriptive name because it can consume us. (2) Take responsibility: You cannot change the culture but you can change your own action.

(3) Present gifts from the heart: Buying or making a few gifts from the heart is an appropriate way to share the holy season of Christmas with those you love. The key is keep it simple and meaningful.

(4) Observe Advent: maintain the four weeks before Christmas as a time of preparation instead of acting as though Christmas were already here.

(5) Watch what you watch: The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas Day are a prime time for many people to watch favorite Christmas TV specials or movies. Pay more attention to your media consumption just as you do to your product consumption.

(6) Celebrate all of the Christmas season: Do not stop on Dec. 25 as the secular season fizzles out. Plan some of your Christmas season socializing with family and friends after Christmas Day. More important find appropriate celebrations for the liturgical feasts of the season, such as: Feast of the Holy Family, Feast of the Epiphany and Baptism of the Lord.

(7) Little adjustments, right focus: These adjustments are not a program for radical change. But making these adjustments will help you live the Christmas season that most people say they want—the one built around a Christian holy day instead of a commercial holiday. (From the Catholic Update, 12/2001)