From the desk of the Tar Heel disciple:
April 16, 2026 (#91)
After Easter III?
Perhaps one of the most important roles in the formation of those preparing to enter the Church (catechumen or candidate) is that of the sponsor (godfather/godmother). In some cases, a close friend or family member might volunteer to serve in this capacity. In some parishes, the parish appoints someone to accompany the person throughout the OCIA process. In either case, the choice should be deliberate, not casual or merely formal, and the person selected should receive significant formation for this responsibility. The sponsor must be able to listen carefully to the catechumen/candidate and be willing to be generous with his or her time. And the sponsor must know that the “job” is not accomplished with the baptism but continues for long afterwards.
The sponsor should be able to and want to pray for the person he/she is sponsoring, before and after the “conversion” is celebrated sacramentally. The sponsor should also be able to answer fundamental questions about the Faith and indicate faithful Catholic resources that will assist the convert, before and after being received into the Church. As a sign of such support, purchasing and gifting appropriate written materials and sacramentals to the catechumen/candidate/neophyte is ideal. If a worthy sponsor cannot afford such gift giving (and the gifts do not need to be of great value), perhaps the parish could provide a small budget for the purpose?
Perhaps the parish could afford to buy a year’s subscription to Magnificat or the Hallow App for all sponsors and those in the OCIA program? And just as many parishes provide a half or full day of recollection prior to the Easter Vigil, perhaps a similar amount of time and effort might be set aside and provided for the converts after six months and/or a year as members of the Church? And parish priests might discreetly contact recent converts after three or four months and offer to prepare them (either personally or in a class) for the Sacrament of Penance and to hear their confessions (or to provide a visiting priest who will, should they prefer it).
Both pastor and sponsor as well as the OCIA team should also consider it part of their mission to assist new converts in discerning their mission within the Body of Christ. And this must mean more than simply signing them up to be ushers, lectors, and members of the woman's altar society or Knights of Columbus, as worthy as those avenues of service are. For some, those possibilities will be perfect “fits.” But serious spiritual discernment of an individual’s charisms and the needs of the community and above all, prayer to the Holy Spirit, should guide this part of the process.
These few suggestions are respectfully submitted for consideration by any and all members of the church involved with the important ministry of preparing men and women for Baptism and Full Communion with the Catholic Church. May God increase their number… and grant them--and us all—the grace of final perseverance!
