By Victoria Fassett
Campus Minister
UNL Newman Center
At dusk on Holy Saturday, 30 candidates and six catechumens gathered around the fire as Father Alec Sasse lit the Easter candle from the fire outside of the UNL Newman Center.
There is something so beautiful about this night of vigil when we await and then celebrate Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and the specific and real impact that has in our lives as Catholics. On a recent pilgrimage to Rome, I was reminded of the fact that when the earliest Christians committed their lives to Christ they knew that choice would likely cost them their lives. And yet, they saw something in the Gospel that made them believe that it was worth it. It was better to die a Christian than to live as a pagan.
When I consider the stories of the students who have decided to enter the Church this year at Easter, it’s beautiful to see flickers of that same flame of love in their hearts and lives. They are international students, sorority girls, graduate students, and Division 1 athletes. What ties all of them together is a shared love for one person, Jesus.
While each of their stories is unique, a common refrain when asked how they first started thinking about becoming Catholic is that a friend invited them to Mass, or to some activity at the Newman Center. For one of the girls, Isabella, her sponsor Clair was baptized last year at the Easter Vigil and it’s through their friendship that she decided to be baptized this year.
And yet, these friendships are only the beginning of the journey. As Jay Mingo said, in an interview with the National Catholic Register published April 1, the Eucharist was the driving factor for him entering the Church: “I knew the Eucharist was something important, but not something I ever really understood. Was it really the Body and Blood of Christ?” He met Max Chapman, one of the FOCUS missionaries, on campus and not only found his sponsor but a friend who also loves the pursuit of truth.
It’s been quite the gift to walk with the students through RCIA this year alongside Father Robert Matya and Father Sasse. It’s so clear that Jesus has called each of them to be His beloved and they have responded to that call with joyful and generous hearts.
Not only that, but it has reminded me that He calls me His beloved. I may not remember my baptism when I was two and a half weeks old, but God placed a call on my life in that moment, an invitation to follow Him, just as He has done with each of these candidates and catechumens. This invitation that Jesus makes to each of us, to give Him our whole lives, reminds me of something Jesus said to Sister Mary of the Holy Trinity: “Give me your heart - your whole heart. And do you not also wish to give me your life? I desire it, I have need of it.” And later, “It is such a great thing to belong to me!”
In this Easter season, I hope that flame of love present in the hearts of the martyrs and now the newest Catholics, will consume our hearts as well so that Jesus can make great use of them. All you Holy Martyrs, pray for us, especially our newest brothers and sisters in the Church.
