Brothers and sisters,

We are companions in faith, united through Jesus Christ. In our

Baptism, we are adopted into the Church. Whether we are brought forth

as infants, or enter into the Church through the RCIA program, our

earthly family brings us to the Church so we may become a member of

the faith community, our spiritual family. We are made a new being in

Christ, we are made a member of the Living Body of Christ, the Church.

We begin our journey in faith, and rely on the help of our new family to

guide us and show us the right path. This is part of our formation in

faith. This is similar to the formation the Apostles received from Jesus,

as he instructed them, and sent them, well prepared, on their journey.

They each possessed particular gifts and talents that were needed for the

mission. They each discerned their particular role in the mission, and

understood the difficulties. However, they realized that Jesus was

always with them in their journey; maybe not in body, but in Spirit. So

they were never alone, even when they were abandoned by their earthly

companions. Jesus Christ was always with them, and he provided

strength and support through his presence.

As members of the Living Body of Christ, we are privileged to

experience that same presence in our lives. We each have Christ in us,

and we each share in the mission of the Church. As our families and

friends helped us in the beginning of our faith journey, we, as brothers

and sisters, have the opportunity to help each other now. Together, as a

family in faith, we get to know and learn from each other. We come to

realize not only our gifts and talents, but we recognize the gifts and

talents of others, and work together to bring them out. We each discern

how we can use our gifts and talents to best help the Church. We work

with each other to discern our call from God, and try to understand our
role in God’s plan of Salvation, the mission of the Church. The liturgy

prepares us to go out into the world, and bring Christ to others by living

the Gospel in our lives. Like the Apostles, we are strengthened and

supported by the presence of Jesus Christ. We do not go alone on our

journey. We go with Jesus. We are His hands and feet and bring Christ

to the world as we allow others to experience His presence through

sharing of ourselves.

Each of us has a particular role to play in God’s plan of Salvation.

Our journey in faith is a journey of discovery. Like the Apostles, we

need to discover the particular gifts and talents that God graced us with.

We can help each other learn about their particular gifts, and how to use

them together with the other members of our faith family to get the most

out of them. As members of the One Body, we know that we are never

alone. We are surrounded by companions in Christ. Our journey takes

us out into the world to help others come to know Christ. We know that

it will not be easy, but we also know that Jesus’ abiding presence is

always with us. We are strengthened in body and Spirit from our most

recent encounter with Christ. We have been well prepared to continue

on our journey.