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CHRISTIAN

COMMITMENT

BISHOPS’ COMMITTEE ON

THE LITURGY

National Conference Of

Catholic Bishops

1978

Publications Office

UNITED STATES CATHOLIC CONFERENCE

1312 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20005



Copyright © 1978 United States Catholic Conference



CHRISTIAN

COMMITMENT

“We know that God makes all things work

together for the good of those who have been

called according to his decree" (Romans 8:28).

It is in this confidence that Christians undertake

to live in Christ, aware not only that they have

been called by the Father of mercy but that

their “yes" to that call is inspired by the very

Spirit of God, which makes it possible for them

to cry out “Abba, Father" and “Jesus is Lord."

From its very inception, the Christian life is a

gift, the grace of the Lord’s invitation. Any

Christian commitment and any renewal of that

commitment must be understood in this light.

A Christian’s faith life commences and con-

tinues, not in isolation and separation, but in

concert with the life of the whole body of the

faithful, diverse in members and ministries, but

made one under the headship of Christ. Faith is

always a shared experience—first, in that it is
initiated by the choice which the Lord himself

makes and, second, in that faith comes from

hearing the proclamation made by those whom

the Lord sends (Romans 10:14-15). Pastors,

catechists, and persons responsible for the Chris-

tian community’s liturgical life, particularly the

members of diocesan and parish liturgy com-

mittees, share this mission in a special way.

This statement is especially directed to them,

so that they may help clarify and foster a true

sense of Christian commitment and the liturgical

renewal of that commitment among those whom

they serve.

GOD’S CALL THROUGH HISTORY

For the Christian the past is more than the

prologue of the present. It is what makes us

who we are today, both as individuals and as the



community of God’s people. Our history is the

history of God working among us. More than a

record of humanity’s search for meaning or for

the Ultimate, our history is the lived experience

of God seeking out and summoning his people.

The call of Abraham and the patriarchs, the call

of Moses and the prophets, the call that Jesus

of Nazareth received from his Father, the call of

Christians of every age, all have one factor in

common: the utterance of God's word. “In the

beginning was the Word; the Word was in God's

presence, and the Word was God” (John 1:1).

This is the word which has given direction and

purpose to the cosmos and to us who inhabit the

earth. It is through the word that God creates

(Genesis 1); through the word he destroys and

recreates (Genesis 6:7; 8:15-17); through the

word that he forms history and gives it meaning.

Christ Jesus is the fulfillment of that word, the

one who completes all that the Old Testament

said the word will do. He is the full self-revela-

tion of the Father. As the Divine Word, he calls

us to experience him (1 John 1:1-3) and so

enter into union with him and through him, with

his Father.

For both the community and the individual,

the experience of the divine call is situated in

history, conditioned and colored by specific cul-

tures and circumstances. It is unique in each

instance, both by virtue of those who are called,

themselves unique, and by virtue of the One who

calls, whose love is infinite and who loves each

in an individual and special way.

The committed Christian attentively heeds

God’s call and is thereby able to respond through

personal union with Jesus Christ, who is both the

word by which God calls and the individual's

word of response. This personal union with Jesus

has its sacramental beginning in Christian ini-

tiation.

CHRISTIAN INITIATION

The entry of the Christian into the mystery of

Christ and his Church is achieved through par-

ticipation in the paschal mystery of the risen

Lord who commanded his disciples: “Go, make



disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name

of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy

Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). This initiation of the

Christian is a sharing in the event of the Lord’s

death and resurrection, which happened once

and for all, yet constitutes an ongoing process

for the Christian who seeks to observe all Christ's

commands (Matthew 28:20).

Christian initiation as a ritual event includes

the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and

eucharist (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults,

nos. 2, 27-36). Through the celebration of these

sacraments the initiated ritually participate in

the whole process of salvation history. New Chris-

tians join the pilgrimage of the entire people of

God making their way through history to the

fulfillment promised by the Lord Jesus when he

returns. As individuals, the new Christians re-

spond to the action of the Holy Spirit in their

own lives, pursuing the unique call to follow in

the footsteps of the Lord. The new Rite of Chris-

tian Initiation of Adults clearly sees the actual

reception of sacraments of initiation in this con-

text of a continuous, step-by-step movement

along the "path of faith and conversion” (ibid.,

no. 1).

The primary model for Christian initiation is

the initiation of adults. Adults are capable of a

mature response to the action of grace: “They

hear the preaching of the mystery of Christ, the

Holy Spirit opens their hearts, and they freely

and knowingly seek the living God” (ibid.). This

model of a mature adult seeking to enter the

Christian life also includes the steps of prepara-

tion known as the catechumenate, a lengthy

period of spiritual growth designed to assist the

candidate experiencing conversion and making

a commitment to the Gospel and to the com-

munity life of the Church. The point is this: The

response of the individual to God’s call is a dy-

namic, ongoing process, well symbolized by the

image of a journey or pilgrimage. There can be

no stopping or turning back. Each step, whether

in the life of the sincere inquirer, the catechu-

men, the newly baptized, or the seasoned mem-

ber of the Church, requires a continuing menta-



no/a or conversion. Christian life must be a

continuing response to the divine initiative by

which God seeks to unite himself with a person

created in his own image and in doing so to re-

store the divine image partially defaced and

obscured by the human race through sin.

The current practice of the Church encourages

the baptism of infants and postpones the recep-

tion of the other sacraments of initiation to a

later time. This demands that a great deal of

attention be given to the ways in which Christians

are to renew and, one might say, even fully

experience their initial sacramental meeting with

the Lord. Therefore, it is essential to underscore

those means available to help young Christians

grow in awareness of their baptismal gift and of

their need to accept and live it in a personal,

committed way. Parents, family members, god-

parents, sponsors of confirmation, and, indeed,

the whole local community are critically impor-

tant in this regard. In different ways, they are

responsible for providing the necessary Chris-

tian environment and the example of their own

fervent Christian witness and their participation

in the practical life of the Christian community.

The seed of faith must be nurtured and lovingly

cared for if it is to reach maturity. In fact, when

there is no possibility that a child will enjoy a

Christian environment and example, and no rea-

sonable hope that the faith to be shared with a

child will survive, baptism should be delayed,

until such time as reasonable hope does exist,

except in danger of death.

Christians ought not to treat the faith-life

imparted in the sacramental event of initiation

in the manner of the unenterprising servant who

buried the talent his master left with him. Faith

should live and grow. Its model is the mustard

seed, the leaven in the dough, the fruit-bearing

vine. For either it continually grows and is shared

or it suffers extinction. The faith-life of the Chris-

tian must include a constant response to God’s

act of faith in the one he calls. Christian initia-

tion, while happening once and for all through

the initial participation in the paschal mystery

of Jesus, must also be a moment-to-moment



process of saying yes to the Lord at each step in

life’s pilgrimage.

WAYS OF RENEWAL

Eucharist

The paschal mystery is the foundation of the

Christian life of faith. The Christian community

most fully celebrates the paschal mystery in the

eucharist. By the Lord's command to make mem-

ory of him, the eucharist captures all that he has

given in faith to his people; for the eucharist is

ultimately the Lord Jesus himself, the whole

Body of Christ, Head and members, offered to

the Father. Thus, by its very nature each cele-

bration of the eucharist demands a total self-

giving on the part of those who worship; eucha-

rist is not only the sacrifice of Christ, but, by

that very reality, the sacrifice of the Church made

one with the Lord.

The regular celebration of the eucharist with

the local church is the principal way in which

the Christian consistently renews commitment

to the dead and risen Lord. The theme of Chris-

tian commitment recurs throughout the Order of

the Mass. The penitential rite, the silent and

sung responses to the proclamation of the word,

the profession of faith, and, most important, the

offering and reception of the body and blood of

Christ, all express the Christian’s renewal of

baptismal faith at each eucharist.

In a special way, the Amen proclaimed by the

faithful at the end of the eucharistic prayer gives

voice to a renewed acceptance of the new cove-

nant and is a public profession of submission to

its bond of love. Augustine poetically homilizes

on this Amen in his sermon against the Pelagi-

ans: “My brethren, your Amen is your signature,

it is your consent, it is your commitment” (Migne,

PL 39:172). The same can be said of the

Amen at the reception of communion. At each

celebration of the eucharist the Christian is chal-

lenged to renew his commitment to the Gospel

of Jesus Christ, to membership in his body, the

Church, and to the living of the covenanted rela-

tionship with the Lord manifested by a life of



service to others. As such, the
eucharist is the

repeatable sacrament of initiation.

Sunday

Eucharist is the primary liturgical
event for

the renewal of faith because it
makes present

and celebrates the paschal mystery.
Similarly,

the Lord's Day, Sunday is the primary
liturgical

moment for the celebration of the eucharist.
The

Church in the Constitution on the
Sacred Liturgy

(no. 106) sees every Sunday as
“the original

feast day” and “the foundation and
kernel of the

whole liturgical year” when the faithful
are to

call “to mind the passion, resurrection,
and glory

of the Lord Jesus” and give thanks to
God who

“has begotten them again, unto a living
hope”

(1 Peter 1:3). Thus the Sunday
celebration takes

a special place in any renewal of
Christian faith,

for it occasions a reliving of the
paschal mystery.

Liturgical Year

The renewal of faith which Christians
make

each time they celebrate the eucharist
takes on a

regular, rhythmed character through weekly
as-

sociation with the Lord’s Day; and this is
further

heightened by the celebration of the seasons
and

feasts of the liturgical year.

Advent-Christmas is a time of anticipation and

hunger for the presence of the Lord in our
lives.

The Christian is called to prepare not only
for

the feast of the birth of Christ, but
more espe-

cially for meeting the Lord in the many ways
in

which he comes: in word, in sacrament, in
people

who are called to be temples of his presence, and

in the situations which arise in the world.
This

preparation for the Lord's coming must focus

particularly on the meeting with him which oc-

curs in the final human act of death. Then, seal-

ing with a final yes the life he or she has lived,

the Christian makes the commitment to the Lord

an eternal one. Advent, then, is truly a season of

commitment.

The forty days of Lent are the time par excel-

lence for the Christian to renew commitment to

the life of faith received in baptism. The rites of

preparation for the sacraments of initiation are to



be celebrated at the appropriate times through-

out Lent. The Easter Vigil itself is the ordinary

time for the actual reception of the sacraments

of initiation and for the renewal of baptismal

faith (Rite of Christian initiation of Adults, nos.

50-57). High points in the catechumen’s journey

into the Church are to be anchored in the renewal

of baptismal faith made by the rest of the Chris-

tian community. The Community in turn is chal-

lenged in its own faith renewal by the budding

faith of the catechumen. “The initiation of ca-

techumens takes place step-by-step in the midst

of the community of the faithful. Together with

the catechumens, the faithful reflect upon the

value of the paschal mystery, renew their own

conversion, and by their example lead the ca-

techumens to obey the Holy Spirit more gener-

ously” (ibid., no. 4; see no. 7f).

As the season of metanoia and Christian re-

newal, Lent is the time when every member of

the Church is called upon to turn once again to

the font of living water and drink deeply of the

Spirit of the Lord. This process of renewal is

most effectively accomplished when the faithful

visibly express their sharing of faith with the

newly baptized by participating both in the Easter

Vigil and in the ceremonies throughout Lent

which lead up to it. So that all the faithful may

share as fully as possible in this life-giving act,

the Church insists that the whole community re-

news the vows of baptism during the Masses cele-

brated on Easter Sunday.

This is more than a pious practice. It is meant

to be the climax of the whole lenten season. The

acts of prayer, mortification, and charity which

have marked the previous forty days are now to

bear fruit in a solemn, public reaffirmation of

Christian faith. Each year the Christian is called

once again to solemnize and give expression to

the choice of the Lord as center and master of

his or her life and in so doing to reawaken an

awareness of the divine presence and of his or

her commitment to live as God wills. The com-

munity continues to celebrate this awareness and

commitment in the fifty days of the Easter Feast

crowned by Pentecost.



Sacrament of Penance

In addition to the eucharist and the celebra-

tion of the liturgical seasons, the sacrament of

penance is an obvious moment for the revitaliza-

tion of baptismal faith. Each time the Christian

turns to the Lord and the Church for this spiritual

healing, the strength of the initial moment of

grace is renewed and deepened. The rites of rec-

onciliation involve more than the erasing of sin;

key moments in the living out of the Christian

covenant, they heighten in the penitent that

awareness born of the Spirit—to see ourselves
as God does.

Moments of Personal Decision

Coupled with and mirroring the various aposto-

lates and works of charity performed by the whole

community and by each individual Christian, the

liturgical life of the Church forms the main path

and substance of the Christian’s life. This is

especially emphasized by the Fathers of the Sec-

ond Vatican Council who teach that the liturgy,

although it “does not exhaust the entire activity

of the Church,’’ is nevertheless “the summit

toward which the activity of the Church is direct-

ed; at the same time it is the fountain from which

all its power flows” (Constitution on the Liturgy ,

nos. 9-10). This normal process in the Church’s

life is further augmented by key events in the

lives of Christians. Such events can be liturgical

or private.

Certain radical changes or new orientations in

an individual’s life naturally find expression in

corresponding liturgical moments. This is the

case, for example, with the sacraments of orders

and marriage, religious profession or public com-

mitment to any vow, and installation or recogni-

tion in liturgical or other public ministries of the

Church, such as reader, acolyte, cantor, catechist.

As special ways of living out the baptismal

life of faith, these demand a renewal of faith in

view of the new charge given by the community to

the individual. These moments of personal dedi-

cation demand reflection, prayer, and discern-

ment so that the decisions to be made may be

truly responsive to God’s call.



The non-liturgical events in the lives of indi-

vidual Christians which call forth a renewal of

baptismal faith are many and varied: graduation

from school; the beginning of a new job; a retreat

or participation in any one of many renewal ex-

periences (e.g., Search for Christian Maturity,

Marriage Encounter, Cursillo, entrance into a

charismatic community); serious illness; the

death of a loved one, especially a spouse; and

the making of any important decision, but espe-

cially the choice of vocation or career. All these

special moments along the path of life demand

decisions rooted in a Christian life of committed

faith.

In preparation for and sometimes in conjunc-

tion with these liturgical events it is very appro-

priate to renew formally the promises of baptism,

those promises which accompanied our initiation

into the mystery of Christ when we first said yes

to his call. This can be done during the eucharis-

tic liturgy as on Easter Sunday or in specially

prepared service of the word. It is important that

the significance of the renewal of the promises

be explained and that the entire assembly be

asked to pray for those renewing their baptismal

commitment.

Several approved liturgical texts are available

for use in the renewal of Christian commitment.

Whereas the Nicene Creed, common to the

Sunday eucharistic liturgy, is the most frequently

used, the renewal of baptismal promises included

in the Easter Vigil celebration, and the Apostles’

Creed may also be considered appropriate for

use on a particular occasion.

It is important, however, that this ritual re-

newal of baptismal promises not happen so fre-

quently as to become routine or detract from the

primacy of the Easter renewal undertaken by the

whole Church. Also, persons who are to make

this public profession of their faith should always

prepare seriously for doing so. Special times of

retreat or recollection can encourage this nec-

essary preparation and can even appropriately be

the specific context for the liturgical renewal of

baptismal promises.



The sacramental celebration of Christian ini-

tiation or of any liturgical renewal of that initia-

tion must always be “worship in spirit and truth”

(John 4:22-24). Arising from interior lives rooted

in the Spirit who binds us together in the Body

of Christ, such worship must also be truthfully

reflected in exterior lives of love and service. The

liturgical renewal of Christian commitment must

therefore be founded on that living faith which

manifests itself in good works. This is to say

that worship must authentically mirror and sup-

port those acts of charity and mission which

identify a Christian. Practical, consistent living-

out of the Christian life is the ultimate proof of

any liturgical renewal of Christian commitment,

the test the Lord himself uses: “I tell you solemn-

ly, insofar as you did this to one of the least

of these brothers of mine, you did it to me”

(Matthew 25:40).





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