Christian Discipleship: A Lifelong Process of Formation

By Bishop Paul S. Loverde
Bishop of Arlington
(From the issue of 9/25/03)

This Homily was given by Bishop Paul S. Loverde on the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time at St. Mark Church in Vienna on Sunday, Sept. 21, 2003, during the Mass preceding the Dedication of the Christian Formation Center.

Who are we? Oh, yes, we immediately reply, we are members of this family or that family; we are members of this parish or, if visitors, of other parishes; we are citizens of Virginia and of the United States. All these replies are true. But, the question I pose probes more deeply: Who are we? Are we not the disciples of Jesus, the followers of Christ?

Certainly, we do belong to Christ. From Baptism onwards, we are intimately united with Him and have, indeed, become His disciples, His followers. We are also members of His Body the Church, made so, once again, at our baptism.

What does it mean, then, to be a disciple of Christ, His follower, to be a member of His Church? It means making Christ Jesus and His way of life the model and pattern of our own lives. In a word, we are called to discipleship, to trace in our lives the life of Jesus: to make His attitude ours, to walk in His footsteps and to share deeply His very life.

But, we often miss this essential point — our vocation to Christian discipleship. We are often like the disciples described in today’s gospel account: missing the point of Jesus’ teaching. While Jesus was telling them about His mission — "the Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him, and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise." They instead were arguing among themselves about who was the greatest. Yes, they missed the point, but we must not be too hard in our judgment of them. We often — too often — do the same; we miss the point of what Jesus is teaching us.

It is not easy to follow Christ, to be His disciples. If He had to endure suffering and death, so must we. If He had to be the servant of all, so must we. Indeed, He tells this quite clearly today: "If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all." Like the disciples, we find these "hard sayings." Like them, we do not understand and are afraid to question Him (cf. today’s gospel).

Nonetheless, imitating Christ is our primary vocation. Imitating Christ, being His disciple, is a life-long process. Yes, it begins with baptism and then continues on from childhood through adolescence to young adulthood, middle-age and old-age. The process of imitating Christ, following in His footsteps, ends only with human death when we pass over to share Christ’s life fully and forever, provided we have remained united to Him in the obedience of faith.

Imitating Christ, being His disciple, following His footsteps, sharing His life: this is the purpose of continuing Christian development — continuing formation. This ongoing formation is concretely facilitated by our Catholic schools and by our programs of catechetical formation.

As we are continuously formed in those concrete ways from childhood into adulthood, we persevere in our imitation of Christ, loving God, through worship and prayer, loving others through humble service and forgetfulness of self. Is this not how Jesus lived His life among us: loving God, His Father, intimately and deeply and loving others compassionately and generously? Indeed, in today’s gospel, Jesus does remind us that true humility involves serving others, becoming the last of all and the servant of all.

Yes, formation for imitating Christ and becoming His disciple, His follower, lasts a lifetime. This formation takes place most immediately within our parishes. How proud and happy you must be this day, you who form this parish community of Saint Mark in Vienna! On this day, you are witnessing the dedication of your new Christian Formation Center.

Your former pastor, now deceased Father Stewart J. Culkin, envisioned this new center for Catholic education and formation and labored with such dedication to bring it forth. How fitting that his chalice is being used during this Mass! Upon his death nearly two years ago (October 27, 2001), Father Patrick Holroyd took up the challenging demands of making this vision become a reality. Both these pastors, the parochial vicars, past and present, and all those who form this parish community: all of you, together, in many ways and on many levels, have sacrificed much and worked diligently to bring about the beginning of this new facility, which will function both as a Catholic school and a center for catechetical formation.

This new parish structure is much more than a building. It is the place where countless people — you now and those who come after you — will be formed to imitate Christ, to become His disciples and members of His body, the Church. Here countless people will come to understand our Catholic Faith in its fullness and integrity, rooted as it is in Scripture and tradition and guided by the living teaching office of the Church (the Magisterium). Here countless people will be formed into living heralds of the Gospel of life, of truth and of love. Here countless people will be formed into tangible instruments of Christ’s selfless and humble service to others, especially to the poor and the needy.

How appropriate it is to dedicate this new Christian Formation Center on Catechetical Sunday when we express our gratitude to and support of all those who catechize our sisters and brothers, from childhood through adulthood, enabling them, with us, to imitate Christ by becoming His disciples, walking in His footsteps and sharing His life all life long!

As I renew my congratulations to you, the priests and parishioners of this Church of Saint Mark, I add my prayer-filled support that what is being dedicated to God today will truly serve the fundamental goal of catechesis, which is so beautifully summarized in the words of our Holy Father. "At heart of catechesis we find, in essence, a person, the Person of Jesus of Nazareth, the only Son from the Father … who suffered and died for us and who now, after rising, is living with us forever" (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 426). To Him and to the Father and to the Holy Spirit be glory and praise, now and forever. Amen! Alleluia!

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