Dear Friends:

This last Sunday in July tells us that the summer is passing quickly and that the fall season will soon be upon us. In a little over a month, schools will be back in session and shortly after that, with the Labor Day holiday observance, summer will come to an end.

With this in mind, I have begun to think about the fall with respect to two “programs” (or “processes”) as it were, one for those who would like to become Catholics and join us in the fullness of the faith that Jesus intended, and the other for those who, for whatever reason, never completed their initiation as Catholics by celebrating their Confirmation.

I extend in this column personally an invitation to anyone who is not a Catholic and who has ever considered becoming a Catholic. My invitation is one form of it, but all of you who know someone, be it a family member, friend, or acquaintance, who has ever expressed even a slight interest in joining our community of faith, can also invite that person or those persons to consider joining us as Catholics. Anyone who is interested in becoming a Catholic is invited to contact the rectory at (203) 878-3571 in order to give us some information. We will be contacting those interested to come to a meeting so that any and all questions or concerns may be addressed. Following upon that, we will invite those interested to join us in the process of becoming one with us in our ancient, rich, and apostolic Faith, culminating, we hope, with the celebration of Baptism, Confirmation, and reception of the Eucharist at the Vigil of Easter on Saturday, April 4, 2026.

Secondly, I invite any adult, eighteen years of age or older, who has not yet been confirmed to consider celebrating that sacrament this fall. One should be confirmed in that it completes one’s initiation into the Church, binds one more closely to Christ in faith, opens one to receiving the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and, on a more mundane level, makes them eligible to serve as a godparent for the Sacrament of Baptism or a sponsor for the Sacrament of Confirmation. We will be having classes for adults who would like to be confirmed on the five Wednesdays of October (October 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29) in the evening at St. Agnes. Those who complete these sessions will be eligible to be confirmed at the adult Confirmation ceremony which takes place in November at the cathedral in Hartford. Anyone who is interested should contact the rectory as soon as possible.

Have a good week!

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