The opportunity to see so many blessings

By Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi

Every year I visit each of the classrooms in our Catholic schools and often a student will ask me “What do you like most about being the archbishop?” My reply is always the same. In addition to preaching the word of God and celebrating the sacraments, which I do since I am a priest, the thing I like most about being the archbishop is that I am blessed with seeing so many good things that most people don’t get to see.
I had two such experiences in the past several days. 
Each year, at the beginning of Lent, I preside at the Rite of the Elect in various places in our archdiocese. This is the prayer service where I pray with those who are preparing to become Catholics at Easter and then greet each one individually. It is a moving experience for me and I can see that it means a great deal to many of those who will soon become Catholic. Many of the people at these prayer services have tears in their eyes.
This year, 355 people will become Catholic at the Easter Vigil Mass in parishes across the archdiocese. This is the highest number of new Catholics in years.
At these Rite of the Elect prayer services, I was struck by the presence of many young people. I was particularly impressed by the number of new Catholics from Auburn and Troy Universities and the University of South Alabama. It is obvious that the Holy Spirit is working powerfully amongst young people. There is a hunger among this group for the truth in a world which is filled with so many errors.
I praise God that His Spirit is working in our archdiocese. I am grateful to the pastors, deacons, and all those who serve in the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (the process for welcoming new members into the Church) and to Mr. Patrick Arensberg and all in the Archdiocesan Department for Catholic Education. It is through their efforts in providing instruction and formation for those interested in becoming Catholic that we in part, see these numbers.
The other good experience I recently had was the blessing of spending the weekend at the annual Archdiocesan Catholic Youth Conference (ACYC). A wonderful turnout of 280 teens from across our archdiocese gathered in Orange Beach for a weekend of talks, prayer, music and fun. The teens were amazing. They were attentive during the talks and they were impressive both at the Masses and during Adoration. The speakers, both local and nonlocal, presented the young people with much food for thought during the general sessions as well as the small group sessions.
It was far more than a weekend at the beach, although the 90-minute break for fun in the sand was welcomed by all. It was truly a time when our young people were offered the word of God and invited to draw closer to the Lord. Almost every teen went to confession and the responses which I have received since the weekend from teens and their adult leaders have been most positive. Thanks to the adult chaperones who gave up their weekend to make it possible for the teens from their parish to attend. Thanks also to the seminarians of our archdiocese who served during the weekend, the priests who gave of their time to be at the weekend and to Mr. Dillon Stein, Archdiocesan Director for Youth and Young Adult Ministry and all in the archdiocesan department for Catholic education. All these good people became instruments of the Holy Spirit— touching the hearts of our young people. The fact that 280 teenagers would give up their weekend to pray with other teens indicates that the love of God is touching the lives of many of our youth.
I wish more people could have witnessed both the Rites of the Elect and ACYC. I feel blessed to be able to see and to share some of the good things which are happening in our archdiocese.
One more note, happy 100th birthday to one of our great priests, Msgr. Theodore Hay. I look forward to this weekend and celebrating his birthday with his family and friends. May God bless you, Msgr. Hay. Ad Multos Anos!