“Let the children come to me” (Mk 10:14), so Jesus told the Apostles, and we, the parish community, accepted this invitation from Jesus and on April 28 and May 5, 2019, we “left” , or led to Jesus 58 boys of our community.58 boys, between Acierrini and Scout, welcomed this wonderful invitation, and received for the first time the sacrament of the Eucharist. We have called them by name, because the Lord has always known them and loves them, and they with their “here I am” declared that they were ready, in front of the parish community, to receive Jesus the Eucharist.

The Church adorned with splendid white flowers was packed with relatives and friends who crowned the excited children who wore their white habits, and approached the altar with a white lily, a symbol of the purity that distinguishes them. The first communion represents a a fundamental moment in the life of a believer because, taking up the words of Pope Francis, “from this sacrament of love, springs every authentic journey of faith, communion and witness”. The celebration was presided over by our parish priest, Don Rosario Sultana and concelebrated by the vice parish priest, Don Giovanni Vizzini.

Don Rosario during the homily, addressed to children, stressed the importance of “maintaining the bond of communion with Jesus” and recommended that they always participate in Sunday Mass and continue the journey of human and spiritual growth carried out up to that time Exciting the moment when the children approached Holy Communion: composed and happy for having received the Body and Blood of Jesus. They prepared for this day through a journey of faith, during which they lived moments of joy, sharing, effort, vivacity and reflection. Leading you by the hand – the catechists said – at this special meeting was a great gift. St. Francis said “it is giving that we receive”, and you have given us so much – the catechists said to the boys – and you have been a great gift of God in our lives. We have sought the help of catechists, in our own small way, to make you understand the difference between good and evil; we tried to make you understand the fundamental principles of Christian communion, love, charity, brotherhood, forgiveness, because for us to make you know Jesus means to help you live more serenely. Many were the thanks in this wonderful day.

We thanked Don Rosario and Don Giovanni, we thanked the ACR group and the catechists, we thanked the scouts and the scout leaders, we thanked all the parents and the boys present, the community, we thanked Concetta and Franco who have gladdened our celebration with beautiful songs and so on this welter of thanks we risked forgetting the One Author of all this, the only one who builds and bears fruit, Jesus. Thank you Jesus for the gift of these children that you wanted unworthily to entrust us to prepare them for the meeting with You. Thank you for having trusted us, so that we could talk to you about you and your love. We thank you for your help that so often has filled our incapacities, because you do not choose who is worthy, but make worthy who you choose. At the end of the celebration, the church was full of joy, emotions, happiness and it is in that moment that we addressed a special invitation to parents. That joy in the heart, that emotion is the Love of Jesus who calls you, we don’t let it be the joy of a day.

The delivery we feel we can make to you today is to preserve the joy that your heart is filled with right now and make it bear fruit, not let it fade, vanish, disappear. Continue to feed your joy, dear parents, accompany your children to church and stay with them, celebrate with them every Sunday. Jesus awaits us! Our children love them every day, teaching them to love, showing them the path of faith. It is every day that we make them advance towards Jesus “, and how can it be done? With the example! Parents give your children the greatest gift, give Jesus to them, make them grow with the constant presence of Jesus in their lives, teach them to turn to Jesus as a friend, your children are not yours, we have been entrusted to them so that we might grow them for He and in Him. At the end of the celebration, we expressed our joy with the song of thanks, “infinitely thank you”.

The boys received a parchment that reminds this important moment of their life by the catechists. It was truly a joyful moment that is and will always be an important, indelible memory that will accompany each of them throughout life. The hope that we catechists address to these children is to always keep in your heart the purity and candor of this day because the purer your soul is, the brighter it will be

Rita Magro