This evening, during the Solemn Vigil of the Resurrection of our Lord at St John’s Co‑Cathedral, Archbishop Charles Scicluna will administer the Sacraments of Christian Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Communion) to 19 catechumens, who, as adults, have chosen the Christian path. These 19 adults, who will tonight become new members of the Catholic Church through these sacraments, hail from Albania, the United Kingdom, India, China, France, Malta, Turkey and the Philippines. These individuals have completed the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) programme.

Throughout Lent, the catechumens met with Archbishop Scicluna in preparation for this significant moment in their lives. Among them is Eridion Marku from Albania, who was raised as a Roman Catholic but never had the chance to get baptised because Communism had banned all religious practices in his country. He is looking forward to getting baptised tonight and shares, “Even though my Catholic beliefs have always been strong and I always felt God close to me, I feel something is missing in my life. Baptism and all the sacraments are very important to me”. For this reason, he searched for a church in Malta that could help him prepare for baptism. He found all the guidance he needed through the Mosta parish, which celebrates Mass with the Albanian community every Sunday, and, last year, he started the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.

The Easter Vigil celebration led by Archbishop Scicluna starts at 8pm and includes: the blessing of the fire, which will take place on the parvis of St John’s Co‑Cathedral, followed by the proclamation of Easter; the reading of passages from the Holy Scriptures and the singing of the Gloria and Alleluia, leading to the proclamation of the Gospel; the blessing of water, where the paschal candle lit from the blessed fire on the parvis is dipped into the water; and the Eucharistic liturgy.

The catechumens will be baptised with blessed water and confirmed using chrism oil consecrated on Maundy Thursday morning. During the same Vigil, they will also receive Holy Communion. These sacraments are the cornerstone of the Catholic faith, laying the foundation for the spiritual journey of its members and preparing them for the reception of other sacraments.

This solemn celebration will be broadcast on TVM+, Radio RTK 103, Church.mt and Newsbook Malta.