Bishop Solis at RCIA retreat: 'Do not be embarrassed to have Christ in your heart'

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All Catholics are called to witness to their faith and to Christ, Bishop Oscar A. Solis said at the March 24 Lenten retreat for participants in the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults.

DRAPER — In the scriptures, which are filled with many important messages for the faithful, Christians learn the true nature of God, Bishop Oscar A. Solis told  the elect and their supporters during the March 24 Lenten retreat for those in the diocesan Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults program.

The scriptures show that God remained faithful to his people despite all their wrongdoing and disobedience, Bishop Solis said at the retreat, which was held at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church.

“In spite of what we do wrong or the sins we commit, God never abandons us and still considers us his own,” he said.

Nevertheless, sin isolates his children from God, he said.

Bishop Solis shared the story of Lazarus, whom Jesus brought back from the dead, which, he said, shows that while he was God, Jesus felt human emotion.

“Jesus, who is God, is also human like us,” the bishop said. “He can feel the sadness of death. … He understands our feelings, our human emotions and reactions.”

The bishop said through the scriptural stories about  Jesus, the faithful can learn some “very, very interesting and surprising facts about the nature of God.”

Reading the Bible can help Catholics get to know the Savior and develop or deepen their faith in him, he said.

The bishop also spoke of the Catholic perspective on suffering. Modern culture teaches people to shun pain and suffering, or to turn to quick fixes like pills to eliminate discomfort, he said.

“We have lost the sensitivity to feel the pain of others, to understand the virtue of suffering,” he said. “We have to restore the capacity to feel that to strengthen ourselves and others.”

Despite the challenges people face, Catholics should be able to find joy even in suffering, Bishop Solis said.

“Those moments are occasions to see the glory of God, to see how God takes care of us, how God loves us,” he said. “In the darkest moments of life, we can see God’s love for us.”

He encouraged the faithful not to fear the difficulties of life but rather to move through them, understanding that with God in their hearts they can be filled with joy and peace.

“We need to see those things with the eyes of faith,” he said. “God works differently, God thinks differently, God acts differently than us.”

The Bible stories show Christians that Jesus defied the cultural boundaries of his day, associating with those considered sinners or unworthy, like the woman of Samaria at the well, to open people’s minds to his divinity and to bring them the truths of his Gospel, Bishop Solis said.

Bishop Solis encouraged those in attendance to be what he called “proclaimers of the Gospel,” partnering with God in the missionary effort.

In a second, more casual talk later in the retreat, Bishop Solis, who used humor, self-depreciation and anecdotes to illustrate his message, issued three challenges to the initiates and those in attendance.

The first challenge was to know their faith. All Catholics should have a Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church in their home and should read them often and become familiar with the teachings they contain, he said.

“Knowledge of Scripture means a knowledge of Christ. Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of God,” he said, paraphrasing St. Jerome.

He quizzed his audience on basic Gospel truths, and at one point bemoaned the fact that “many people think there’s an 11th commandment: ‘Thou shalt not get caught.’”

“The commandments are not only suggestions, they are a call to commit to our loving God,” he said. “They establish guidelines on how we relate with God and with each other.”

Bishop Solis then challenged his audience to live their faith so that others might see their light and be drawn to it.

“A genuine believer in Jesus is a person of integrity,” he said. “If you’re not, you’re a fake, plastic. In this world of virtual reality, it can be hard to distinguish what is real.”

“It is very important that our actions, our behavior, reflect our faith,” he added. “We are the reflection and manifestation of Christ in our world.”

Finally, Bishop Solis challenged the elect to be engaged in the ministry of sharing the Gospel with others.

“God created our hearts not as storage bins of his grace and his blessings, but as distribution centers,” he said.

All Catholics are called to become agents of evangelization, he said.

Sadly, he said, more than half the Church are “secret agents,” embarrassed to make the sign of the cross, to pray with their children, to go to church or for people to know they are Catholic.

“We have to be true witnesses of Christ in our world today,” Bishop Solis said. “Do not be embarrassed to have Christ in your heart. Do not be embarrassed to share it."