Just a spark

More than 500 people joined the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil at their local parishes in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, a culmination of months of preparation for the sacraments of initiation, confirmation and reception into full communion with the church.

Each person’s journey was unique, and for some, the process took years, but for all, there was a spark that first lit the flame of inquiry or interest in learning more about the Catholic faith.

Shuantae McCray was inspired by a boss and co-workers and felt particularly drawn to learning more after attending a Mass last December. It helped that her coworkers were a deacon, numerous priests and others on the staff of the archdiocese, where she works as a financial specialist in the Division of Clergy Personnel.

McCray came to work at the archdiocese about 14 years ago, first in the Department of Catholic Schools, then in the Missions Office, before landing in clergy personnel.

In the Missions Office, she worked alongside Deacon Rodrigue Mortel, a medical doctor and native of Haiti, whose dedication to the education of children in his homeland inspired McCray. “I just started thinking, do I want to become Catholic?” A Baptist all her life, she considered how that might go over with her family, and she didn’t want to convert to Catholicism just because she worked at the archdiocesan offices.

Each year, the Catholic Center staff enjoys a Christmas party, starting with Mass celebrated by Archbishop William E. Lori. Last December, before the Mass, she asked coworker Anne Eder if she was allowed to attend. “Am I allowed to go to Mass, because I know I’m not Catholic?” she asked, and the response was, “Of course.”

McCray recalled, “That morning when I woke up, I just knew that there was something pulling me there. And then when I went to Mass, that just sealed the deal for me, that this is something that I want to pursue.” At the Christmas party, she had a conversation with Father Jim Proffitt, the archdiocese’s vicar for clergy and her boss, “and the rest is history.”

The spark lit by Deacon Mortel, who died last April, came to fulfillment at Easter. “He’s Haitian himself, but just the way that he dedicated and put himself into the sacrifice to do all these things for the kids in Haiti, it has nothing but inspiration written all over it,” McCray said. “That’s when I really started to say, you know, maybe this Catholic thing is where I’m supposed to be. I never had the conversation with (Deacon Mortel) about it, but he was a staunch Catholic, so he just really would have been like, ‘yes, yes, yes!’ ”

She adds that working with priests every day also inspires her, as do her coworkers. Eder was her sponsor, “with me every step of the way.” As a candidate, one who was previously baptized, she received the sacrament of confirmation and first Communion at the Easter Vigil at Immaculate Heart of Mary, Baynesville.

“That confirmation was a very magical and beautiful night for me. Anne said I was glowing that night and I did, I felt God’s presence and he was all over that,” she said.

McCray need not have worried about her family’s support. They all came to Easter Vigil to witness her confirmation, and her mother is 100 percent supportive. McCray adds that her mom has been very happy telling people her daughter is now a Catholic.

All from that one little spark. Can you be the spark for someone else?

Email Christopher Gunty at editor@CatholicReview.org

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