A new believer who found faith in the midst of profound grief, and a parishioner of more than four decades whose son will be ordained a priest this year, were among those welcomed into the Church at a deeply moving Easter Vigil Mass at St Nicholas of Myra Penrith.
Their stories formed part of a powerful celebration that saw 10 adults baptised and four others received into full communion on one of the Church’s most sacred nights.
Across NSW, more than 1500 people were expected to become Catholics at Easter Vigil Masses this year, each with their own story of faith, searching and renewal.
Among those baptised were, from left, Scott Ryan, Heidi Marheine and Gabriel Karehana. Image: Alphonsus Fok/ Diocese of Parramatta
For Gabriel Karehana, 48, of Cambridge Gardens, the vigil marked the culmination of a deeply personal journey. After losing his mother, sister and brother within 24 months, Gabriel described carrying an “unbearable” grief before a cousin invited him to St Nicholas of Myra – the very place where, two years on, he would be baptised.
“He told me it would help with a lot of hardship, and it did,” Gabriel said. Though his cousin lives in Melbourne and was there only “in spirit”, Gabriel said the journey had “increased my hope and faith that my family is on the right path”.
From darkness into light
The Vigil Mass in Penrith began in darkness outside the church before the Paschal candle was lit from a blessed fire and carried in procession, symbolising the light that had drawn each of them home.
The congregation was led inside behind the Paschal candle. Image: Alphonsus Fok/ Diocese of Parramatta
Presiding over the Mass, Father Jose Manjaly MS reminded parishioners of St Francis de Sales’ call “to begin again each day” and “to think, to speak, to act as Jesus did”. He then led the congregation in renewing their baptismal promises, renouncing sin and recommitting themselves to God. He said he hoped these words would be lived out daily, “in our care [and] how we lead tomorrow,” because “He is alive and lives in us”.
Other candidates for the sacraments of initiation included Penrith locals Scott Ryan, 54, and Heidi Marheine, 31, who stepped into the water dressed in black as holy water – drawn from the Jordan River, where the Bible records Jesus’ baptism – was poured over their foreheads.
With Catholic roots on his father’s side, Scott had attended Protestant churches over the years but said “it didn’t feel right.” It was only after experiencing “some difficulties” around the age of 50 that he felt a renewed pull towards the Church.
His sponsor, Olga Kiss, described the ceremony as “magnificent”.
“It’s a foretaste of Heaven.”
For Heidi, the path to that moment had been years in the making. Heidi grew up in a non-religious household but traces her fascination with the Catholic faith back to childhood, when she noticed classmates marked with ash crosses on their foreheads.
Catechumen, Heidi Marheine, baptised and ready to be Confirmed. Image: Alphonsus Fok/ Diocese of Parramatta
It was not until 2013, however, while attending Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Warragamba with a cousin, that something “sparked”, awakening a deep desire to belong to the faith community.
Choosing St Brigid of Kildare as her saint’s name, one of Ireland’s three patron saints alongside St Patrick and St Columba, Heidi said the decision felt deeply personal. Coming from a long line of Brigids, including “convicts, daughters of convicts”, she planned to honour them by visiting their graves at Rookwood Cemetery on Easter Sunday.
Grace and overwhelming joy
Grant Streher, 63, of Jamisontown, was among those welcomed into full communion with the Church, his emotion unmistakable, a huge smile emblazoned across his face as he spoke of feeling “ecstatic”.
“The joy I feel is unbelievable.”
“I received a grace on the morning of Good Friday which was life-changing,” Grant said.
After 40 years of attending church with his family, Grant said the moment came down to something beyond timing or circumstance. “It was God’s choice,” he said.
His reception into the Church also coincides with a profound moment in his family’s life. His son, Maximilion Streher, currently a deacon with the Immaculata Community in Armidale, is set to be ordained a priest later this year.
Called and transformed
As the formal liturgy ended and parishioners gathered for a light supper, the joy lingered. What had begun in darkness had unfolded into something lasting. Scott’s sponsor, Olga, perhaps best captured the feeling in the room, reflecting: “They are all chosen.”
For the newly baptised and those received into the Church, this was not just a ceremony, but a turning point, where grief found meaning, questions found direction, and lives, in ways both quiet and profound, were forever changed.
The Easter Vigil Mass aligns with the Diocesan Pastoral Plan priorities of Prayer, Mission, and Community. Visit Synodality to learn more.
To see more photos from the Mass at St Nicholas of Myra, click here.
