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The Rite of Election and the Rite of Acceptance are key moments in the process of Christian Initiation.
The Rite of Election is the celebration in which the local bishop calls the catechumens to baptism at the upcoming Easter Vigil. These women and men, who have been preparing for initiation and those who have been working with them for months and years, believe that God has chosen them to become one of us, the baptized. In the Rite of Election, their godparents, sponsors, catechists, pastors and friends will testify before the bishop that God has chosen these people. They will offer the evidence of their lives among us, hearing and following God's word, praying with God's people and taking part in the work and the communal life of God's church. After listening to this testimony, the bishop will declare that they are elected for baptism, chosen to be God's own in Christ Jesus - not because they earned It, but because God wants it.
Since the bishop is the head of the local church, it is his responsibility to oversee the initiation of new members. Ideally, it would be the bishop who would initiate the catechumens through the Celebration of baptism, confirmation and eucharist. However, since it would be impossible for the bishop to be in every parish to celebrate the Easter Vigil, in the Rite of the Election the bishop, on behalf of the whole church, chooses those to be baptized and mandates the local pastors to initiate the catechumens of their parish.
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