Diocese of Broken Bay
18 April 2026
Homily given by Archbishop Anthony Randazzo
Prefect of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts & Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Broken Bay
On this Vigil of the Third Sunday of Easter, we stand together in the radiant light of the Resurrection. The darkness of Good Friday has been overcome. The silence of the tomb has been shattered. Christ is risen, and in him, all things are made new. This is not a distant memory, nor a poetic symbol. It is the living truth that shapes our lives, our hopes, and our mission.
Tonight, that truth is made visible in a particular and powerful way, as Deacons Huy, Tân, Shayne, and Brian stand before this community to make their public Profession of Faith and Oath of Fidelity. This is not merely a formal step on the path to priesthood. It is an ecclesial act, a moment of grace, a living proclamation that Christ is alive and continues to call, to send, and to sustain his Church.
“on the day of Pentecost Peter stood up with the Eleven and addressed the crowd in a loud voice.”
Acts 2:14
This is the Church awakened by the Holy Spirit, no longer fearful, no longer hidden, but bold and clear in proclaiming Jesus Christ crucified and risen. Saint Peter does not speak in abstraction. He gives voice to what he has seen, what he has touched, what has transformed him. His profession of faith is not theatre. It is testimony. That same Spirit, poured out at Pentecost, is the Holy Spirit in whom we now journey. Even in this Easter season, our gaze is already turned to that promised gift.
The Profession of Faith and the Oath of Fidelity that these four deacons will make tonight are not sustained by human resolve alone. They are acts of trust in the God who is faithful, in the Spirit who strengthens, guides, and consoles. Without the Holy Spirit, such words would indeed risk becoming formulaic. But with God’s Holy Spirit, they become living fire.
“Through him you now have faith in God.”
1 Pet 1:21
These words are addressed not only to those preparing for ordination, but to every one of us. Each baptised person shares in this calling: to live a life grounded in faith, animated by hope, and expressed in love. This is why this moment belongs to the whole Church. The bishop, the priests, the deacons, and all Christ’s lay faithful are not spectators. We are witnesses. We are participants. We are the Body of Christ in whom and through whom this profession is made.
What these four men do publicly tonight, each of us is called to do daily: to profess the faith not only with our lips, but with our lives; to remain faithful not only in moments of clarity, but in times of uncertainty and trial.
“Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?”
Luke 24:32
This burning of the heart is the mark of Easter faith. It is both deeply spiritual and unmistakably real. It is the quiet but persistent assurance that Christ is with us, even when we do not immediately recognise him. It is the strength that enables us to stand, like Peter, and speak. It is the grace that enables you, Huy, Tân, Shayne, and Brian, to make your promises tonight with sincerity and courage. And it is the same grace given to each of us.
My dear people, tonight we witness more than a rite. We witness the life of the Church.
We see, in these four deacons, a sign of God’s reign already at work among us, a foretaste of the Kingdom towards which we journey. Their “yes” echoes the “yes” that each of us is called to renew.
May this celebration deepen our own profession of faith. May it strengthen our hope as we await the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. And may it enkindle in all our hearts that same burning love, so that, in every time and place, we may proclaim with our lives that Jesus Christ is risen, and that he is Lord, now and forever. Amen.