CLIFTON — While they each have different stories to tell, four young adults from St. Philip Parish here all have one thing in common — the desire to follow Christ more deeply in his footsteps by committing themselves as members of the Catholic Church.

For these young adults, the Easter Vigil will mark an event in their lives they won’t ever forget. Three are catechumens — Megan Bozios, 34; Jason Mazza, 32; and Kim Puleo, 24 — and one is a candidate — Nicole Layng, 21. They have been preparing for months through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) process at St. Philip’s. They’ve learned much about their faith and themselves and more importantly, found a faith community that has welcomed them with open arms.

“It’s a step on a journey — part of developing a larger relationship with God and becoming part of a Church community,” Bozios said. “As someone with a lot of faith, it’s different being on a solo faith journey than it is to be part of a recognized religion, a parish community and to know that you’re somewhere where people believe the same things you do.”

Puleo said, “It’s always something I wanted to do. As I got older, I am now at a point in my life where I am ready for it.”

“It’s a fantastic feeling to do this,” Mazza said.

For Layng, the Easter Vigil celebration will complete her initiation into the Catholic faith, she was baptized into as an infant and received Communion as a child. While she is “delayed” in receiving confirmation, Layng believes waiting until she became an adult has made her understand the sacrament more greatly than receiving it as a young teen-ager. “I am glad to finally do it,” said Layng. “It feels good because I am finishing a step in my life.”

While Catholicism was always a presence in their lives it wasn’t necessarily something active. Layng and Mazza grew up Catholic while both Bozios and Puleo grew up with two different religions in their homes. Bozio’s mom was Catholic, her dad was Greek Orthodox. For Puleo, her mom was Jewish while dad was Catholic.

“We were raised as much as we could about both religions.” Puleo said. “My parents gave us the option when we were older to make our own decision.”

What inspired Puleo to make the decision to be Catholic was seeing her younger sister go through the RCIA process. “Just seeing her go through the process and making the decision, I knew it was something I wanted to do.”

For Bozios, who has always been around the Catholic faith through her nieces and nephews who are Catholic, her sister also inspired her decision. “It was actually when my sister became pregnant that I decided I wanted to be there to help him grow up Catholic also,” she said.

Becoming part of the St. Philip’s community was natural for the four because they already had different connections to the parish.

Mazza’s fiancé belongs to the community and the two hope to get married at the parish. “Everybody is very nice and the people preparing us for the sacraments are very dedicated to be here,” she said.

Buzios’ aunt who is acting as her godparent is a member of St. Philip’s. “When you come to church and you don’t really know much about it, you feel sort of like an outsider and through this process what I realized is that St. Philip’s is a very warm community,” she said. “The first time Father Paul Manning (pastor of the parish) met us, he knew our names.”

During the past three weekends of Lent, the three catechumens were brought up for the Scrutinies at Mass introducing them to the rest of the St. Philip’s community. As a result, they’ve been receiving congratulations from many members wishing them good luck in their process.

The catechumens also felt they were part of something bigger when they visited the Cathedral of St. John in Paterson for the Rite of Election.

“Being there you realize you’re part of a bigger picture and it’s a really comforting feeling,” Puleo said.

Mazza said, “Everyone was very friendly and you got to see many different races, cultures and ages. There was even an older man who would be receiving his sacraments.”

Eileen Russo, pastoral associate and coordinator of the RCIA program at St. Philip’s, said, ‘My wish for them is that they continue to grow in God’s love and to grow every day in their faith. They’ve really been a group of awe-inspiring people. I feel privileged to have been part of their journey.”

As Easter Vigil draws closer, the catechumens reflected at Palm Sunday Mass that in one week they’ll be the one going up to receive Holy Communion for the first time — a special feeling for all of them.

As for Layng, it will complete her journey. She said, “I have the two pieces and it’s like I will be finishing the final piece of the puzzle.”

Puleo said, “I’m just very excited. I think religion is a very important part of a person’s life. It was something that was kind of lacking in mine and it’s given me a new sense of spirituality.”