"Seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you."     Matthew 7:7

RITE OF CHRISTIAN INITIATION OF ADULTS (RCIA)

Inquiry sessions meet on Sunday mornings at 9:40 in Room E in the lower level. For questions or for more information contact Midge Pry at 614-833-1817 or Deacon Pry at 614-920-1563.

RCIA

By:  Midge Pry

If you have attended the 8:30 Mass this past year, you have probably noticed a group of people being called forward after the homily. Prayers are said over them and then they are sent out. Who are they, where do they go, what do they do and why? And what does all this have to do with 8:30 Mass and you?

             What was just described is called the Dismissal. The people are preparing to be baptized or received into the Catholic Church. They are in the RC IA—The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. Last fall, these people began inquiring or asking questions about the Catholic faith, God, salvation and life in general in order to discern where God was leading them in their faith life. Some of them have never been baptized, some are of other religious denominations and some may have been baptized Catholic but received no training.  Satisfied that God is calling them to the Catholic faith, they ask to start formation in the Rite of Becoming a Catechumen, if they are unbaptized or the Rite of Welcoming if they have been baptized. You may have seen this last December when they were greeted at the door of the Church and asked what they were hoping for. Their answer was faith and baptism and the support of the community—You. At this point they became Catechumens and Candidates. Catechumen is an ancient term for those learning about the faith. Look in an old missal and you will find the Mass was divided into two parts—the Mass of the Catechumens and the Mass of the Faithful—the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist as it is known today. Because the Catechumens could not yet partake of the Eucharist, they were dismissed or sent forth after the Mass of the Catechumens. Today we do the same except they are sent with a member of the church to study the scriptures of the day in order to grow in their knowledge of God, Christ and his church and plan of salvation. They continue to meet after Mass for another hour and a half to study scripture, the teachings of the Church and to pray and share their faith. Each one has a parishioner as a sponsor, a mentor and companion who is part of the catechetical sessions and stands with them at each ritual. Each week, when they are dismissed, you pray for them. They are very aware of your prayers and count on them.

            On the First Sunday of Lent, you saw them called forward and heard their sponsors testify that they have seen their faith and commitment grow. Monsignor proclaimed they be sent to the bishop and you approved with your applause. At the Rite of Election, the bishop also hears testimony and calls them to be enrolled, to sign their names in the book of the Elect or to bring forward a copy of their baptismal record as a sign of their commitment. Then the bishop instructs them to spend Lent preparing for the Sacraments at Easter through prayer and examining their lives to grow even closer to Christ and living as he showed us. They are helped with this through the Scrutinies, special readings and prayers on the third, fourth and fifth Sundays of Lent, and a retreat before Holy Week. After the retreat, there are no more dismissals. During Holy Week, the Elect and Candidates are encouraged to attend all liturgies to prepare for the Easter Vigil. At the Easter Vigil, they will be baptized, or profess their faith, be confirmed and receive Eucharist for the first time. The community will welcome them afterward with a reception. Now they are Neophytes, new ones, full members of the Church and the community following Easter they enter the period of Mystagogia in which they continue to meet and reflect on their experience of the Sacraments, their faith life and their ministry in the community. The Bishop invites them to celebrate with him on Pentecost with a special Mass of the Neophytes and a reception.

            What has this to do with you? You are the community. Through the RCIA you are enriched with new members. You are called to welcome and support these new members as they come into the Church. At some point you may be asked to serve as a sponsor. It is a commitment. You would walk weekly with a Catechumen or Candidate for close to a year and hopefully continue to share a friendship for many years. We hope that you would prayerfully consider if God is calling you to do this.

A larger role you could be asked to serve in is on the team of members who act as catechists for the dismissals and sessions. They take a special responsibility for the formation of the new members. This year eight people worked together to plan and carry out the formation along with Monsignor and Deacon. They are already thinking in terms of next year. 

Lastly are two important roles that you are called to. First, pray for them and share your faith by the way you live. Second, be aware and outgoing to someone who might be interested in looking into the faith. The reason most people give for their coming into the Church is the outreach and example of a Catholic—that’s You.

What An Opportunity!!!  Volunteers are still needed to support and share their formation and preparation for Easter.  It is a very rewarding ministry that takes many forms such as being a sponsor, helping with instruction as a presenter, being a dismissal catechist, helping with child care or providing refreshments.  Anyone interested in becoming involved, please see Deacon or Mrs. Pry after Mass.

For more information about our RCIA program please complete and submit form at the bottom of this page.

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RCIA--DISMISSAL MEETINGS

The meetings begin immediately after the Homily during the 8:30 a.m. Sunday Mass.  At this time catechumens and candidates are called to the front of the congregation.  The dismissal catechist meets the candidates and catechumens in front of the congregation, after bowing then proceeding to the right of the altar to the ambo to retrieve the lectionary.  The dismissal catechist then waits for dismissal, and leads the group down the center aisle to the back of the church, through the doors and to the meeting room in an atmosphere of prayer. The dismissal meetings are a time for faith sharing based on the Scripture readings of the day and are opened and closed with prayer.  The meetings are concluded at the end of Mass at which time the catechumens and candidates meet with their sponsors before the catechetical session begins. 

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Last modified: 09/26/08