Any Updates from those in RCIA?

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I always remind our catechumens and candidates that Easter Vigil is NOT to be considered a graduation ceremony, in the sense that we are called to a lifetime of formation. It has elements of a graduation ceremony, and feels like a graduation ceremony, but please don’t view it as the end of our formation.
 
I agree it’s not a Graduation ceremony but the binging of life long catholic learning on the the teachings of Mother Church . coming from a catholic Convert to the church Easter of 18’
 
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Christ told us the journey would not be easy. The disciples spent three years with Him, day in and day out, yet they did not truly understand until they saw Him after the resurrection and witnessed His ascension. I think it will be like that for us, only after the final judgment, when we are invited to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, will all that He is be revealed to us.
 
The bishop asks your sponsor several questions during Admissio to which they answer “yes”. The sponsor represents the Catholic Church. It is never about “you and God” in the Catholic Church but “you, God and the whole Catholic Church”. The deacon in my parish asked me to be a sponsor for a lady and since I didn’t know her I said I wouldn’t. There was no time for me to get to know her as we were going to Admissio in a couple of days and besides, I had already said yes to another candidate.

Preparations in the early Church were three years before baptism. There are lots of reasons why the process is longer in the Catholic Church. Children receive 2 years of teaching before receiving each of the Sacraments of Holy Communion and Confirmation.

I would advise you to speak with a Catholic priest about your issues and listen to his replies.
 
Depending on the quality of the program, I agree that RCIA could be inconvenient, and if you already know a lot about church teachings, you may not even learn as much as you would expect in 8 months. Totally possible.

However, it’s really important to understand how the Catholic Church is different from other churches. The Catholic Church is God’s path that he himself created to bring men to himself now and to heaven later. This is the ordinary means by which He wills to save men, provided of course their cooperation. Through the Church He gives, most importantly, Himself in the Eucharist, which helps the soul to live a holy life.

The Catholic Church is not just another option among other Christian denominations, that you would pick based on the best music, or community, or convenient Mass times, or better preaching, etc. All these things are nice but the real reason to be Catholic is that in the Church you encounter God. Christ can’t be separated from His Church, it’s his bride.

I read somewhere the following analogy:
Imagine a frozen lake with a bridge over it. If you use the bridge to get to the other side, your chances of making it safely are very good. If you walk on ice, you might still make it - you hope the ice is thick enough- but it’s much more risky. The ordinary intended way to cross the lake is over the bridge.

The Catholic Church is the bridge to Heaven. Some people might still fall off, but the bridge is God’s intended way to get there. All other churches are like walking on ice. You may still make it, but it’s riskier and not how God intends it.

Maybe walking over the ice is quicker than walking a mile or more just to get to the bridge. Maybe it’s more fun, and you could even ice skate over it. But most people concerned with their safety would take the time to get to the bridge, even if it’s inconvenient. What you get on the other side is worth it.
 
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We met for the first time last night. I’ve been on the RCIA team here since 1995, and this is the first time we’ve had no catechumens or candidates. A couple who have been parishioners for about five years was invited as potential new team members, and we’ll meet for the next few weeks at least, to get them started, and just in case someone comes to inquire.
 
Started a few weeks ago. There’s four of us. Three of us are in our 20s and 30s, which actually surprised me a bit. They’re all coming from recognized Christian traditions. I was baptized as a Jehovah’s Witness as a teenager, so my journey is a little different that the others.

The discussions are quite lacking. Not many questions being asked. We used the Formed Symbolon video series from the Augustine Institute. It’s quite informative, but both our priests are quite socially awkward. It’s been something, for sure.
 
I have been in a RCIA class since early September. I come from the Episcopal Church. There are about 8 of us and sometimes the sponsors attend. While I don’t agree with everything, I do love my classes, and as long as their focus is Jesus, I’m fine with not agreeing with everything. But I can honestly say, our group does not discuss much. We mostly just listen to the person giving the lecture for the night. I don’t even know anyone else’s name! By the time the class ends, it’s around 8 pm and everyone is eager to get home.
 
Maybe to make sure you really want to be there. It’s sort of like a hazing in college, except they don’t make you belt down a pint of liquor.
 
I’m so happy to see so many adults joining, as I did.

One thing I would have liked more of is the “nuts & bolts” of the Mass. When you go in, what do you do first? Holy water? Why do we do that? Then what do we do? Genuflect? Where? Why? Anyway, why we do what we do, how we do it, and things like that.

I was not aware at first that, when first going into the pew for Mass, we are expected to get down on our knees immediately. I was flipping through the missal and stuff. Then I learned I was supposed to be kneeling right off. Well, ok. But, as a newbie, how would I know that? Shouldn’t things like that be covered in RCIA?
 
LisaB said:
I read somewhere the following analogy:
Imagine a frozen lake with a bridge over it. If you use the bridge to get to the other side, your chances of making it safely are very good. If you walk on ice, you might still make it - you hope the ice is thick enough- but it’s much more risky. The ordinary intended way to cross the lake is over the bridge.
Click to expand...
I get what you’re trying to get at, but the analogy as a whole gets a bit lost on me…I come from a part of the world where 25-30% of the year we’re plowing roads on lakes so we can drive out and fish on them, put campers out there and honestly drive across them so we don’t need to go over/around 😉 😁
Shasta-Rose said:
except they don’t make you belt down a pint of liquor.
Click to expand...
I’m not sure if that’s a positive or a negative…🤔
 
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When I was going through RCIA two years ago, I remember we had an entire class dedicated to the Order of Mass. We went into the church and our deacon taught us everything we needed to know and some good to know. The kneeling after entering your pew is for a few minutes of silent prayer. It’s good to prepare yourself spiritually for the Mass.
There are some YouTube videos that might help you. Search for RCIA and you’ll find many topics covered.
 
There’s around 10 of us in our RCIA class this year, a real mix of people and we are around 6 weeks in. Enjoying it so far - wouldn’t say I’m learning loads as I have done lots of reading in the run up to the classes but don’t feel that’s the main point. Looking forward to more discussions and getting into things in a bit more depth. Can’t wait to be received at Easter - although feeling nervous about it already!

Hope everyone else is enjoying the process x
 
There are 3 of us that are non-Catholic. There are also some Catholics attending. I have enjoyed RCIA. The materials and the videos are cool, but my favorite part is the discussions we have. I could have theological and religious discussions for hours. We have been going for about 5 or 6 weeks now. I attended my first Holy day of obligation on All Saint’s Day. I really enjoyed it!
 
Those of us in our RCIA class that are intending to join the Church will be participating in the Rite of Welcome on November 18th. My husband, myself and our twins are looking forward to this!

As long as it took me to reach this step in my spiritual life, I have no regrets or misgivings now. I hope everyone else on this journey is feeling equally blessed.
 
We will be doing ours on the Solemnity of Christ the King. Looking forward to it.
 
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