Are baptized Christians in RCIA programs Catholics?

[glorybe]

Catechumen are the unbaptized adults preparing to be baptized at Easter Vigil. Candidates are Baptized adult Catholics who are preparing for Confirmation

 

[thistle]

Candidates are Baptized adult Catholics who are preparing for Confirmation

Candidates are adult baptised Christians preparing to become Catholics. They are not Catholic until formally accepted into the Church at Easter.

 

[glorybe]

And adults who were baptized in the Catholic Church but were never confirmed

 

[Dovekin]

And adults who were baptized in the Catholic Church but were never confirmed

They are technically in another category, and need specific permission from the bishop to be confirmed by the pastor since they are not being received into full communion.

But that is a technicality that is easily addressed. As I said earlier, candidates become Catholic at the rite of Acceptance, inquirers when they become catechumens at the rite of Welcome. They are received into full communion when they receive the Eucharist.

 

[felsguy]

Respectfully and admittedly being very technical, the language of the Rites itself does not seem to me to support your conclusions. The Rite of Acceptance speaks of "accepting them (catechumens) as persons who intend to become its members." and the Rite of Reception reads "the Lord receives you (candidates) into the Catholic Church." This suggests to me that, again technically, it is not until this moment that catechumens and/or candidates “become Catholic.”

_

 

[njlisa]

I was referred to as a candidate when I was in RCIA because I was already baptized. People who were not baptized were referred to as catechumens. (Catechumens and candidates learned together in the same class.) We attended Mass, but we left after the liturgy of the Word. Then we went back to our lessons. At the Easter Vigil, the candidates are confirmed. The Catechumens are baptized and confirmed.

The USCCB has a great page explaining the process of RCIA.

 

[Dovekin]

Well, I did confuse the rite of acceptance with the rite of welcome. Sorry about that.

Paragraph 47 of the RCIA, intoducing the rite of Acceptance, says:

From this time on the Church embraces the catechumens as its own with a mother’s love and concern. Joined to the Church, the catechumens are now part of the household of Christ, since the Church nourishes them with the word of God and sustains them by means of liturgical celebrations.

In addition, the rite speaks of “ accepting them (inquirers) *as persons who intend to become its members (catechumens). my parentheticals differ from yours.

In the section on uncatechized but baptized persons, paragraph 381 says:

The period of preparation is made holy by means of liturgical celebrations.The first of these is a rite by which the adults are welcomed into the community and acknowledge themselves to be part of it because they have already been marked with the seal of baptism.

The rite of Reception into full communion is also used for well catechized baptized persons who may not have needed the rite of welcome, which probably explains its language.

 

[felsguy]

Aside from those of us with time on our hands and inclined to pedantry (PLEASE NOTE: first, this is a simply the personality trait of paying undue attention to detail and not to be confused with the very similar sounding sexual perversion ; and secondly, I do include myself in the former )

as suggested by several posters above, the simple answer to the OP’s question is probably “yes” or “no” or “not yet” depending or who’s asking and in what context. After all catechumens and candidates not only may attend Mass but are encouraged to do so and may be buried in the Church should they happen to die before completing the RCIA process.

And I can’t resist the temptation to add that answering “yes” or “no” would have tax consequences if you live in Germany!

 

[TC3033]

I said that because Catholics aren’t always that happy about non-Catholics going to their church (and vice versa)

Ya, I’ve had the same experience as well. I’ve only really experienced it from the side of a non-Catholic going to a Catholic church, can’t say I’ve observed the vice versa but defiantly won’t say it doesn’t happen…

 

[mrsdizzyd]

ShastaRose:

I said that because Catholics aren’t always that happy about non-Catholics going to their church (and vice versa)

Ya, I’ve had the same experience as well. I’ve only really experienced it from the side of a non-Catholic going to a Catholic church, can’t say I’ve observed the vice versa but defiantly won’t say it doesn’t happen…

That is really unfortunate! I’m a candidate, and I have attended mass every Sunday since April. Nothing but warm welcomes from those who know I am a candidate. I’m sure most people have no idea that I am not Catholic already.

 

[Augustinian]

I think you could call candidates and catechumens in formation “Catholic adherents”, as they are already involved. But they aren’t “members”

 

[felsguy]

from

I said that because Catholics aren’t always that happy about non-Catholics going to their church (and vice versa)

Ya, I’ve had the same experience as well. I’ve only really experienced it from the side of a non-Catholic going to a Catholic church, can’t say I’ve observed the vice versa but defiantly won’t say it doesn’t happen…

That truly is so unfortunate. Anecdotally, at my rather large parish, I see many parishioners make an effort to “meet and greet” the RCIA participants especially once Dismissal starts and they are easier to recognize. We also schedule the scrutinies at a different Mass each of the three weeks to give them even greater exposure.

And if I may, I would like encourage everyone who reads this to go out of your way to welcome and encourage the participants if your parish has RCIA. You might also consider being a “sponsor” or “companion” for one of them during their journey. You need only to be a caring person who practices their faith to the best of their ability and I can assure you from personal experience that it is definitely mutually beneficial.

 

[semper_catholicus]

As others have pointed out, apparently they’re called candidates.

 

[ShowersofRoses]

I agree. I’m so sorry for those who felt uncomfortable at Mass before their confirmation. That wasn’t my experience at all.

I attended Mass every Sunday and often daily as well as soon as I decided to convert. I experienced nothing but welcome from everyone, especially if they learned my background.

And after the Rite of Acceptance/Welcome, I was personally greeted and welcomed by over a dozen people after the Recessional. I felt so loved by all the parishioners that it made me teary.

I also would encourage people to reach out and greet the RCIA members…it can make such a difference.