Can I teach RCIA classes with a bachelors in religious studies at a Jesuit/Catholic school? What about w/ a masters in theology?

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I am going to go to college for a bachelor in religious studies at a Jesuit/Catholic college and am planning to get a masters in probably theology and PhD to teach the catholic faith in college. Would I need to go through the whole certification to teach RCIA or could I just do it with a bachelor in religious studies? Would/could I teach it with just a masters or/and a PhD? I’m in the archdiocese of New York [but not NY city]

I just want to know if with just this degree it would be possible for me to ever do RCIA classes maybe on the side in the future. And I might start teaching religious ed at my parish [just need VIRTUS training to do it] and if I do that would they probably just say I have enough experience from doing that to teach RCIA?

Would it be best/required for me to also get a certification in catechetical ministry or/and parish initiation ministry (RCIA)? Would this open up any doors for me that would otherwise be closed? Thanks.
 
The RCIA team in my parish is simply a small group of volunteers with a nun as the facilitator. I’m sure that they must receive some sort of instruction, but most do not have any formal religious or theological education. Some team members are older, cradle Catholics. Some converted only a few years ago. They take turns presenting topics.
 
Most RCIA catechists are volunteers without degrees in theology. Some have had some courses or are certified as catechists or have taken an RCIA certification course. Are you thinking of getting an actual paid job teaching RCIA? That not how it works. While RCIA is usually under the Faith Formation office headed by the DRE, in some parishes it is run by the deacon or pastoral associate or one of the priests, but the catechists are usually all volunteers.

In my last parish, a good number of the RCIA team were people who themselves went through the process and just stayed on as part of the team.
 
Yeah, when I was in RCIA we had several different teachers, including the priests, the deacons, and several laypeople, including one of the deacon’s wife, the children’s Bible study teacher, a friend of mine who was pursuing (at the time) a theology degree, etc. etc.
A very eclectic bunch.
So you don’t need a degree, but I think it would be great to have more RCIA teachers that are well-educated in the faith. From the team above, I received some not-so-great catechesis.
 
consult the office of catechetics in the diocese where you plan to apply for work and find out what their requirements are. For any I know a theology degree from a recognized Catholic program would be one of the entry level prereqs to apply as a DRE or RCIA directer in a parish or even director of a diocesan catechetical program. They may also require some practical experience. A degree is not required to be a volunteer catechist but each diocese has their own certification program.
 
anp1215 said:
Yeah, when I was in RCIA we had several different teachers, including the priests, the deacons, and several laypeople, including one of the deacon’s wife, the children’s Bible study teacher, a friend of mine who was pursuing (at the time) a theology degree, etc. etc.
A very eclectic bunch.
So you don’t need a degree, but I think it would be great to have more RCIA teachers that are well-educated in the faith. From the team above, I received some not-so-great catechesis.
Click to expand...
Yeah, hearing a bit about the low quality of some catechesis is the main reason I want to be one to higher up the bar sometimes.

I don’t think I’ll apply to be DRE or RCIA directer in a parish or director of a diocesan catechetical program just a volunteer. Thinking more about it I’ve heard that my diocese can accept college courses [though the yes or no is up to them] for the classes you have to take there for certification if they are the same enough so I’m probably fine just going for my college degree. Thanks for the info about the requirements for catechesis in general. 🙂
 
Of course you can. For me, I have done it a little backwards. I started working in the RCIA process as a sponsor. then was accepted into our Lay Ministry program through the Diocese and have taught RCIA for about 12 years. I was not paid until just recently as coordinator of the RCIA process in our parish. Because of my involvement and wanting to learn even more, at the age of 64, I went back to college last fall and am studying Theology. Learning about God, and the Catholic faith, has become a passion for me. I am not looking to apply for any DRE position, or anything within the Diocese, I just want to learn more. Good luck
 
Actually now I am not going to the Jesuit (Catholic order) school. Catholics do not control the school’s teaching on Catholicism and Christianity in general really: the required beginning reilgion course for everyone has a part on Catholicism that has lies like subtile jabs at tradition and Mary–and as you go farther in they get less subtile. They got several parts of history wrong in their other book and another class taught by a Catholic priest about the creed the book calls it a wrong to have a priest standing up and teaching as above the laypeople–it’s by a Protestant–he says Catholic books would be offensive. I know why it’s because the Protestants would be pissed to find out that their faith is so historically wrong and to find out that not everyone is totally confused by what things like “baptism for the forgiveness of sins” in the creed.
And the Equal Opportunity Laws make it so Protestants can teach about the Catholic faith–and they suck at it. They’re not interested in learning carefully the faith of the religion they protested against in the Reformation–if they were they would no longer be Protestant.
More than half of the religion teachers are Protestant so it stinks theologically.
 
woah! A lot of assumptions here - how do you know what the standard of teaching by Protestants would be, if you are not at the school yet, indeed how many of the theology teachers are Protestant. you need to be aware that serious theological study is not the same as a reiteration of church teaching and you will have to be prepared to have your faith challenged. this is not to say you will have to give up your faith.
 
The RCIA programs don’t depend on people with a bunch of degrees, they depend on a good pastor who has the support of staff or volunteers who are faithful to the Church and know how to crack open the Catechism.
 
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