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redcatholic
Guest
How is what I said not an easy way to handle it? Did you try it?
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otjm
Guest
A call to a parish is most likely going to get you directly to staff. And you can ask them, usually without getting into a lot of details whether your address is in their parish boundaries or in the other parish boundaries.
And in fact, it is likely the staff may know the answer to that more readily than the priest. I hope that helps.
And in fact, it is likely the staff may know the answer to that more readily than the priest. I hope that helps.
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otjm
Guest
As to the question of the OP: I have been involved with RCIA for over 25 years. Each catechumen and candidate is normally (in my parishes, always) assigned a sponsor, and it is the duty of three people - the sponsor, the RCIA team leader (in my case, who was a certified catechist) and the pastor to meet individually and inquire (gently; not the third degree) at least once or more during the period of RCIA how the process is going, what questions the individual might have, and do an assessment.
It is not a matter of “pass/fail”. :The information has to come from the individual, not the sponsor, not the team leader, not the pastor: is that individual still interested in pursuing this faith walk.
In that period, I have seen people drop out because of conflicts other than with the Church (mostly, work); drop out because they were moving (not planned at the beginning of the program) and decide not to join that following Easter.
The last one was an electrical engineer involved in high tech, and he said he was not ready; he came back the next year, joined at Easter, and has been an involved Catholic since (including joining the Knights as an active member). He clearly needed more time and knew that; we did not give him a “fail” and neither did he.
What I say is my experience, first with an excellent priest, then with a wonderful certified catechist and now with a director with a Masters in theology. All are/were desirous of people joining the Church; none wanted to push, and all wanted those who joined to do so for the right reasons. Our Sunday Visitor, a number of years ago did a survey and found that across the nation, people were going through RCIA, and several years later a large number appeared to have dropped out of being practicing Catholics. I can’t speak either to the accuracy of the survey nor to other RCIA programs. If, however, the survey was correct, that a lot of people join and then “unjoin”, something needs to be addressed, but what that is, is not a matter of simple analysis. It could be partly to the specific program they went through, or a multiple of other reasons having to do with the individuals themselves.
I just do what I can.
It is not a matter of “pass/fail”. :The information has to come from the individual, not the sponsor, not the team leader, not the pastor: is that individual still interested in pursuing this faith walk.
In that period, I have seen people drop out because of conflicts other than with the Church (mostly, work); drop out because they were moving (not planned at the beginning of the program) and decide not to join that following Easter.
The last one was an electrical engineer involved in high tech, and he said he was not ready; he came back the next year, joined at Easter, and has been an involved Catholic since (including joining the Knights as an active member). He clearly needed more time and knew that; we did not give him a “fail” and neither did he.
What I say is my experience, first with an excellent priest, then with a wonderful certified catechist and now with a director with a Masters in theology. All are/were desirous of people joining the Church; none wanted to push, and all wanted those who joined to do so for the right reasons. Our Sunday Visitor, a number of years ago did a survey and found that across the nation, people were going through RCIA, and several years later a large number appeared to have dropped out of being practicing Catholics. I can’t speak either to the accuracy of the survey nor to other RCIA programs. If, however, the survey was correct, that a lot of people join and then “unjoin”, something needs to be addressed, but what that is, is not a matter of simple analysis. It could be partly to the specific program they went through, or a multiple of other reasons having to do with the individuals themselves.
I just do what I can.
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njlisa
Guest
Here’s how the process worked for me. Candidates have been baptized and are received into the church. Catechumens have not been baptized and are converted into the church. Nevertheless, we were into the same program, which was called RCIA.
I was baptized Christian with a staunch Protestant background. I had no Catholic friends, family, or acquaintances. However, for years, God pulled me toward the church. At one point, I told our teacher that I would withdraw because I couldn’t be a good enough Catholic. She assured me that we didn’t need to be “good enough” to enter the church. She assured me that I had sincere faith and should stick with the program. I stayed in the program and was received into the church in 1990.
I guess I would have “flunked” the course if I bailed out. But the director did not toss me out for cold feet.
I hope sharing my experiences help.
I was baptized Christian with a staunch Protestant background. I had no Catholic friends, family, or acquaintances. However, for years, God pulled me toward the church. At one point, I told our teacher that I would withdraw because I couldn’t be a good enough Catholic. She assured me that we didn’t need to be “good enough” to enter the church. She assured me that I had sincere faith and should stick with the program. I stayed in the program and was received into the church in 1990.
I guess I would have “flunked” the course if I bailed out. But the director did not toss me out for cold feet.
I hope sharing my experiences help.
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ZemD
Guest
Thank you very much for all your replies and insights.
Please pray for my friend that through RCIA or whatever initiation process she goes through she is compelled to want more than just to be baptized!
Please pray for my friend that through RCIA or whatever initiation process she goes through she is compelled to want more than just to be baptized!
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felsguy
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As a volunteer member of my parish RCIA team (also for 25+ years) and the interim director on several occasions, I most definitely concur with the comments above. RCIA is not simply an instruction program or a series of classes on Catholic beliefs and practices. Rather it is meant to be a period of preparation for the reception of the sacraments and entrance into membership in the Church. A sharing of the fundamentals of the faith is an important part but equally important and perhaps more important is the spiritual preparation of the participant.
The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults is actually comprised of a series of rites, the first of which is the Rite of Acceptance which is to occur in the presence of the community (Mass). The introduction to this rite states: “the prerequisite for making this first step is that the beginnings of the spiritual life and the fundamentals of Christian teaching have take root in the candidates.” It goes on to say that time must taken “to evaluate and, if necessary, to purify the candidates’ motives and dispositions” and that “parish priests (pastors) have the responsibility for judging the outward indications of such disposition.”
Six weeks before the Easter Vigil, the prescribed time for the reception of the sacraments of initiation, i.e. Baptism, Confirmation, and First Eucharist, the Rite of Election is to occur with the bishop or his representative presiding. Here the guidelines state: “on the basis of the testimony of godparents and catechists and of the catechumens’ (candidates’) reaffirmation of their intention, the Church judges their state of readiness and decides on their advancement toward the sacraments of initiation.”
While these are statements of the ideal and at times these requirements may be addressed in a rather perfunctory manner, my point is that even so a person would not (should not) be permitted to proceed without the proper intention. This does not mean that the OP’s friend could not or should not begin RCIA. I have many times seen and always marvel at the transforming work of the Holy Spirit during the RCIA process on individuals who began with less than stellar intentions
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goout
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I would say that at least half of our RCIA newbies do not go on to practice the faith. They are entering the Church for other reasons.
Those that do practice the faith tend to have very strong and exemplary faith.
But this is the case with many (most?) people who are baptized. The faith is lukewarm.
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Horton
Guest
Are you a cradle Catholic?
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whatistrue
Guest
I suspect that what @Nik was referring to is not the objective physical difficulty of the act itself, but the emotional difficulty some have with “cold calling” people, even for important things. I have a certain amount of it and my daughter has a very strong aversion to calling even people she already knows. I can usually force myself for important things, and she is working on the issue because she is aware that it can have a negative impact on her overall well-being that outweighs temporary discomfort. But it is still decidedly not “easy”.
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Cor_ad_Cor
Guest
I concur, and I have this same kind of aversion to phone calls even amongst people I know. That said, I really don’t see a better alternative unless you’re willing to drop by in person. That’s probably no less intimidating.
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redcatholic
Guest
No, I converted.
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redcatholic
Guest
I don’t think so. I got the impression that they just thought it was difficult. It’s no more difficult to find which parish you are in than it is to order a pizza. But if the poster has some sort of social issue that prevents them from using a phone then I understand that could be difficult. Which is why email and drop ins are also easy ways to find out.
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whatistrue
Guest
Again ignoring the fact that many people have issues with dropping in to a new place or emailing out of the blue as well. One size never fits all, and easy for one may be near impossible for another.
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redcatholic
Guest
If that is the posters issue then you are right. I don’t think it is.
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felsguy
Guest
Because a sizeable number of participants in my parish’s RCIA program are college students or from military families who leave the area, sometimes within a month or two of their initiation, I can’t speak to percentages, but otherwise my observations are pretty much the same.
As I’m sure occurs in most parishes, we have those who come to RCIA saying initially that they wish to “convert” because they are engaged to a Catholic and are doing so for their sake of their fiancé(e); because they are married to a Catholic and it would be more convenient than alternating churches on Sundays, especially if they have children; or because neither spouse belongs to a church and now that their first child is approaching school age it would be a “nice” idea join one. While not adequate reasons for eventually being initiated into the sacraments, we view these as examples of the many and mysterious ways that the work of the Holy Spirit brings individuals to our door. It is amazing year after year to see how as their months of participating in RCIA go by, and certainly with His unseen but continuing help, they gradually exhibit the proper disposition to become a member of the Church, at least externally. I say externally because really it is all we have to go by but I believe most genuinely develop a true desire to embrace the Catholic faith. Obviously some, hopefully a few, simply go through the motions and say the right things in order to be permitted to go forward. Even then I wonder if at some later time their participation in RCIA might not bear fruit
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Horton
Guest
You are dismissing a real problem for not just one person but for a lot of people. I have no real “issues” and if I had asked on CAF how to go about joining the Church and all I got was to call my priest, that would have been the last anyone would have heard from me.
Just because you claim it is easy, only means it is easy for you, not for anyone else. I work for my parish and I would never tell someone inquiring about the Church to call one of our priests. Even though I know our priests are the most welcoming, kind, warm men I know, I still understand how difficult it may be to contact them 1x1.
And in all reality the best person to call is the RCIA director or coordinator as they would have the forms and details of who, when, what, and where of RCIA.
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CelticWarlord
Guest
This is how I’ve always understood it. When I inquired about RCIA a couple of years ago I made it clear I did not intend to become Catholic but was not discouraged from taking the classes. I never did but was led to believe I’d be welcome attend at any time.
blackforest
Well-known member
If you don’t mind my asking, what gives you this impression? What do you think her real motive is?
I agree with those who’d urge her to meet with a priest, and from there, I’d cut her as much slack as possible.
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ZemD
Guest
@blackforest She thinks getting baptized is just an event, not a sacrament that then results in commitments and responsibilities for her.
I know RCIA or whatever instruction she receives will reveal this is not the case.
I know RCIA or whatever instruction she receives will reveal this is not the case.
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Phemie
Guest
A good RCIA process should see folk do just what you did. Having done some courses with RCIA, it annoys me, even saddens me, that people are told, “We start in September and you’ll be baptized at Easter.” No, nobody should be told that.You can indeed “fail” RCIA - I flunked it this year
To be fair, it was at my instigation that I stepped back after having a conversation with the RCIA coordinator where we both agreed that I shouldn’t be going near any sacraments yet.
Conversion is a process that takes as long as it takes; for some it may be a year, for some that process could take two, three years, even five years. The recommendation is not less than a full year. In one parish, an immigrant from a country that had been at war did not get baptized until she was able to offer the sign of peace to a parishioner who hailed from the country hers had been at war with. It took her three years.
By the same token, it also saddens me when a well-catechized Christian, who has learned much about Catholicism is told the same thing, substituting “received into full communion’” for “baptized”, when the Church herself says no unnecessary burden should be put on them. That person could be ready for reception into full communion in a matter of a few weeks rather than several months and should not be made to wait so long for the sacraments.
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