R.C.I.A. and the Bible

[DSJJ]

Does it state anywhere in the Bible that the early Christians received instruction before they were in full communion with the church?

 

[Sultan_Of_Swing]

Does it state anywhere in the Bible that the early Christians received instruction before they were in full communion with the church?

I believe it is hinted at in the Bible, not fully developed, but a preliminary instruction of Christians does seem to be apparent. The practice is, of course, firmly established in the early church and in extra-biblical sources.

“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, 5 for each one should carry their own load. Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor.” - Epistle to the Galatians, 6:1-6

“As the acceptance of Christianity involved belief in a body of doctrine and the observance of the Divine law (“teach, make disciples, scholars of them”; “teaching them to observe all things whatever I have commanded you”, Matthew 28:20 (see Great Commission), it is clear that some sort of preliminary instruction must have been given to the converts.” - Catholic Encyclopaedia

“As many as are persuaded and believe that what we teach and say is true, and undertake to be able to live accordingly, are instructed to pray and to entreat God with fasting, for the remission of their sins that are past, we praying and fasting with them. Then they are brought by us where there is water, and are regenerated in the same manner in which we were ourselves regenerated.” - St Justin Martyr (155-157 AD)

“When anyone is to receive his first catechetical instruction, he shall be given the complete history (of salvation), starting from the place where it is written ’In the beginning God created heaven and earth’ down to the present period of the Church.” - St Augustine (4th-5th century)

 

[Pete_Holter]

Augustine talks about this in Of Faith and Works:

“At present I am still occupied in this question, wherein it appears to them right to admonish them that are already baptized concerning the morals which pertain unto a Christian life, but in the case of them yet to be baptized to introduce faith only. Which if it were so, besides so many things which we have said, John the Baptist would not say unto persons coming unto his baptism, ‘Generation of vipers, who hath pointed out to you to flee from coming wrath? Produce therefore worthy fruits of repentance’ (Matt. 3:7-8). Which admonitions of his are surely not on the matter of faith, but of good works. Whence also unto the soldiers who said, ‘What shall we do’ (Luke 3:14), he said not, ‘In the mean time believe and be baptized, afterwards ye shall hear what ye ought to do’; but he before said, he before premonished them, that as a forerunner he might cleanse the way, for the Lord Who was to come into their hearts: ‘Do violence to no man, bring false accusation against no man, let your own pay suffice to you’ (Luke 3:14). In like manner unto the publicans who asked what they ought to do, he said, ‘Exact nothing further than what is appointed unto you’ (Luke 3:13). In briefly making mention of these things, the Evangelist (for he needed not to insert whole Catechisms) hath shewed sufficiently, that it pertaineth unto him who catechizes one about to be baptized, to teach and admonish him concerning morals. But if they had made answer to John, ‘We will not at all produce worthy fruits of repentance, we will accuse falsely, we will do violence, we will exact those things which are not owed to us’; and yet notwithstanding he were to baptize them after this profession; yet not even thus could it be said, (what is the present question,) that it is not proper to the time at which each man is to be baptized, to discourse unto him first after what manner he ought to lead a good life” (, Ch. 13.19Of Faith and Works).

Augustine says that even if Scripture were silent on this point, we know from apostolic succession that catechesis is necessary prior to baptism:

“But if Scripture hath been silent, and hath left for us to understand the rest of what Philip did with the Eunuch about to be baptized, and, in that it saith, ‘Philip baptized him’ (Acts 8:38), hath willed that we should understand that all things were fulfilled, which although they be passed over in the Scriptures for the sake of brevity, we yet by the line of tradition know are to be fulfilled; in like manner also, in that it was written, that Philip ‘preached’ unto the Eunuch ‘the Lord Jesus’ (Acts 8:35), we are in no way to doubt that those things also were said in the teaching, which pertain unto the life and manner of him who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ” (, Ch. 9.14Of Faith and Works).

With love in Christ,
Pete

 

[Church_Militant]

I would say that it is pretty clearly implicit in the great commission, (Matthew 28:19-20) where Our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ says,

***[19] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age." ***

verse 20 seems to say it all.

 

[jmcrae]

Does it state anywhere in the Bible that the early Christians received instruction before they were in full communion with the church?

It wouldn’t really make a whole lot of sense to wait until afterwards - what if it turned out that you were not able to live with a particular teaching of the Church? Once bound to the Church, you can’t become unbound.

 

[Cor_ad_Cor]

A favorite passage of many fundamentalist Protestant groups to explain the “altar call” concept and why you should act immediately on your conversion is the story of Philip and the Ethiopian in Acts 8:26-39. The focus for these groups, at least in my experience, is verse 36:

As they traveled along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water. What is to prevent my being baptized?”

However, if we back up and look at verses 30-31, we see that instruction was part of the deal (just an abbreviated format from what we have today):

Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

He replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” So he invited Philip to get in and sit with him.