R.C.I.A. Question

[Andruschak]

I assume that you were an infant when Baptized. You should be conditionally Baptized then if there is any question and no one can testify to it. Conditional Baptism should take place one evening, maybe an extra half hour before the regular RCIA meeting. Only you, your Sponsor (as a witness), and the priest or Deacon should be there.

I can only hope that it will be done that way, if needed. But this IS RCIA as of 2007, and places that do it correctly would seem to be few and far between. But I’ll check with my RCIA teachers this Sunday, when we resume Dismissals.

I also have a retreat coming up, 5-16 February, with Spiritual Direction, and maybe I could get it done there?

 

[jmcrae]

Given that most of RCIA in the USA is an inept muddle, I hope that I will be given SOME sort of instructions and guidelines for my first confession. That’s 55 years worth of sin, folks. Bring on the well-padded kneelers

Yep, I know the feeling - my own First Confession was a bit of a bomb. But as the man said, (I think it was Gilbert Keith Chesterton), “Some things are worth doing badly.”

And you know that we’re here for you when you’ve got questions, right? We won’t let you get steered wrong.

Problem. I may need a "conditional " baptism. I was born 4 October 1944 in Dartford, Kent, England. My baptismal certificate is long lost, and The Church Of England lost a lot of records from wartime bombs and fires. When I was confirmed in the Lutheran Church as a teenager, they accepted my Mother’s word about my Church of England baptism. My RCIA program may not.

Not really a “problem” as such - the worst case scenario is that you’ll have a conditional First Confession and a conditional baptism. Hopefully, they’ll find your Baptismal records in time (you’ve got somebody on this, right?), and you’ll just go for an ordinary First Confession, with Confirmation and First Holy Communion to follow at the proper times.

 

[Andruschak]

Yep, I know the feeling - my own First Confession was a bit of a bomb. But as the man said, (I think it was Gilbert Keith Chesterton), “Some things are worth doing badly.”

And you know that we’re here for you when you’ve got questions, right? We won’t let you get steered wrong.

Exactly. “WE CARE”. (Motto of my local Alano Club.) I am scheduled for a retreat 5-16 February, with frequent spiritual direction, so I’ll be asking about that as well as other subjects. I will also want to see what they have to say about my interest in the BSP and/or CFP, as well as what would be the best sort of prayer life and other spiritual practices, given my current life style.

That’s one of the biggest lessons I learnen from AA…“It’s OK to ask for help.”

 

[puzzleannie]

If someone went through the Rite of Acceptance and then dropped out of RCIA for personal reason, do they then need to go through the Rite of Acceptance again when they start up again?

once the catechumen has indicated his desire to join the church and been accepted into the order of catechumens his name is supposed to be inscribed in a book for that purpose kept with the other parish records. He remains a catechumen as long as it takes for him to complete his catechumenate, and for some people, that might very well be lengthy for various reaons. as far as instruction, he should pick up where he left off, perhaps reviewing areas where he still has questions or feels he needs more information. He really should not have been accepted in the first place unless there was a firm intention to proceed through the catechumenate and the rites of lent and Easter, but circumstances to arise, and no, he should not have to start from square one, that would not be appropriate.