RCIA and work schedule

[curtishouse29]

Hey everybody,

I just started up RCIA this week (last night) and I am worried about when I start up work again in a few months. I work nights and RCIA is from 7-9 pm. I know that I can work around it but would have to miss a couple hours of work every week until at least Easter Vigil and not sure how my superiors would feel about it.

The alternative would be to schedule a time to meet with the RCIA director (or whatever her title officially is) and go through the RCIA process one-on-one. I think that a big part of RCIA is going through everything as a group and the experience just wouldn’t be complete if I wasn’t a part of the group.

What would any of you do in my situation? Any advice would be greatly appreciated and God bless you all for taking time out of your day to read and reply to my thread.

-Curtis

 

[KarenElissa]

Hey everybody,

I just started up RCIA this week (last night) and I am worried about when I start up work again in a few months. I work nights and RCIA is from 7-9 pm. I know that I can work around it but would have to miss a couple hours of work every week until at least Easter Vigil and not sure how my superiors would feel about it.

The alternative would be to schedule a time to meet with the RCIA director (or whatever her title officially is) and go through the RCIA process one-on-one. I think that a big part of RCIA is going through everything as a group and the experience just wouldn’t be complete if I wasn’t a part of the group.

What would any of you do in my situation? Any advice would be greatly appreciated and God bless you all for taking time out of your day to read and reply to my thread.

-Curtis

First off, welcome home!

I also work evenings and I ended up taking off work early. Our RCIA director offered to meet with me, but I also liked the idea of going through it as a group. But I also knew that my boss would be fine with it.

I’d trying asking just to get a feel as to how your boss would feel about the whole thing. Or maybe you could do an every other week or once a month kind of deal or something in between.

Also, your RCIA should at some point, usually in the catechumanate stage, start doing dismissals at Sunday Mass. You go for the first part of the Liturgy of the Word and then during the second half of Mass you continue in another room with reflection on the Word. That could also be an opportunity to form the community without worrying about work.

 

[YADA]

Curtis,

First, blessings on your journey … I will keep you in my prayers.

Ideally, you would want to attempt to work a schedule where the RCIA evening occurs on your day off … if that is not possible perhaps you can ttend RCIA every other week [and meet with the RCIA director o the weeks where you can’t get off - thus givig you some time with the group plus the on on one]

One year in our RCIA we had a gentleman who travelled lots for his position … his wife came each week and video taped the group sessions …

For two years, we video taped our sessions and developed a library of topics covered so that participants could check them out after a missed class …

Last year we had a gentleman who for work reasons was absent often … his sponsor came every week and met with him weekly, plus he had regular meetings with our Pastoral Associate …

You will have to do lots of work, meet with the RCIA director and have a very faithful and diligent sponsor … but if you really need to work and you are truly being called to a Life in Christ and in His church, it will happen …

You just need to communicate your desire and your committment, work hard … and God will open the doors and inspire the creative ideas to bring you home…