RCIA Interview With Priest: Confused

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Melodeonist

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I have been unavailable to meet with the Priest in the last few weeks, as the Priest was away, and I was away too. The Priest is available to be met with this week, and next, but the Sister in charge of the RCIA is away this week, and next.

I have already called the secretary to tell her that I am afraid I can’t make it to the first RCIA meeting, because I won’t be available, but I didn’t ask her about meeting the Priest, as I assumed that she would call me for the meeting with the Priest. I think the Sister in charge of RCIA said that they would call, but I don’t know if the secretary knows this.

Should I wait for the Secretary to call, or should I call again? I don’t want to pester them.
 
Melodeonist said:
I have been unavailable to meet with the Priest in the last few weeks, as the Priest was away, and I was away too. The Priest is available to be met with this week, and next, but the Sister in charge of the RCIA is away this week, and next.

I have already called the secretary to tell her that I am afraid I can’t make it to the first RCIA meeting, because I won’t be available, but I didn’t ask her about meeting the Priest, as I assumed that she would call me for the meeting with the Priest. I think the Sister in charge of RCIA said that they would call, but I don’t know if the secretary knows this.

Should I wait for the Secretary to call, or should I call again? I don’t want to pester them.
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Don’t be concerned about being a pest, just call and mention you want to be sure that you communicated your message correctly. They are there to be of assistance to you.
 
Melodeonist said:
I have been unavailable to meet with the Priest in the last few weeks, as the Priest was away, and I was away too. The Priest is available to be met with this week, and next, but the Sister in charge of the RCIA is away this week, and next.

I have already called the secretary to tell her that I am afraid I can’t make it to the first RCIA meeting, because I won’t be available, but I didn’t ask her about meeting the Priest, as I assumed that she would call me for the meeting with the Priest. I think the Sister in charge of RCIA said that they would call, but I don’t know if the secretary knows this.

Should I wait for the Secretary to call, or should I call again? I don’t want to pester them.
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Pester them. You’ll be glad you did. 🙂
 
Wait a week or so, then pester away! This is the time of year when parishes are signing people up for RCIA and it shouldn’t be a bother at all. Welcome Home! :tiphat:
 
You’re not the only one calling. Stop by the office and pick up a bulletin. The period of discernment lasts a few weeks in many parishes. Just show up.
 
It speaks well of you that you are concerned about it. I took years to think about it, but when I finally decided, I plunged in, never looked back, glad I did!
 
Thanks for the replies! I will probably call them Monday if they don’t call me this week. The problem is, I’m afraid that I don’t know what to ask them.
 
Melodeonist said:
Thanks for the replies! I will probably call them Monday if they don’t call me this week. The problem is, I’m afraid that I don’t know what to ask them.
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If you don’t have any questions yet that they haven’t already answered, that is fine. You’re not trying to get into a college. No one wants to weed you out or make you prove that you are serious. Christ thirsts for you, you thirst for Christ, and they’re there to help you along. If you think of a question later–and you probably will at some point!–then you can ask later.
 
Melodeonist said:
Thanks for the replies! I will probably call them Monday if they don’t call me this week. The problem is, I’m afraid that I don’t know what to ask them.
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You say "I want to sign up for RCIA classes. When do they start?
They’ll fill in the rest.
 
pianistclare said:
You say "I want to sign up for RCIA classes. When do they start?
They’ll fill in the rest.
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I’ve already signed up for the RCIA (I did this a couple of months ago, if you mean filling out the sheet they gave me.) The Sister in charge of the RCIA told me that the next step before the classes is meeting with the Priest. Sorry if I have confused anybody. :o
 
Melodeonist said:
I’ve already signed up for the RCIA (I did this a couple of months ago, if you mean filling out the sheet they gave me.) The Sister in charge of the RCIA told me that the next step before the classes is meeting with the Priest. Sorry if I have confused anybody. :o
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Interesting. 🙂
 
Melodeonist said:
I’ve already signed up for the RCIA (I did this a couple of months ago, if you mean filling out the sheet they gave me.) The Sister in charge of the RCIA told me that the next step before the classes is meeting with the Priest. Sorry if I have confused anybody. :o
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We only mean that while a pastor’s preference or experience may lead him to have a very defined set of steps he likes would-be catechumens to take, you are probably not dealing with someone who has a bureaucratic mindset. Very few priests and very few RCIA programs are like that! If you make a good faith effort to do things as he asks, it is unlikely to be any problem if circumstance gets in the way.

Do your best, yes. That is courteous, and he will appreciate it. Do not worry yourself, though, if you do your best and fail to conform with his instructions through no fault of your own. Don’t worry if a schedule change on the part of the priest or the RCIA help he has gets in the way. Worry as little as possible about any of that. I will not be one bit surprised if you pick up a fellow catechumen who doesn’t start until November. A typical parish has a carefully-planned program in order to make things as straight forward as possible for as many of those involved as possible, but when it is not possible to do it the straightforward way, well, they typically find another way without any fuss about it. Getting you all to Easter Vigil and beyond is their number one priority, not that everyone who gets there takes exactly the same route in every respect.
 
Melodeonist said:
I’ve already signed up for the RCIA (I did this a couple of months ago, if you mean filling out the sheet they gave me.) The Sister in charge of the RCIA told me that the next step before the classes is meeting with the Priest. Sorry if I have confused anybody. :o
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Ah. So here’s your opening line: “Hi. I need to schedule my intake interview for my RCIA classes. When is Father available to meet with me?” They’ll take it from there.
 
EasterJoy said:
We only mean that while a pastor’s preference or experience may lead him to have a very defined set of steps he likes would-be catechumens to take, you are probably not dealing with someone who has a bureaucratic mindset. Very few priests and very few RCIA programs are like that! If you make a good faith effort to do things as he asks, it is unlikely to be any problem if circumstance gets in the way.

Do your best, yes. That is courteous, and he will appreciate it. Do not worry yourself, though, if you do your best and fail to conform with his instructions through no fault of your own. Don’t worry if a schedule change on the part of the priest or the RCIA help he has gets in the way. Worry as little as possible about any of that. I will not be one bit surprised if you pick up a fellow catechumen who doesn’t start until November. A typical parish has a carefully-planned program in order to make things as straight forward as possible for as many of those involved as possible, but when it is not possible to do it the straightforward way, well, they typically find another way without any fuss about it. Getting you all to Easter Vigil and beyond is their number one priority, not that everyone who gets there takes exactly the same route in every respect.
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Well I agree that priests may not have that bureaucratic mindset, but the half dozen rcia programs in the local Roman Catholic diocese that I tried were extremely bureaucratic and unwavering. THE goal was to weed out. The last deacon in charge of my papers actually sent me back to square one.
 
Melodeonist said:
I’ve already signed up for the RCIA (I did this a couple of months ago, if you mean filling out the sheet they gave me.) The Sister in charge of the RCIA told me that the next step before the classes is meeting with the Priest. Sorry if I have confused anybody. :o
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My wife met with the deacon before starting RCIA, but your parish may be smaller. Call them up, tell them you are signed up for RCIA and was told you needed to speak with the priest, but schedule conflicts have prevented that. Let them know you’re concerned it will affect your enrollment.

I expect they’ll tell you it won’t and will want you to attend the first meeting anyway. I know my parish was slow to respond to my wife’s request too, which can be daunting, but don’t let it discourage you! They want you there, they are just really busy and imperfect humans like the rest of us.
 
Do you think I can get a dispensation from the promise I made to God when I get to the interview (hopefully)?
 
Casilda said:
Well I agree that priests may not have that bureaucratic mindset, but the half dozen rcia programs in the local Roman Catholic diocese that I tried were extremely bureaucratic and unwavering. THE goal was to weed out. The last deacon in charge of my papers actually sent me back to square one.
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I know that one of the purposes of the interview is to see where the inquirer is at, especially regarding any canonical issues that could affect one’s ability to be able to receive the Sacraments.

In some places, they want people to get their canonical sorted out before they start the Period of Catechesis, so that there are no distractions or set-backs along the way.

In other places, they will allow people with canonical issues to enter the Period of Catechesis, as long as they are meeting with a priest regularly to get their situation sorted out, at the same time.

Obviously they can’t be received into the Church if they can’t receive the Sacraments, which is why in the long run it often makes sense to deal with the canonical issues first.
 
Alright. I guess I’ll call them tomorrow. 🙂

Hopefully I won’t be super nervous when calling (I have a bit of a telephone phobia.) :o
 
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