What happens after a Catholic evangelist gives a sermon?

[Jerry-Jet]

Is there anything comparable to a Billy Graham sermon or Crusade in the Catholic world?

If a Catholic evangelist preaches and afterwards the person asks that Catholc Priest or Catholic Bishop or Catholic Deacon who is authorized to preach as the people in Acts asked Peter “What must I do to be saved?” What does the Catholic priest tell them?

I’m a new convert to Catholicism–I just wondered if people are ever brought into the Catholic Church faster than the RCIA process? Does one always have to be catechized until Easter vigil?

In some African mission fields where streams or lakes are available are Catholics ever immersed or is immersion forbidden?

 

[puzzleannie]

Is

I’m a new convert to Catholicism–I just wondered if people are ever brought into the Catholic Church faster than the RCIA process? Does one always have to be catechized until Easter vigil?

In some African mission fields where streams or lakes are available are Catholics ever immersed or is immersion forbidden?

the normative process for an adult (anyone over catechetical age) to prepare for initiation in the Catholic Church is through the RCIA. Immersion baptism is also normative for baptism of adults.
Since the sacraments are supposed to be conferred in the context of Mass, specifically the Easter Vigil, unless the church or place Mass is being celebrated is convenient to a natural body of water, a baptismal pool or font would be supplied.

 

[uther]

That is an interesting question and having come from an Evangelical background myself I think I understand what you are getting at.

There are two fundamental differences here that bear on your question.
First, as Catholics were are not nearly as individualistic as Evangelicals (Billy Graham is an Evangelical if there ever was one, and a man I highly respect). We believe that while faith must begin first in the individual, Christ gave us the Church as the His mediator of the Sacraments. So we are community, or communion oriented.
You will notice that clearly in the prayers in the mass, for example, all the prefaces before the Eucharistic prayer begin; "Father, all powerful and everliving God, we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks…
Then look at the Eucharistic prayers, #1 as an example;
We come to you Father…Through Him we ask you to accept…gifts we offer…
You get the picture, This is the same throughout. The point is that it is not just about “me and Jesus” it is about all of us in communion, helping each other to get to heaven. It’s a beautiful thing.
The second point is that we don’t believe in the once-saved always-saved concept, and “faith alone” so you won’t see the altar-call scenario. However, even a Catholic evangelist will make a call to reconciliation, if for example he is preaching to Catholics in a conference or retreat or something like that. And many times at these conferences there will be priests available before, during and after such meetings to hear confessions. And of course that is the way that a baptized Catholic repents and is reconciled with God.
Preaching to the unbaptized could call for immersion in water in the right circumstance but there should be priests doing the baptism, using the proper form as much as possible. But even in the early Church it became customary to teach and train and catechize for some time before administering baptism. This may have something to do with the persecutions of the time and the need for caution about converts.

Overall what I discovered about the Catholic Church is that we don’t usually go off and do our own thing the way an Evangelical might just start up preaching anywhere, anytime. Rather we work together, through the priests and through the Sacraments and through the parish, so that the convert has a home right away, a nest in which to grow in knowledge of the faith and be as St. Paul says, a member of the body of Christ, dependent on the other members and receiving our direction from the head of the body which is Christ. I believe that was how he intended it to be.

 

[jc-servant]

Is there anything comparable to a Billy Graham sermon or Crusade in the Catholic world?

Catholics do have some large events like World Youth Day where 100,000 people may be at an outdoor mass, but there is no “altar call.”

I’m a new convert to Catholicism–I just wondered if people are ever brought into the Catholic Church faster than the RCIA process? Does one always have to be catechized until Easter vigil?

Some people who are already baptized Christians do receive private instruction, especially if they are a minister who is converting. Their instruction may or may not take as long as RCIA.

In some African mission fields where streams or lakes are available are Catholics ever immersed or is immersion forbidden?

Occasionally, I attend a parish near my parents’ home that has a large sunken font in the shape of a cross that can be used for full immersion of an adult.

My parish now uses a large cattle watering trough that has been painted and disguised with flowers only at Easter Vigil so that adults can get in and kneel down while water is poured over them at the front of the church. Otherwise the permanent font is at the back end of the main aisle and short adults would have to stand on a stool and lean over it while water is poured over their heads. Not very dignified.

As people have stated, it is not a Catholic belief that full immersion is required and the Bible does not state that it is needed. It would also be impractical for an infant baptism. In many locations mentioned in Scripture the apostles would not have had easy access to even a natural body of water for full immersions yet they were baptizing entire households in some cases. We have to logically assume that they either sprinkled or poured water over them.

 

[Greg27]

I think the Charismatic branch of Catholicism would be close to what you might be describing. There are also ‘Catholic Evangelicals’, though I haven’t studied much of their material.

 

[Jerry-Jet]

The reason I ask the questions is that some times people could hear a Catholic preaching and want to convert.

While that person surely should be catechized I don’t see why everyone who converts should have to wait until Easter.

What if one wanted to convert to the Catholic Church the Sunday after Easter?

Are you going to tell me that it would be a good idea for them to wait the entire year?

To be sure such a person could confess their sins to a priest.

My question is if they did should they receive the Eucharist for the rest of the year and during RCIA while awaiting being formally confirmed?

I’m not anti-RCIA or anti-Catechization or a proponent of once saved Catholic evangelistic sermons.

All I know is that when Peter preached at Pentecost–those people asked what they needed to do to be saved and the scriptures say that 3,000 were added to the church.

They didn’t have to wait until the next Easter and a RCIA program.

Was St. Peter wrong for not making them do that?

 

[jc-servant]

While that person surely should be catechized I don’t see why everyone who converts should have to wait until Easter.

Not every person does wait until Easter, but depending on the number of people converting in each parish they usually have too many to accommodate private instruction on each person’s schedule. RCIA was originally designed for unbaptized converts, but it is usually used for everyone now because of the numbers and convenience.

What if one wanted to convert to the Catholic Church the Sunday after Easter?

They still need instruction, so they would have to seek out a priest willing to give them private instruction. I would think a religious community might have a priest with more time to provide that type of individual instruction than a parish with one priest (unless it is small).

Are you going to tell me that it would be a good idea for them to wait the entire year?
Wait a year for what exactly, instruction, confession, Eucharist, confirmation? They would have to wait until they received enough instruction so that they knew what they were agreeing to in their conversion before they went to confession and received the Eucharist.

All I know is that when Peter preached at Pentecost–those people asked what they needed to do to be saved and the scriptures say that 3,000 were added to the church.

Actually you don’t know how long they waited to receive the Eucharist because the scripture does not say exactly what is meant by “added to the church.”

They didn’t have to wait until the next Easter and a RCIA program.

There are writings of early church fathers which indicate that instruction of converts took up to three years in the early centuries of the church, so RCIA is shorter. If someone has studied sufficiently on their own to make RCIA very redundent then private instruction should be pursued. Many prominent Protestant scholars/preachers have converted after private instruction. Obviously sitting through RCIA would be a huge waste of time for them and likely not answer questions at the level which they need.

 

[stbruno]

One great Catholic apologist and a real evangelist is Fr. Corapi.
Here is a link to one of his articles based on the Glory of the Cross to the glory of Easter. Work the read.

fathercorapi.com/articledet.aspx?articleID=-332580530