This year, you will be confronted with a challenge. I know this because it happens all the time in catechumenate ministry. You will encounter a new person — someone who is searching or hurting. Someone who is in need of God’s love.
But this won’t be the “usual” seeker who shows up ready to begin whatever process they have to in order to become Catholic. This person will be reluctant or difficult or somehow outside of your comfort zone. When that happens, you will have a choice. I think of it as the kind of choice we have in an amusement park. You can choose to ride the roller coaster or the merry-go-round.
Balancing Predictability and Adventure on your RCIA Team
Many of us on RCIA teams are merry-go-round people. We like knowing what’s going to happen. We like the predictability of seasons of the church year. We like a neat, orderly schedule. We like people to progress through the process at a somewhat steady rate.
A few of us, however, are roller coaster people. We like adventure. We like challenges. We like meeting new people with new stories who are starting off on their own unique journeys, even though we are not quite sure where they are going.
Every team needs merry-go-round people. We need people who keep us steady and on track. And every team also needs an adventurer or two, especially when encountering new inquirers who don’t fit how we are used to doing things. If you are not adventurous by nature, I urge you to reach out to your parish community. Find an adventurous soul who complements your merry-go-round.
Ideally, you would ask this person to do one job on your RCIA team. I’ve titled the role: “Ambassador of Welcome.” The job of the Ambassador of Welcome is to constantly welcome inquirers and start to learn their stories. The Ambassador of Welcome is on call all year round so you never again have to tell someone to come back later in the year when RCIA “starts.” Essentially, the Ambassador of Welcome is the person in charge of your period of evangelization and precatechumenate.
What makes a great Ambassador of Welcome?
There is nothing difficult about the actual duties of the Ambassador of Welcome. She doesn’t have to be a catechist or know a lot of theological stuff. She needs to be a good listener and a have true gift for hospitality. But that isn’t to say the job is easy. (If you’d like to learn more about what happens during the period of evangelization and precatechumenate, check out my book, Seek the Living God: Five RCIA Inquiry Questions for Making Disciples.)
Every inquirer the Ambassador of Welcome meets is going to have a different story. Some will make difficult demands such as asking for initiation in time for a wedding. Some will balk at having to come to Mass or having to come to catechetical sessions.
These are relatively minor obstacles, however. The big challenge for the Ambassador of Welcome will happen when she has been meeting with an inquirer for some time. She feels like the Holy Spirit is truly guiding the inquirer, and she believes she sees the spark of faith in the inquirer. And then the inquirer decides to completely withdraw from the process.
It can be a big challenge to invest so much of ourselves in a journey of someone seeking faith. We have to be vulnerable and open-hearted at every moment. And when someone we have grown to care about decides to leave, it feels like they are not only rejecting the faith, they are rejecting us.
That’s where our own faith comes in. We have to hold onto our belief that the Holy Spirit really is in charge of the journey. We have to continue to hope that the inquirer who leaves will again take up the journey of faith sometime later, perhaps somewhere else. We might never know the outcome for sure. But we know that however much we care about the inquirer, God cares infinitely more.
That’s why your Ambassador of Welcome has to be a roller coaster person. Nothing in this part of the RCIA journey is predictable. This part of the journey can be risky. But whatever happens, it’s always going to be an adventure.
Share your story
Who are the roller coaster team members in your ministry? What has their impact been on your inquirers? Who helped you identify these key ministry team members? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
