Preparing children for confirmation and Eucharist can sometimes feel like piecing together a jigsaw puzzle. Age-based guidelines don’t always fit perfectly, especially when you’ve got kids who missed out on either some catechesis or one of the sacraments along the way. Let’s see if we can figure out the best approach.

Can we use the catechumenate as a catch-up program?

Can we use the catechumenate process to help children catch up on their sacramental preparation and celebrations? Well, the catechumenate is primarily designed for newcomers to the faith, not so much for playing catch-up. But then, childhood itself is like a long journey of conversion, right? Maybe we need to rethink those age brackets and consider the bigger picture.

Baptized but not fully initiated and not catechized

Here’s one scenario. You’ve got a child who was baptized as a baby and is now 10 or 11 years old and hasn’t celebrated confirmation or Eucharist yet. What are your options? Turn to paragraph 400 in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adult for guidance. The crucial part of this paragraph is the point that adults (or children who have reached catechetical age) who were baptized as infants but received no further instruction after their baptism would be candidates for the rites as outlined in Part II of the rite. They could be included in formation with those who are unbaptized, while respecting the fact that they are already baptized and celebrating the rites that are appropriate for those already baptized (never treating them ritually as if they are catechumens).

The catechumenate is primarily designed for newcomers to the faith, not so much for playing catch-up. But then, childhood itself is like a long journey of conversion, right? Maybe we need to rethink those age brackets and consider the bigger picture.

If they have received some instruction since their baptism

What about kids who have been in Catholic school for the parish religious education program and just missed first communion when their peers celebrated it? They are obviously catechized and would just go through the same process and timeframe as their peers. They can be prepared for first communion using the same concurrent process as their peers, perhaps with some individualized discussion about Eucharist, and when ready, they can share in communion at any Mass as soon as possible. They continue on in their formation and Christian way of life as their peers in preparation for confirmation.

If they are somewhere in between

Some children could be considered informally catechized. For example, if the child has been participating in a Catholic school and in the liturgies there for some period of time and maybe even going to Sunday Mass off and on, they could be considered to have received some form of instruction in the Christian way of life simply by hanging out with the Christian community and doing the things Christians do. If that is the case, then they also can be prepared along with their Catholic peers, as in the previous example.

In neither case – well-catechized or informally catechized – do these children participate in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. But their formation (as should all formation) be catechumenal in nature, that is, using the principles of conversion, discipleship, and readiness embedded in the catechumenate process. See paragraphs 4 and 5 for these principles.

Bottom line

The rites found in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults are only for those who are unbaptized and for those baptized but completely uncatechized. But every catechetical process and preparation for the sacraments should be shaped and guided by the principles of the catechumenate. In other words, not everyone should be in the catechumenate, but everyone should be formed using the vision of discipleship and conversion that the catechumenate process upholds.

Your turn

What questions do you have about preparing children for sacramental initiation? What lessons have you learned over the course of your ministry? Share your thoughts in the comments below.