Benedict XVI released his letter, “Saved by Hope,” to coincide with Advent, the church’s great season of hope. In John Allen’s summary of the letter, he makes the point that a major concern of this pope is reasserting Catholic identity in a world dominated by earthly values. The theme of Benedict’s first letter was love. […]
Teach the catechumens about Advent hope
Paragraph 75 of the RCIA identifies the four pillars of catechetical formation: word, worship, community, and service. During their formation process, the catechumens will want to learn the prayers that every Catholic knows by heart so they may fully participate in the worship life of the church. Here is a list of prayers they should
Prayers every catechumen should know
The basics of leading a dismissal session are not too difficult. There are three things to pay attention to: The room When you leave, you need to go somewhere. Make sure the room is prepared ahead of time. The faith sharing after dismissal is not catechesis. It is an extension of the liturgy. So, if
How to lead a 30-minute dismissal session
In the Rite of Acceptance, one of the first things that happens is the “Candidates’ First Acceptance of the Gospel” (see paragraph 50 and following in the RCIA). When they accept the gospel, they are not accepting a book. They are accepting a way of life. If you have adapted the dialogue questions to fit
In the Rite of Acceptance, a major element of the rite is the Candidates’ First Acceptance of the Gospel (“candidates” as used here means candidates for the Rite of Acceptance, not baptized candidates; see paragraph 52, which is on page 22 in my edition of the RCIA). Sometimes folks who are new to planning this
How to tell your catechumens the gospel truth
Thousands of parishes are getting ready to celebrate the Rite of Acceptance over the next several weeks. Catechumenate team leaders will gather with those who are to become catechumens and offer them a ritual catechesis something like this: “And then Father will ask you your name. You tell him your name. And then Father will
Why catechumens shouldn’t ask for faith
In their book, Teaching as a Subversive Activity, Neil Postman and Charles Weingartner propose a new system of education that is driven and directed by the students. They engage students in creating a fictional but real “Quo Vadimus High School.” As the students go about creating their school, several questions come to mind. I wondered
The most pastoral thing we can do for the catechumens is to “kindly dismiss” them, before the prayer of the faithful begins…. I have a friend, a good friend, who also happens to be a priest. He is dead sent against dismissing the catechumens from the liturgy before the general intercessions. Whenever he presides at
Is Your Dismissal Pastoral Enough?
