How many team members do you need for an effective RCIA process? The answer to that depends on what you mean by “RCIA.” If your RCIA starts in September and ends at Easter Vigil or during the Easter season, then you probably need about five to seven highly committed team members (not including sponsors). If, […]
RCIA: Learn why year-round is easier
We have all experienced hoop jumpers. A hoop jumper is someone who is present in body only, putting in the bare minimum required in order to “get baptized” (or become Catholic, or whatever their goal is). Sometimes these folks undergo actual conversion and move from hoop jumping to discipleship. But usually, they just jump through
How to reduce hoop jumping in the RCIA
When I was a child in Catholic grade school, the teaching about grace was pretty clear. We mostly didn’t have it, and the goal was to participate in sacraments or sacramentals to get more of it. Once we had it, the goal was not to sin so that we wouldn’t lose it. Of course, sinning
Is your RCIA team cooperating with God’s grace?
The first TeamRCIA institute of 2015 was a great success. Ninety of us gathered in Richmond, Virginia to explore the basics of the RCIA process. There were many memorable moments, but one of the best was the mystagogical reflection on our adapted Presentation of the Creed. We celebrated the rite at the end of the
The Diocese of Richmond starts off our 2015 RCIA institutes
In this series of posts, I have been exploring why it is important to involve the whole parish in the initiation process and some ways we might make that happen. We explore the same questions on our TeamRCIA Making Disciples Institutes, and we conclude by asking the participants: What would happen if we actually engaged
Four roadblocks to involving the parish in RCIA
“Your ideas sound great for big city parishes, but I come from a small rural parish. Our parish doesn’t have any activities.” Jane was responding to a point I made last year at one of TeamRCIA’s Making Disciples institutes. I was pointing out what the U.S. Bishops said about catechesis: In addition, learning by Christian
Is your parish too small for RCIA?
In a previous post, I asked why it was important to involve the whole parish in the RCIA. If we are clear on the why, the what becomes more clear. What are we asking the parish to do, exactly, when we ask them to be more involved in the initiation process? The purpose of the
What should RCIA teams ask of parishioners?
Imagine this. Someone who is lonely or anxious or victimized or broken has come to the end of her rope. She is exhausted and disheartened. She has no idea what to do next. She doesn’t like going out at this time of year, because everyone is full of “holiday spirit.” The stores are filled with
Is your catechumenate team ready for seekers this Christmas?
TeamRCIA’s most recent institute was held at the Vallombrosa Retreat Center in the Archdiocese of San Francisco. We started on Friday night with a focus on the six principles of the RCIA (click here to learn more about the six principles). The participants created posters representing each principle and then spent some time reflecting on
San Francisco focuses on the six principles of the RCIA
