It’s not something we often think about. But if we’ve been dismissing catechumens from Mass throughout their catechumenate on a regular basis, shouldn’t we also dismiss them during the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday? There are many reasons we might immediately dismiss this dismissal during the Triduum, such as, not having enough
Should we dismiss catechumens on Holy Thursday?
Lent is a busy time for initiation teams. We are busy preparing the elect for the Easter sacraments, tracking down baptismal certificates, and coordinating the many moving parts of the Lenten catechumenate rites. But in the midst of all this activity, it is easy to overlook the baptized candidates. You may disagree. You may be
Honoring the dignity of the baptized candidates in Lent
When is the best time to receive Christians validly baptized into the full communion of the Catholic Church? We might often think that the Easter Vigil is the perfect time for the Rite of Reception since that’s the premier time we make new Catholics through the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist. But our
When should we receive Christians into the Catholic Church?
At every baptism, and especially baptism during the Easter Vigil, the Litany of Saints is an important part of the baptismal rite. The Order of Christian Initiation of Adults gives us several directives and options for the Litany of Saints and how to incorporate the names of the saints of your parish and region and
Can you include other names in the Litany of Saints?
There are two moments in the Easter Vigil that aren’t as grand as other elements in this once-a-year liturgy. But these two subtle moments are essential in how your neophytes—and all the baptized—will understand what their baptism means. In this video, Diana looks at these two moments and why you don’t want your neophytes to
Two extraordinary Easter Vigil moments your neophytes don’t want to miss
1. Don’t rehearse the Easter Vigil Almost everywhere, parishes are planning to rehearse the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday. I know this is going to be hard to hear, but we have to stop making Holy Saturday a work day. It is a day of prayer, reflection, and fasting (see paragraph 185 of the Order
Seven ways catechumenate teams can make Holy Saturday holier
On March 19, 2020, the Vatican issued guidelines and suggestions on the celebration of the Triduum for this year during this time of the Covid-19 Coronavirus. Here is the official text in English, Spanish, and French. UPDATE: The Vatican issued a slightly updated version of this decree on March 25, 2020. We summarize here the
Vatican guidelines on the Triduum in time of Coronavirus
Many communities might not be able to gather to celebrate the Triduum this year because of Coronavirus precautions. What does this mean for the RCIA rites of initiation that usually take place at the Easter Vigil? Here we look at some options that the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults gives us and explore some
RCIA, the Triduum, and Coronavirus
Every year, just before Lent, we tend to get a lot of questions about conditional baptism. I think of conditional baptisms like being struck by lightning or winning the lottery. These things happen, but not to me. Not to anyone I know. And not to anyone my friends and acquaintances know. Like lightning and the
Conditional baptism is like being struck by lightning: What RCIA teams need to know
There’s something different about this year’s Triduum. Early in the morning before the sun comes up this Saturday, March 31, 2018, if you look up in the still-dark sky, you will see what I call the “Easter-is-coming-soon-moon”–the first full moon after the spring equinox. This is the moon that each year determines the date of
