Every year I struggle with whether or not to ask child catechumens to come during their Christmas vacation for dismissal sessions on Sunday morning during Mass. By this time of year, the families usually need a break and my family often goes out of town over Christmas. It’s easier just to not meet during Christmas. It’s easier to not be committed during Christmas. It’s easier for everyone to just be on vacation.

Do we take a break from discipleship?

But, then I start thinking about what that teaches child catechumens. Does it teach them that Catholics don’t go to church when school is not in session? That disciples of Jesus are on vacation during Christmas? That it’s okay to skip Mass and the Scripture readings aren’t that important for us to discuss anyway?Of course, we don’t want to give child catechumens any of those messages.

What should we do on Christmas day?

Furthermore, this year (2011) is even more complicated because Christmas is on Sunday. Do we do a dismissal session (also known as breaking open the word) on Christmas? Even though I am urging you to do dismissal sessions during Christmas vacation, I have to admit that we don’t do dismissal on Christmas. Please, comment in the box below and let us know if you do dismissal on Christmas! We’d love to hear about your experience. Instead, here is what I recommend for the Christmas season with child catechumens.

• Give catechumenal families a reflection and discussion guide for the readings of Nativity. In this way, even though you don’t do dismissal on Christmas, the child catechumens can talk about the readings with their family.
• If Christmas is not on Sunday, I urge you do the dismissal on the Sunday after Christmas. This is the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. The readings are so great for kids! Don’t miss the opportunity to reflect upon these readings with your child catechumens. The characters and the messages are riveting – especially for kids.
  • The magi, Herod, and Joseph’s dream to take the family to Egypt (Year A).
  • Sarah gives birth to Isaac; Simeon, Anna and the presentation of the child Jesus in the temple (Year B).
  • Hannah and Samuel; boy Jesus found in the temple (Year C).
• Give a little Christmas gift. I like to give the child catechumens a little gift on the Sunday after Christmas. A tiny Nativity set is my favorite.
• Do dismissal on the first Sunday in January. It’ll be the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God or Epiphany. Again, these readings are especially engaging for young catechumens and carry significant messages for disciples-in-training.
• You don’t need to have a catechetical session after the dismissal session. Celebrate the Liturgy of the Word, do the dismissal session, end with a blessing of catechumens and go home.

Don’t be a slave to the school calendar

Overall, I simply want to encourage you to do dismissal during Christmas vacation. Don’t get caught in the school year calendar that says kids are on vacation during Christmas. Sure, it’s true they are on vacation. But, being a disciple of Jesus Christ is a 24-7 commitment. And, our Sunday worship is part of that commitment. By doing dismissal with catechumens during the Christmas season, we help to reinforce the Catholic Christian way of life.

Did you know Christmas carols are a rich source of catechesis for your RCIA groups? A good carol has the power to “teach” the theology of Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection—the paschal mystery.

A cosmic dance between Divine and human

For example, Charles Wesley’s 1739 text, “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” has several verses paschal-preaching verses:

Come, Desire of nations, come,
Fix in us thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conquering seed,
Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
Now display thy saving power,
Ruined nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to thine.

Here in this text, the meaning of the word becoming flesh is not simply a Hallmark-card image of a baby in a manger or a sweet-sounding lullaby.

• It is the great exchange—the cosmic dance—between the Divine and the human
• It is the primordial clash between light and dark
• It is the serpent in the garden and the empty tomb that shouts, “Death, where is your sting?”

RCIA Without Meetings: Forming Faith over the Holidays

One-hour webinar

Is your life too busy for RCIA this holiday season? Maybe your planning to take a break. Or maybe you plan to slog through, hoping the catechumens will show up for your sessions.

What if there were a third way? What if you could continue forming faith without having to hold formal sessions?

• Discover four ways to teach catechumens about the Blessed Virgin
• Connect Santa and last-minute shopping with Eucharist—in a good way
• Learn about two major ethnic traditions that are all about the journey of faith
• Uncover the catechetical riches of Christmas carols

Presenters: Nick Wagner and Diana Macalintal
Date: Thursday, December 1, 2011
Time: 2:00p to 3:00p Eastern Standard Time

Click here for more information

The divine exchange

God becomes one of us so that we may become more like God. In this lover’s exchange, God is clothed in human skin and takes on the mortality of earthly life so that we may be clothed with Christ and wear the garment of immortality.

This mystical union is the nuptial dance between God and creation, the weaving together of death and life, the push and pull of sadness and joy, and the counterpoint of our earthly song with the heavenly choir.

The definition of a carol is “an old round dance with singing.” It is the dance that comes first. Our carols teach us that Christian life is not about remaining at Bethlehem, frozen in winter snow, but about dancing together through the seasons of life to Jerusalem, to the cross and the empty tomb, dying and rising and thus birthing new life.

The dance of life and death

Another fine carol is “Tomorrow Shall be my Dancing Day.” William Sandys’ 1833 text conveys that Christmas is “merry” because God dances with us even through death.

Then was I born of a virgin pure,
Of her I took fleshly substance
Thus was I knit to man’s nature
To call my true love to my dance.

Then on the cross hanged I was,
Where a spear my heart did glance;
There issued forth both water and blood,
To call my true love to my dance.

The crèche and the cross

There are two little-known verses of “What Child is This?” that have disappeared from almost all of our hymnals. These lost stanzas by William Chatterton Dix (1837-1898) invite us to go deeper into the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, even in the middle of our celebration of Jesus’ birth. They remind us that the paschal mystery is the “theme” of every season. Next time you see an image of the baby Jesus or hear the angels’ “Gloria,” see, too, the wood of the cross and the lance at the side, and hear, also, the song of the Easter Exsultet, “Rejoice, O heavenly powers, sing choirs of angels!”

Why lies he in such mean estate where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christian, fear. For sinners here,
the silent Word is pleading.
Nails, spear, shall pierce him through,
the cross be borne for me, for you.
Hail, hail the Word made flesh, the Babe, the Son of Mary!
So bring him incense, gold, and myrrh.
Come, peasant, king, to own him.
The King of kings salvation brings.
Let loving hearts enthrone him.
Raise, raise the song on high. The Virgin sings her lullaby.
Joy, joy, for Christ is born, the Babe, the Son of Mary!

Three more catechetical carols for your RCIA group

Here are three more carols that have the power to teach Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection.

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence

This is probably not listed in the Christmas section of your hymnal, but this 5th century text is an extraordinary image of the Word made Flesh.

Of the Father’s Love Begotten

This simple chant sings of the Incarnation as salvation history.

Good Christian Friends, Rejoice

This 14th century text answers why Christ was born: that we may no longer fear death.

What carols can you think of?

What carols have you used to catechize with? Or which ones might you use this Advent and Christmas to teach the paschal mystery?

1. Sing these 6 carols in RCIA for strong holiday catechesis
2. 5 ways to lead your RCIA participants from the North Pole to Jesus Christ this Christmas
3. Simbang Gabi: How to put stars in the eyes of your RCIA participants this Advent
4. Be a dreamer this Advent

Have you ever heard anyone tell you that you weren’t supposed to do these things in Advent? I have heard all of them. I’ve even said a few of them in the past:

• Don’t sing Christmas carols before Dec. 24
• Don’t get too busy; Advent is a time of reflection
• Don’t go to the mall (or Amazon.com) too often; don’t commercialize the season
• Don’t up a Christmas tree or Christmas lights before Dec. 24
• Don’t pay too much attention to Santa Claus; focus instead on the “real” St. Nicholas

RCIA Without Meetings: Forming Faith over the Holidays

One-hour webinar

Is your life too busy for RCIA this holiday season? Maybe your planning to take a break. Or maybe you plan to slog through, hoping the catechumens will show up for your sessions.

What if there were a third way? What if you could continue forming faith without having to hold formal sessions?

• Discover four ways to teach catechumens about the Blessed Virgin
• Connect Santa and last-minute shopping with Eucharist—in a good way
• Learn about two major ethnic traditions that are all about the journey of faith
• Uncover the catechetical riches of Christmas carols

Presenters: Nick Wagner and Diana Macalintal
Date: Thursday, December 1, 2011
Time: 2:00p to 3:00p Eastern Standard Time

Click here for more information

Here’s the thing, though. No matter how much we try to keep Advent pure, everyone around us will be celebrating “the Christmas season” beginning about the time the last trick-or-treater goes to bed. This is especially true of catechumens and uncatechized candidates who have no tradition of celebrating Advent and Christmas liturgically. For those who come to us with a strongly secular background, things like Christmas shopping, house decorating, and gift wrapping might be the most spiritual activities of the year. I remember a fallen-away-Buddhist neighbor I had once who had the best Christmas tree on the block. It went up every year on the day after Thanksgiving and came down on December 26. She couldn’t tell me much about Buddhism, but she had a story for every single ornament she placed on her tree.

So as I’ve gotten older, I’ve stopped trying to fight the secularization of the Advent-Christmas season. Now I try to find the kernel of spiritual truth in what people find meaningful about all the frenzied activity that goes on during the holidays.

Joy to the World

As a result, I’m okay with the catechumens singing a few Christmas carols before Christmas day. And I also expect them to know when Advent begins and ends and that it is a season of preparation.

Silent Night

I don’t even try to tell catechumens to slow down during Advent—especially if they have children. But I do ask them to plan some extra time for prayer during the season.

Jingle Bells

It strikes me as completely futile to tell catechumens not to commercialize the season. In fact, in the face of the worst economic slump since the Great Depression, it is almost patriotic to go shopping. So I don’t rail too much against all the ads and the time we spend in the mall. But I do ask the catechumens to spend some of their gift budget on the poor.

O Christmas Tree

If you come to my house in Advent, you’ll see a tree and Christmas lights. But you’ll also see an Advent wreath, and I encourage the catechumens to also have a wreath in their homes.

Jolly Old St. Nicholas

Dealing with Santa Claus is harder for me. I bear the name of one of the greatest, most-loved saints in church history. Whenever I see the fun-house distortion of St. Nicholas that was cemented into our secular holiday traditions by Coca-Cola in the 1930s, I get a twinge in my stomach. But I can’t even get too upset about Santa. (Just please, please, please don’t bring him into the liturgy.) For those who have never heard the good news of Jesus Christ, Santa Claus may be the most stable image of hope and joy they have ever had. It’s not too difficult to draw a line from the North Pole back to St. Nicholas, bishop of Myra, and from there to Christ.

How about you? How do you and your RCIA team handle secular vs. sacred traditions when forming the catechumens?

1. Sing these 6 carols in RCIA for strong holiday catechesis
2. 5 ways to lead your RCIA participants from the North Pole to Jesus Christ this Christmas
3. Simbang Gabi: How to put stars in the eyes of your RCIA participants this Advent
4. Be a dreamer this Advent

Have you ever walked a road at night with your path lit only by starlight? In the barrios of the Philippines, stars are the lamps that guide the nighttime traveler. During the Advent and Christmas seasons, one will find parols (star lanterns) hanging from windows. Bamboo sticks and rice paper form a three-dimensional star in which a light bulb or candle is placed so it may glow. (In import stores such as Cost Plus, you might find some variations on these parols for your own home.)

Parols come from the Filipino celebration of Simbang Gabi or “church in the night.” The Catholic missionaries in the Philippines in the 16^th century, conscious of the work schedule of the townspeople, began celebrating Mass early in the morning before farmers began their work in the fields and after the fishermen came in from their night’s work. This allowed the whole community to gather for Eucharist, catechesis, and fellowship. Parols lit their way to the church.

These Masses came to be known as Misa Aurea or “golden Mass” or Misa de Gallo (“Mass of the rooster”) because they were celebrated at dawn. The Masses celebrated the Incarnation of the Word through Mary’s “yes.” They were festive celebrations with Christmas carols sung before Mass, catechesis, faith sharing, and of course, lots of food afterward. These nine days embodied God’s desire to be human and the Filipino’s joy for that humanness.

RCIA Without Meetings: Forming Faith over the Holidays

One-hour webinar

Is your life too busy for RCIA this holiday season? Maybe your planning to take a break. Or maybe you plan to slog through, hoping the catechumens will show up for your sessions.

What if there were a third way? What if you could continue forming faith without having to hold formal sessions?

• Discover four ways to teach catechumens about the Blessed Virgin
• Connect Santa and last-minute shopping with Eucharist—in a good way
• Learn about two major ethnic traditions that are all about the journey of faith
• Uncover the catechetical riches of Christmas carols

Presenters: Nick Wagner and Diana Macalintal
Date: Thursday, December 1, 2011
Time: 2:00p to 3:00p Eastern Standard Time

Click here for more information

Teach your RCIA participants the secret of a joyful Advent

Filipinos in the United States and Canada are constantly inculturating our traditional rituals into our parishes. Simbang Gabi, in particular, is a popular tradition that is celebrated in almost every diocese. What can RCIA teams, catechumens and candidates learn from Simbang Gabi to better prepare for the Incarnation?

Filipinos don’t have the same strict boundaries between Advent and Christmas that some other cultures do. Perhaps our parishes and our RCIA groups can learn from that. For example, if refraining from singing Christmas carols during Advent is creating more tension than joy, then perhaps we need to reassess why we do that. Do our liturgies and attitudes during Advent express an overly penitential posture? Or rather do we live as we pray, waiting in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ?

Simbang Gabi as the basis of RCIA catechesis

An important component to Simbang Gabi is the intergenerational and catechetical opportunity that flows from these nine days. Filipino families and communities span several generations, and gatherings always include all ages.

• How can these liturgies speak to the both the adult and the child catechumens in the parish?
• What corporal works of mercy can be planned around these celebrations—a visit to an elder-care home or a retreat for single parents?
• Can you plan a discussion of the church’s teaching on social justice and its seamless garment understanding of life sometime during these nine days?
• What take-home activities can you send home with your catechumens to help bring more joy and less stress into these hectic days?
• Can you or someone on your team create a reflection question for each day, based on the gospel of the day, that your catechumens and candidates can discuss in their families?
• Is there a familiar Christmas carol you can use as a springboard for mystagogical reflection, reading the words and looking at the theology behind those lyrics? (For example, what does Jesus’ birth teach us about Christ in the lyrics for “What Child is This?” Can we answer that question that the title suggests—who is and what is this child for me?)

Simbang Gabi can be not only a welcome liturgical tradition in our parishes, but can also be a significant formation opportunity for everyone in the RCIA process.

1. Sing these 6 carols in RCIA for strong holiday catechesis
2. 5 ways to lead your RCIA participants from the North Pole to Jesus Christ this Christmas
3. Simbang Gabi: How to put stars in the eyes of your RCIA participants this Advent
4. Be a dreamer this Advent

In 1952, educator Robert Havighurst wrote: “When the timing is right, the ability to learn a particular task will be possible. This is referred to as a ‘teachable moment.’ It is important to keep in mind that unless the time is right, learning will not occur” (Human Development and Education).

So how do you know when the time is right? One clear indication is when someone has a question. If I ask you how to get to the post office, that is the exact right time to teach me how to get there. If I ask you why the priest kisses the altar when he comes into church, that is the moment when you can teach me about reverence…or holiness…or sacrifice.

The Mass is filled with potential teachable moments like that. Pope Benedict XVI said, “The liturgy can be called the permanent catechesis of the Church, the inexhaustible source of catechesis.” Often, however, we miss opportunities to maximize the teaching potential of the Mass.

Liturgy is liturgy—not a tool for catechesis

Unlock the symbolic code of the Mass: A key for RCIA catechesis

One-hour webinar

Join Nick Wagner and Diana Macalintal for a one-hour online workshop to explore these questions:

• Why are liturgical symbols important for catechesis?
• What is a symbol?
• How do symbols catechize?
• What if we based all our RCIA catechesis on ritual symbol?

Presenters: Nick Wagner and Diana Macalintal
Date: Thursday, November 17, 2011
Time: 2:00p to 3:00p Eastern Standard Time

Click here for more information.

The reason we miss opportunities may be because we misunderstand how the liturgy catechizes. The pope also said we must reject “all undue instrumentalization of the liturgy with ‘catechetical’ ends.” What that means is, we cannot turn the liturgy into a tool—an instrument—for catechesis. Liturgy is liturgy. It is not an excuse for a “teaching Mass” or a platform for things like a “three-minute catechesis” before the final blessing. When we “instrumentalize” the liturgy, we are attempting to teach people what we think they should know—not what they are asking to learn.

So if we are not supposed to instrumentalize the liturgy for “catechetical ends,” how does the liturgy teach? Think about falling in love. How did you learn about your beloved? How did she “teach” you what would win her heart? We woo and learn to woo mostly through symbolic behavior—like kissing. Why do you kiss your husband or wife when you wake up? Or before you leave for work? Or when you return home? For much the same reason the priest kisses the altar, I think. It is a sign of reverence…or holiness…or willingness to sacrifice.

If you want to teach your spouse that you love him, you show him signs like this. In the liturgy, if we want to catechize about the love of Christ, we do it through ritual signs and liturgical symbols. In much the same way that long-married spouses have a daily routine of such signs, the liturgy has a routine way of symbolizing the love of Christ.

Word

The first major symbol is word. The way in which “word” gets expressed is an orchestration of liturgical symbols.

• We gather to hear the word
• We process the word into the gathering
• We proclaim the word
• We sing praise to the word
• We might bow to the word
• We might incense the word
• The priest or deacon kisses the word

And most importantly, we respond to the word.

Eucharist

In the Mass, our response to the word is Eucharist—which is our second major symbol. Eucharist is a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. The way in which we offer that sacrifice is an orchestration of still more symbols.

• We present bread and cup for the sacrifice
• We sing holy praise with all the angels and saints
• We remember the story of our salvation—especially the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection
• We break the bread that has become body
• We pour out the cup, now filled with the blood of new promise
• We share in the feast of sacrifice
• We pray as one that the sacrifice we have just shared will save the entire cosmos

How the Mass teaches

The way the Mass teaches best is when we do these actions as clearly and simply and elegantly as possible. When we rush or minimize these potential teachable moments, we reduce the likelihood that a question will arise in the hearts of the newcomers.

On the other hand, when we take care to do these symbols well—with a sense of reverence, and holiness, and sacrifice—they teach in a way that no other action of the church can teach.

1. How to provide a complete RCIA catechesis: use liturgical symbols
2. The right way and the wrong way to do a “teaching Mass”—according to the pope

Are you providing a complete catechesis for your catechumens and candidates? A key element in their catechesis is being able to worship with a full understanding of the liturgy. And to do that, they have to understand what the symbols mean.

Symbols are the language of the liturgy

Symbols are a vocabulary and a grammar. If you didn’t grow up “speaking” the symbolic language of liturgy, it can take a little bit of work to master. Take a symbol like “water,” for example. What does water mean in the liturgy?

To know what water means liturgically, we have to first know what it means in our own experience.  In Merriam-Webster, there are eight definitions of water, and most of those have two or three subpoints of further definition. And that’s just the noun. There is also the verb and adjective to consider. And we haven’t even touched on synonyms and related words yet.

In RCIA, we can’t limit our definitions

Unlock the symbolic code of the Mass: A key for RCIA catechesis

One-hour webinar

Join Nick Wagner and Diana Macalintal for a one-hour online workshop to explore these questions:

• Why are liturgical symbols important for catechesis?
• What is a symbol?
• How do symbols catechize?
• What if we based all our RCIA catechesis on ritual symbol?

Presenters: Nick Wagner and Diana Macalintal
Date: Thursday, November 17, 2011
Time: 2:00p to 3:00p Eastern Standard Time

Click here for more information.

This is important for liturgical catechesis. When we catechize about water, we tend toward sentences like this: “In the sacrament of baptism, the church teaches that all our sins are washed away.” Absolutely true! And woefully incomplete! Think of all the things you know about water. When someone is baptized, does the water only refer to washing? Of course not. It means everything water can possibly mean.

And not just what water means to you, but also what water means to the person getting baptized. What it means to the one performing the baptism. And what it means to everyone gathered to celebrate the baptism.

And (pausing for breath) what it means to anyone who was ever baptized, ever wanted to be baptized, ever witnessed a baptism, or ever just took a bath or a drink of water.

The meaning of water is huge.

God is a big mystery

The meaning has to be huge, because the water is not just telling a story about itself. The water is telling a story about who God is. Through the water, we learn something about God. If we limit God to “washes away all sin,” we’ve miscatechized. God does wash away all sin of  course. And God also quenches our thirst. Rains on the just and the unjust. Flows like living water throughout the earth. Separates the water above from the water below. Drowns our old selves. Rebirths us in water and Spirit. Walks on water. Wraps the waters in clouds. Separates the waters for our safe passage. Turns water into wine.

And that’s not the half of it.

Three steps toward a more complete RCIA catechesis

So in order to provide a complete catechesis, we have to be constantly developing a symbolic vocabulary. A great deal of our catechesis has to be a three-part process:

1. Reflecting on our own experience of a symbol (like water)
2. Helping the catechumens and candidates reflect on their experience of a symbol (like water)
3. Connecting our experience of a symbol (like water) with the experience of the church (Scripture and tradition)

What is your experience of water?

So let’s get started. What is your most memorable experience of water? Please share in the comments box.

1. How to provide a complete RCIA catechesis: use liturgical symbols
2. The right way and the wrong way to do a “teaching Mass”—according to the pope

The latest Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part II opens next week in theatres. I cannot wait to see it! In this seventh and final episode of the Harry Potter saga, Harry and his friends have the ultimate confrontation with the Dark Lord, Voldermort, and his wicked allies. It’s a brutal battle in which Harry, Ron, Hermione and the other adolescents fight fearlessly alongside their adult compatriots to defeat evil. In the end, of course, goodness and truth prevail.

            Although some in Catholic circles criticize the witchcraft and wizardry in the Harry Potter series, I believe that Harry Potter can teach those of us in RCIA ministry something about forming kids in faith. And, the climax we see in the final movie points to what it is that Harry Potter teaches.

            Harry, with the supportive guidance of Headmaster Dumbledore and others, teaches his Hogwarts friends that if they are loyal and true and stand united that they can overcome anything – even evil itself as embodied in Lord Voldermort. Indeed, the Hogwarts band of friends defeats the Dark Lord in the final scene and goodness triumphs. So, what does Harry know about teaching kids and what’s this got to do RCIA ministry?

            Harry teaches us about the power of adolescent peers “teaching” each other. For a number of reasons, the professors at the Howgarts School are not able to teach the students to defend themselves against evil forces. In a previous film (or book),  Harry brings a group of students together and he teaches them how to defend against, and ultimately defeat evil. It’s a type of peer teaching. Kids can teach kids in a way that adults cannot. Harry teaches his friends to believe in the good and to believe in each other. It is this point, the importance of peer formation, which I believe we should take to heart.

            The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults speaks urgently about the importance of peer companions in the journey of faith. Indeed, the Rite says that the children’s formation “depends on the help and example of the companions” (RCIA, no. 254). Similar to the way Harry’s classmates learn from him; defense, courage, unity, and importance of standing up for what is just and right; our young catechumens learn faith in Jesus Christ and the ways of discipleship from their Catholic peers.

            There are other “lessons” we can take from Harry Potter that can help us in the way we form kids in faith. Harry has a mission to fulfill and he, along with his companions, makes a difference in their world. I am not suggesting that Harry Potter has overtly Catholic Christian overtones or that we should read too much into the books or movies. (Although, I will say that I love the banquet scenes in the films and in the books). I’m simply suggesting that you take a look at Harry Potter and what he is able to accomplish with the help of his friends and his community.

            In the end, for the fictional Harry Potter and the wizarding world, good triumphs over evil. In our world, God triumphs over evil – always. Not a bad lesson to teach our young catechumens.

When you think about the children’s RCIA process in your parish, are you fairly satisfied with the way it works? Or, are there aspects of children’s RCIA that are weak and need improvement?

Do you wish parents were more involved?

Do you wish the liturgical component was stronger?

Whether you are satisfied with your children’s RCIA or whether you are looking for ways to strengthen the process, here are six simple sure-fire ways to improve children’s RCIA in your parish.

1. Make time to talk individually, in person, to each parent/guardian at the beginning of the process

This is the single most important thing you can do to improve children’s RCIA.

If you are “really” doing children’s RCIA, then you are doing a precatechumenate that is different in design and purpose from the period of the catechumenate. And, in order to design a precatechumenate that fits the needs of the child, you must understand the family history and formational needs of the child.

For example, if Annie is unbaptized, but has been going to Church with Grandma for ten years, she probably doesn’t need an extended precatechumenate. On the other hand, if Annie is unbaptized and has rarely been in Church, then the precatechumenate period will likely be extensive.

Furthermore, the family’s religious history and formational needs are not something that can be easily discussed on the telephone or in a group meeting. If you already do these initial, individual conversations with parents, then I suggest you concentrate on using this family information to refine and improve what you do doing precatechumenate.

2. Do the minor rites

The minor rites (RCIA, nos. 81-105) are simple rituals that, when done well, add tremendous depth and reverence to the period of the catechumenate. At the end of your catechetical session, use one of the “Blessings of Catechumens” or “Minor Exorcisms” to close your session (RCIA, nos. 90-97). Everything is spelled out for you in the ritual text and a catechist can preside (see nos. 91, 96).

Practice your presiding skills in advance in front of a mirror.

If possible, when you preside use the ritual edition (leather or cloth bound) of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults instead of your ratty, old paperback edition. Believe me; ending a session with a well-prepared minor rite improves your session tenfold!

3. Connect candidates to their peer companions

Including same age peer companions is a must in the children’s RCIA process (RCIA, nos. 252, 254). Here is a list of ways you can connect children in the RCIA with the baptized kids in the parish. Have the child candidates or catechumens participate in:

• Some of the appropriate First Communion or Confirmation preparation
• Service projects sponsored by religious education or youth group
• Junior high or high school retreats
• The Children’s Liturgy of the Word during Mass
• Occasional religious education sessions when it’s appropriate (National Statute, no. 19)

Also, invite companions to participate in your RCIA sessions. Companions might come on a regular basis as a type of “sponsor” for the children in the RCIA. Or, companions might come to RCIA on an occasional basis, depending on how your sessions are structured.

4. Include peer companions in the Rite of Acceptance into the Order of Catechumens

Another way to include companions is to be sure that at least some of the children’s companions are present at the rites. Companions are mentioned in the Rite of Acceptance (no. 269), although they do not have a specific role within the Rite.

I suggest you make a slight adaptation within the Rite and have the peer companions stand up with the candidates and their parents. During the “Receiving the Candidates/Children” (nos. 48, 262), have the companions come forward during the introduction of the children. Invite the companions to say why they believe Justin or Maddy or Anthony should be accepted as a catechumen.

Later in the ritual, after parents, sponsors, and/or catechists have signed the signed the senses of the candidates, have the companions do the same (nos. 55, 56, 267, 268).

Including companions in the Rite of Acceptance improves your children’s RCIA process in three ways.

1. Helps the catechumens themselves feel more supported by their peers
2. Gives the companions a specific and important role
3. Gets more members of your parish involved in RCIA

5. Involve parents in discerning readiness for the rites

Another way to improve your children’s RCIA is to improve the way you discern the children’s readiness for the Rite of Acceptance and the Rite of Election. The RCIA mentions the bishop, priests, deacons, catechists, sponsors, godparents and the entire community as those responsible for determining readiness for the rites (nos. 43, 121).

In the case of young catechumens, certainly parents ought to be intimately involved in discerning whether or not their children are experiencing conversion.

There are several ways you can engage parents in the discernment process.

• You can give the parents some reflection questions several weeks in advance of the rites. These questions should help them to discern the signs of conversion their child is experiencing. Some of the questions might be designed to stimulate discussion between the parent and child.
• You could schedule individual appointments to talk with parents about their child’s readiness.
• You can design a group process whereby parents can give testimony about their child’s readiness for the rites.

6. Invite kids and families to the Easter Vigil

Perhaps the simplest way to improve children’s RCIA is to personally invite parish children and their families to the Easter Vigil. The more children and families we have at the Easter Vigil, celebrating the Sacraments of Initiation with children in the RCIA, the richer and better our celebrations will be. More children and families at the Vigil is not only a testament of gladness and support to the RCIA families, it’s a way to deepen the faith of our Catholic families.

When more kids and parents are at the Vigil, they experience the power of the liturgy, the sacraments, and the RCIA. This not only heightens awareness of children in the RCIA, it makes more parish children and families want to be a part of it.

Can I get your thoughts on what the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults means by uncatechized? We get a lot of questions about the rites that arise from differing understandings of what we mean by this term.

For example, we often hear from folks who are trying to figure out what to do with children. A child may be on a path to becoming Catholic because his parents are joining the Catholic Church. The child has celebrated first communion and perhaps even confirmation in his previous tradition. Is he catechized or uncatechized?

Another example we received is a Catholic child who stopped going to church after she celebrated her first communion. Now, at age 12, she is returning to church. Is she catechized or uncatechized?

There a lots of examples of baptized adults from another tradition. Let’s say one man stopped going to his non-Catholic church after first communion in that tradition. He has been away from church and the Christian lifestyle for 20-plus years. Now he wants to become Catholic. Catechized or uncatechized?

Or how about a Protestant woman, who had gone to her church faithfully her whole life until she married a Catholic. Since her marriage ten years ago, she has been accompanying her husband to Mass every Sunday. Is she catechized or uncatechized?

What about a faithful Catholic adult who goes to communion every Sunday, but was never confirmed. Is she catechized or uncatechized?

What does the rite say?

As always, I turn to the rite for help with these things. The section of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults that deals with uncatechized adults starts at paragraph 400. (Remember that for the purposes of initiation, children of catechetical age are considered adults. So this section applies to them as well.)

The following pastoral guidelines concern adults who were baptized as infants either as Roman Catholics or as members of another Christian community but did not receive further catechetical formation nor, consequently, the sacraments of confirmation and eucharist.

The threshold for catechized seems pretty low here. According to the rite, someone who is uncatechized is a baptized person who received zero catechetical formation after infancy. In all of the examples above, the person in question has received some catechetical formation.

Does it really matter?

I think we would all say that some of the people in the examples above need a lot more catechesis. But is it true that they are really uncatechized? And given that we could all use more catechesis, is there any harm in treating them as uncatechized for the purposes of the catechumenal process?

Thanks for sharing your ideas.

I’m preparing to give a day-long workshop on mystagogy for the Archdiocese of Newark in February. Just out of curiosity, I thought I’d Google mystagogy and see what comes up. After all, many people today use search engines when they want to get information. If someone new to the RCIA wants to find out what is mystagogy what would they discover on the internet?

What’s Out There

Well, surprisingly, the results weren’t bad at all. The first was a blog, so I skipped it. Then an article by Father Paul Turner—his work is always very fine. The Free Dictionary came up next. OK. This was followed by a website by a retired Methodist clergy couple who are very active in liturgy. Clear information and helpful. Seeds were planted in the ecumenical institute at Collegeville. Our ecumenical partners are at work!

Next was a Faith Update from St. Anthony Messenger Press, followed by a good essay on the FDLC website by Sister Sandy DiMasi, longtime friend of the catechumenate. Then we had an article by our own Miriam Malone, SNJM at RPInet, entitled Six Steps to Effective Mystagogy. Go, Miriam!

Catholic.com offered us an article entitled Life Beyond Confirmation, and finally—drum roll, please—TEAM RCIA!  At that point, I felt I had an adequate sample.

Models for Mystagogy

Aside from Google, however, I’ve been watching as certain trends develop.

Today in our pastoral practice, I think we are seeing several different models for mystagogy taking shape. A fairly common model is the mystagogy of reflection on the experience of the Easter Vigil. Many parishes will do this in some form. I call this the reflection / insight model.

Another model was offered in Father Ron Oakham’s recent Forum webinar on mystagogy. He offered a model of catechizing on the sacraments throughout the fifty days of the Easter season, based on the lectionary. I call this the sacramental / catechetical model.

Yet another model has surfaced through the RCL resource, Foundations in Faith, produced in the 1990s. It focuses on the neophyte Masses and especially that part of the Mass that the newly initiated now take part in: the Eucharistic Prayer and Communion rite. (Full disclosure: I was on the writing team for that resource.) I call this the Eucharistic model.

(N.B. The Foundations in Faith mystagogy manual also includes resources for experiences of a shared meal and shared social justice activity, as well as lectionary-based session plans.)

Over the past few years I’ve been writing RCIA guidelines for the Archdiocese of New York. Their advisory council suggested to me that we think in terms of models. In this context I began working on my own model. I call it the discipleship model.

The Discipleship Model

This model is governed by the question: what skills, experiences, relationships and understandings do the neophytes need in their lives now that they are initiated, in order to live as disciples? Discipleship is the measure.

Please note that what I am calling models are not mutually exclusive, as you already may have guessed. And, true to this insight, the discipleship model draws from several others. The distinction is found in the organizing principle. It begins and ends with discipleship.

Reflection on the experience of the Easter Vigil fits into the discipleship model. The experience of the sacraments of initiation, after all, is key to living as a disciple. Exploring this experience with others is an essential element.

But that’s not all. It is also important, as disciples, to get the most we can out of the second half of Sunday Mass. Sharing the Liturgy of the Eucharist with the same enthusiasm and receptivity that we’ve brought to the Liturgy of the Word is a discipleship skill.

Strengthening community bonds as full participants is part of the discipleship model too, as is mission. The rite firmly supports this. The foundation for community and mission was laid well in the catechumenate. Time to affirm it and take it a step further.

Another part of the discipleship model is intimacy with our Lord. Closeness to him. The image of the Good Shepherd is an icon of this important aspect of discipleship. It belongs in mystagogy. Jesus says in John’s gospel that he knows his sheep and they know him. The mystagogy period is a precious time to discover and enjoy that intimacy that will sustain the neophytes for the rest of their lives.

Finally, there is a golden opportunity during the Easter season to see the life of the early Church as the inspiration for our community of faith today. We hear every week from the Acts of the Apostles. I think there is a great (and largely untapped) resource here for mystagogy.

Future Posts

In another post, I will share an actual schema for this model unfolded across the seven weeks of the Easter season. It’s pretty simple, actually. Anybody can do it. I would also like to discuss the methodology of this model with anyone who is interested, because I am excited about the possibilities and I know you will help to get at what is most important and practical.

In a third post, I will share some ideas about ongoing mystagogy. You may have noticed that I did NOT suggest the fifty days as a time to catechize on the Sacrament of Penance. Many people fear that Penance is left dangling, because the newly baptized have not yet celebrated this sacrament. My own view is that an experiential catechesis on the Sacrament of Penance belongs in the year-long mystagogy that follows initiation. It needs and deserves more focus than the fifty days allow. I’ve never felt it natural to try and blend it in with the Easter season. Others may see this differently.

What About You?

I welcome your comments and suggestions about mystagogy. Do you have a model? What has worked well in your own experience?

Asking you is better than asking Google!