Archive for the ‘Discernment’ Category

Silence is awkward. Remember the last time you met someone new? After you exchanged names, your new friend asked, “What do you do?” You replied, “I’m a catechist.” Looooong silence. Awkward. When we’re meeting with inquirers or catechumens, we try to avoid awkwardness. We don’t want to feel awkward ourselves, and we certainly don’t want [...]

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 [...]

The Scrutinies—three of them—are experiences of the freeing touch of grace, which restores our sight, letting us see good and evil, sin and grace, as they really are.

How do you know if the catechumens are ready for the rite of election? Who decides? What is the process for discerning their readiness? Take a look at Sr. Miriam Malone’s invitation to a one-hour, live training workshop to answer these questions and more. Click here here for more information and to register for the [...]

I have a friend who, for 35 years, successfully resisted all attempts to promote her to a management position in her company. She loves her work, but she did not relish the idea of supervising other people. A couple of years ago, her boss finally convinced her to move up the ladder. And last week, [...]

With catechumens, there are two kinds of discernment. There is an ongoing discernment that begins the moment the seekers become catechumens. And there is at least one formal discernment to determine if the catechumen is ready to celebrate the Rite of Election. Ongoing discernment Honestly, I don’t use the word discernment all that much when [...]

Even though I don’t live in your parish, I know this is the week you need to do some discerning about your catechumens and candidates. How do I know that? Because discernment is an ongoing process. It never stops. Every week is discernment week. What are you discerning? There are two general kinds of discernment—annual [...]

Donna Steffen, SC, a team member with the North American Forum on the Catechumenate, writes about the first time she was confronted with the idea that she would have to discern the readiness of candidates for initiation: “I was horrified. How can I judge another person?” In the July 2009 issue of Catechumenate (“Discernment in [...]

Imagine a catechumen named Penelope who is in the care of a dedicated group of RCIA team members at St. Peregrinus Parish in Pittston, PA. Penelope became a catechumen, along with two other inquirers, in October. It is now February, and the St. Peregrinus team is starting to think about the Rite of Election and [...]

It might seem daunting to discern a person’s readiness for the next step in the RCIA process. But the Rite, itself, gives us some clear guidelines on who does the discerning and what they’re looking for in the daily actions and demeanor of a person seeking to deepen their relationship with God. Note that the [...]