Q. I am wondering about how to facilitate a first confession experience for the elect. There are no rites that I can find or any materials for planning. How can I make sure our new Catholics experience this healing sacrament? Our elect this year did do a weekly examination of conscience during the scrutinies, but we don’t […]
When do you celebrate penance with different seekers?
In a previous article, we looked at why measuring is key to a successful catechumenate. In this article, I want to dig into what we measure and how to measure. To figure out what to measure, we have to clarify what the catechumenate is for. When we use the catechumenate for things it is not
How to measure success in your catechumenate process
Business authority Eliyahu Moshe Goldratt says, “Tell me how you measure me and I will tell you how I will behave. If you measure me in an illogical way…do not complain about illogical behavior.” When I read this, I thought of some of the complaints we often make about the catechumens and candidates. They don’t
Why measuring is key to a successful catechumenate
Lent is a time of anticipation for everyone involved in the initiation process. Our elect are on the final forty days of their journey toward baptism, and we’re all hard at work making sure all the rites and activities go as planned. It’s a time where those going through the process have a certain excitement
Is your RCIA open all year-round? How do you greet seekers?
Q. At my parish we are planning to have a rehearsal for the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday morning. Our master catechist helps with the catechumenate, and she is suggesting that the elect and candidates not be at the rehearsal. She thinks only the sponsors should be there. She mentioned that this way the sponsors are
Prepare the elect for Easter Vigil…but don’t rehearse them
Palm Sunday — Matthew Background: Christian liturgy is not a play reenacting past events but a living celebration of the inner meaning of those events so that it comes alive in us today. As the oldest Palm Sunday hymn says: “To you before your passion they sang their hymns of praise. To you, now high
Reflection questions for RCIA seekers: Year A – Palm Sunday through the 4th Sunday of Easter
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
Wow, you folks are AMAZING! 330 of you responded to our Newsletter Audience Survey. The reason we launched the survey in the first place is that over the last year, we’ve been developing a ground-up renovation of the TeamRCIA website (which 72% of you said you found easy to navigate. Yay!). Now that we have
Survey results from hundreds of catechumenate team members
I just finished another novel by Earl Stanley Gardner. Gardner is the creator of Perry Mason, and he wrote more than 80 stories featuring the brilliant lawyer-detective. Gardner is really good at drawing the reader into the mystery and making you think you’ve solved the crime before the end of the book. But then there
Revealing the mystery of faith: The role of the mystagogue
Can you name the difference between a drifter and a pilgrim? When the Prodigal Son left his father’s house, he was a drifter. When he decided to return, he was a pilgrim. A drifter has no sense of purpose and no goal. A drifter is often seen as someone who is avoiding and escaping the
The accompanist’s guide: Walking with others on the journey of faith
