Among the legends of Christmastime, stories of St. Nicholas stand out and are popular especially among our Germanic and Italian communities. With the sense of his knowing the needs of persons and doing secret things to help them, delightful customs arise. In our family home back in the Midwest, two favorites stay in my memory. …
Each Advent, our Christian initiation group began to see, literally, some strong connections between the stories and figures of the Old Testament linked with Advent, the Nativity and the New Testament. As a classroom teacher years ago, I had a burlap December calendar with pockets identified for each day of the month from the first …
Perhaps it was the strong German background we had growing up, and the customs surrounding Advent that our parents kept alive, but along with the change in weather in the Upper Midwest came a distinct love of celebrating the liturgical seasons. Back then, we had simple ways of winding down the liturgical year, usually tied …
Advent at home: Celebrating and waiting with the domestic church
A young man in his junior year of high school phoned the parish office, inquiring about becoming Catholic. He had been baptized Methodist. Several of his friends from high school were Catholic, and he would soon be with them at the university. These friends talked about their faith, Mass, and sacraments, sparking his curiosity. However, …
A mother and her teen-age daughter came to our information session about adult Christian initiation. Maureen was interested in becoming Catholic, and her daughter Maggie, recently graduated from 8th grade, was also interested. Now, as a family of two, they had taken a step they had talked about for several months and were eager to …
It was early May that year when my office phone rang. The woman calling was so excited to tell me about how the Easter Vigil celebration had triggered something in her—a realization that she was missing something in her own life. But It was the sight of the joyous “people all dressed in those white …
We found ourselves in the quiet, dimly lit church, a few evenings after the Easter Vigil. The neophytes, godparents, sponsors, candidates, catechumens, an inquirer, and team members were gathered, surrounded by the scent of incense and the sound of the flowing baptismal font, illuminated by the Paschal Candle. As we paused from our busy lives, …
As our dioceses and parishes implement more fully the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults for all those who have reached the age of discretion (aka the age of reason), parents sometimes have difficulty understanding why their child would be confirmed at age seven or eight. It is important for all of us to understand …
How to think about Confirmation in the initiation of children
I can’t help but smile as I read—and teach—that Lent is like a 40-day retreat, a time of reflection, quiet, prayer, and fasting. Sometimes it seems that even the spirit of “fasting and feasting” takes a back seat to the activities of initiation ministries during Lent. The invitation to silence and reflection is welcome but …
In a recent Community Chat, TeamRCIA discussed the many ways the baptismal priesthood is the primary agent of formation for the inquirers, catechumens, elect, and baptized candidates. There were a lot of questions about where to find resources to help parishioners “do Lent” in such a way that they also accompany the seekers on their …
Initiation team resources for Lent, Triduum and the Easter Season
