On May 11, 2021, Pope Francis instituted a new ministry of catechist. You may be thinking, as I did when I heard the news, that we have had the ministry of catechist since the Second Vatican Council. In fact, we could say that the ministry of catechist or teacher was established in the New Testament […]
Why is the new ministry of catechist important for RCIA teams?
When parishes look for RCIA catechists, they tend to look for people who are good at giving presentations. While this tendency is understandable, it’s not exactly what the church expects of a catechist. The Directory for Catechesis describes the catechist as someone who has a vocation. The catechist is a Christian who receives a particular
Why your RCIA team needs a mystagogue
Q. How do I get buy-in for my RCIA vision from the parish leadership and faith community? A. This question is at the heart of being human and being in relationship. Differences among us are baked into our DNA. The challenge is, in spite of all our differences, how do we join together to proclaim
Q&A: Eight ways to get RCIA buy-in from everyone in the parish—including the pastor
Every January, I resolve to lose weight. And every December, I weigh about what I weighed in January. Sometimes, it is just too difficult to follow through on the commitments we make to ourselves. But more often, we don’t follow through on our resolutions because we don’t have a clear, compelling reason why we should
Five small RCIA upgrades that will have huge impact
Originally from Montreal but now in Alberta for 25 years, Bonnie Kirk is an Oblate Missionary of Mary Immaculate, She completed her Master’s degree in Pastoral Ministry (1980) at St. Paul’s University in Ottawa. Bonnie has been in active ministry since 1977, enjoying the RCIA adventure for close to 30 years. She currently serves as
How RCIA teams can be witnesses even in cyberspace
When we have baptized candidates in the RCIA, we run into a lot of complications. Ironically, training unbaptized catechumens who have little or no Christian formation can seem simpler and easier. But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are three things we can do to simplify the formation process for baptized candidates. The
Everybody into the pool — sorting the baptized candidates in the RCIA
Mary Kay Arroyo and the initiation team at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Bradenton, Florida, have responded to the shelter-in-place regulations by connecting with their seekers through video chats. We asked Mary Kay to share with us how it’s going, and she sent us this video. Has your team tried some innovative tech solutions for
Has your RCIA team tried video conferencing?
I want to tell you a story about delight. This past Christmas and New Year’s, Diana and I went to the Philippines for a family event. Our return trip included a 14-hour layover at Haneda airport in Japan. We arrived at Haneda exhausted. We made our way through security and then customs. We wearily found
How delightful is your RCIA process?
My beginnings in initiation ministry had two phases. I went to school to learn about liturgy, and my first parish job included planning and coordinating the rites for the catechumenate. I felt pretty confident about that role. Many years later, I moved to California for a non-parish job. I volunteered for to help out on
How to grow your confidence as an RCIA team member
Nehemiah, an officer in the 5th century BC Persian Empire, was feeling distressed. The emperor had granted Nehemiah’s request to help the Jewish remnant who still lived among the ruins of Jerusalem to rebuild the city. But, when he arrived, the situation was dire. Samaritans, Ammonites, Arabs, and Philistines had grown powerful in the land
Encouragement is a core value for catechumenate teams
