In his book, 31 Days to Becoming a Better Religious Educator, Jared Dees asks catechists to define their calling. In Catholic-speak, “calling” is a big word. When I think of “calling,” I think of Noah or Jonah or Peter. I think about those big, important Bible heroes who actually heard God’s voice. In current times, […]
Are you called to RCIA ministry? How do you know?
“Life-changing.” That’s how almost everyone describes their favorite Southern dish in Atlanta. Sometimes we had multiple life changing experiences in one day. It started the night we landed in Atlanta for our most recent Making Disciples RCIA Institute. Our friend, Kathy Kuczka, waited patiently for our hour-late flight, and then rushed us to Muss and
Atlanta RCIA institute discovers life-changing aspects of the RCIA
Diana and I just returned from the Diocese of Erie where we had an amazing institute with 100 RCIA leaders from a half-dozen dioceses. Our host, Sr. Nancy Fischer who has been serving the diocese for 29 years(!), told us she was planning for 80 participants and praying for 100. Sr. Nancy is a passionate
Eastern and Midwest RCIA leaders learn how to involve the whole parish
Ninety enthusiastic RCIA leaders gathered recently in Edmonton, Alberta, to explore the deep structure of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and how we can use that to make disciples. We began on Friday evening and discussed the underlying principles of the RCIA. These six principles can be used to guide any formation process,
RCIA is flourishing in Western Canada
1. Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults Why is this book important? The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults is the authoritative teaching of the church on the purpose and process of initiation. It is the Vatican II vision of the initiation process that answers the mandate of Jesus Christ to go and baptize. What
Top five RCIA resource materials for your team
Diana Macalintal and I spent two days in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan recently, where the temperature dipped to minus-20 degrees Farenheit! But while the temperature was frigid outside, the hospitality and enthusiasm were warm inside. We were there to meet with faith formation leaders from across the diocese to discuss ways to inspire active, committed, lifelong faith
Nick Wagner and I just landed back at TeamRCIA’s home base in San Jose, California, after spending five full days with 70 RCIA leaders from all over North America. We are exhausted yet energized by what we’ve experienced this past week. The Diocese of Saginaw in Michigan sponsors an annual leadership training for its parish
TeamRCIA goes “international” in Saginaw with 70 RCIA leaders and evangelists
Louise, the RCIA coordinator, was leading a reflection on the third scrutiny with the elect after they had been dismissed. John, one of the elect, began to tear up. Haltingly, he spoke about how Lazarus coming out of the tomb was like when he fell in love with Linda, his wife. “My divorce,” said John,
Annulment do’s and don’ts in the RCIA
In the last few posts, we have been exploring running as a metaphor for living the Christian life. We have been looking at the three levels of training that are necessary to “run” as a Christian: The General Directory for Catechesis identifies these levels as: In this post, we’re going to take a quick look
Six examples of catechesis that happen after RCIA is over
