We often get questions asking, “Do we really have to do the dismissal? Couldn’t we just do them once in a while, or maybe just during Lent?” If you and your team have ever asked this question, take some time with us during this video to step back and think about what it means to […]
Why is the dismissal so important?
Embarking on a journey of faith and seeking a deeper relationship with Christ is a profound and life-changing experience. The Rite of Acceptance plays a vital role in this conversion process. When we celebrate this rite with inquirers, they are changed from outsiders to insiders as the community embraces them as their own. But this
From seekers to disciples: Unpacking the conversion journey within the Rite of Acceptance
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?
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
Shortly after I moved to California in 1992, there was a story in the local paper about a woman who landed at the airport thinking she was in San Jose, Costa Rica. She took a taxi to her hotel, went to bed, and only realized the next morning at breakfast that she was in San
How do you know if your seekers are ready for the next step in the catechumenate process?
When I was a kid, we didn’t talk about “rites.” We didn’t really even talk about “liturgy.” The only thing in our world was “the Mass.” I was in high school before I realized the church has a whole constellation of rites. But even then, we didn’t use the term “rites.” We talked about “prayer
What is a rite and why does it matter for catechumenate teams?
In both the current translation of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and in the proposed new translation, the phrase “a priori” is left in its original Latin state. Nothing, therefore, can be settled a priori. (RCIA 76)So nothing can be laid down a priori. (OCIA 76) I suspect it was not translated because
One Latin phrase that was not translated in the initiation rites
Q. One of our catechumens informed us that her godparent will not be able to be present for the three lenten scrutinies, and now she needs to look for a “proxy.” I have three questions: Who selects the proxy? Does the proxy need to fulfill all of the canonical qualifications of a godparent? Does the
Q&A: Proxies for the scrutinies
The way the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults talks about discerning conversion in the seekers can seem like we are being asked to be Judge Judy, sitting behind a high bench, dressed in a black robe, listening to the evidence and bringing down the gavel on any who are not worthy. Specifically, the rite
How do we avoid “judgement” when looking for conversion in the seekers?
In previous posts, we looked at what the Rite (Order) of Christian Initiation of Adults says about why conversion is important and what the church means by conversion. In this post, we want to look at how, according to the rite, we can foster conversion in seekers. When we are talking about the initial conversion
