Determining the Fact and Validity of Baptism
Posted on December 22nd, 2009
Baptism is a sacrament that is not repeated, once an individual has been validly baptized. For this reason, he or she would not be baptized again upon reception into full communion with the Church (see CIC 845, 864). When a person seeks to become a Catholic, one of the Church’s responsibilities is to determine whether or not the individual has been validly baptized. Because there are different understandings of and ways to administer Baptism among Christian communions, and a variety of record-keeping practices, the Church has a responsibility to determine that an individual who believes that he or she has been baptized was, in fact, validly baptized.
The Catholic Church recognizes the validity of Baptism by other Christian ecclesial communities when the proper matter and form are used and when both the baptizing minister and the person being baptized have the proper intention (CIC 869 § 2). Water is poured or the one or be baptized is immersed in water (the matter) (CIC 854; GI 18, 22), and the minister says, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (the form) (CIC 850; GI 23). The minister’s intention simply “to baptize” and the recipient’s intention (or, if an infant or child, his or her parents’ and godparents’ intention in his or her name), simply “to be baptized” is sufficient to meet this test, even if none of the parties had a full theological understanding of the sacrament of Baptism. [Click here to read the rest of this entry… » ]
Tags: baptism
Filed under Pastoral Considerations | No Comments »
Christian Fellowship is Foundational
Posted on July 16th, 2009
The testimony of Christian living means that fellowship and love should be tangibly present from the first contact with inquirers. Catholicism is emphatically not a “me and Jesus” form of the Christian faith. The task is not to lead people into some vague state called “being a Christian,” but to invite them to become Catholics.
Pope Paul VI has written that, for Catholics, evangelization is not “an individual and isolated act; it is one that is deeply ecclesial” (Evangelization in the Modern World, 60) and that “the community of believers… is the Church, the visible sacrament of salvation” (23). For this reason, Christian fellowship is called the foundational means of entering in to the mystery of Christ, and the RCIA ritual book stipulates that the “initiation of catechumens… takes place within the community of the faithful” (RCIA 4). Catholic evangelization is aimed at making someone a member of the Body of Christ and [Click here to read the rest of this entry… » ]
Filed under Catechumenate, Inquiry and Precatechumenate, Pastoral Considerations | No Comments »
The Digital Shepherd: Online Catholic Forums
Posted on May 26th, 2009
With the advent of the Internet, several very good and trustworthy Catholic forums have emerged online. These are online communities wherein people create “posts” and are able to hold conversations. This provides an online Catholic community that can assist the formation of your RCIA participants 24/7, at no additional financial cost to you. These forums also help RCIA participants enter into conversations with a great diversity of Catholics, around the globe, opening them up to the catholicity of the Church.
If you have any RCIA participants who are adept at using the Internet, you may want to introduce them to the forums at the website at Catholic-Convert.com. The exact web address is forums.catholic-convert.com. Upon visiting the website, you need not register to read the online conversations, but if you want to ask a question or contribute to an online conversation, simply click the Register link at the top of the website to create a free account.
[Click here to read the rest of this entry… » ]
Filed under Pastoral Considerations | No Comments »
Problems with Attendance
Posted on April 23rd, 2009
Each RCIA process encounters individuals who display problems with attendance. Some express an initial interest but after a while attend RCIA sessions irregularly, or stop coming altogether. Others, who might be physically present, are not really “there.” Some people seem to relate to the RCIA process as “hoops to jump through” in order to become Catholic, which may be especially likely if the person’s Catholic spouse is pressuring him or her to convert. Others attend catechetical sessions and go through the first two gateway Rites (i.e. Acceptance or Welcoming), but do not engage in the process in any other significant way; they appear to be “going through the motions.”
Everyone involved in the Christian initiation process must always keep in mind any circumstance or motivation is good that has brought an individual to contact a parish to find out more about the Catholic Church, and that throughout the Christian initiation process, God’s graces are poured out in abundance on each person. In general, the leader and team must provide opportunities for participants to respond to the Lord through a powerful proclamation of the Good News, joy-filled catechesis, participation in reverent and beautiful liturgies, opportunities for heartfelt prayer, compelling testimonies, and service opportunities. All of these in effect “till the soil” and “scatter the seed” which God will then cause to grow in the participants’ hearts and minds.
[Click here to read the rest of this entry… » ]
Filed under Pastoral Considerations | No Comments »
Using Small Groups in the Catechumenal Process
Posted on February 4th, 2009
RCIA catechetical sessions are not meant solely to transmit information like the convert classes of old. The purpose of catechesis is to initiate and foster the process of conversion of heart and entry into the mystery of Christ. Therefore, in addition to teaching the truths of the faith in catechetical sessions, it is important to provide time in small groups to give participants a forum where they can feel comfortable.
Small groups enable catechumens and candidates to express how they have understood the truths they have heard. They are then able to articulate their initial responses: perceptions, insights, agreements, connections with other teachings, assent, thanksgivings… as well as concerns, reservations, difficulties, and disagreements. The dialogue that small groups foster will allow for participants to experience a deepening of their own conversion as well as to consider how they might apply a particular teaching to their own life situation.
Although small groups are not mentioned in the RCIA ritual book, small groups are exceedingly helpful to participants’ spiritual journeys because they call for dialogue and response.
Genuine catechesis therefore is that catechesis which helps to perceive the action of God throughout the formative journey. It encourages a climate of listening, of thanksgiving and of prayer. It looks to the free response of persons and it promotes active participation among those to be catechized. (General Directory for Catechesis, n. 145)
[Click here to read the rest of this entry… » ]
Tags: Small Groups
Filed under Catechumenate, Pastoral Considerations | No Comments »
5 Reasons People Don’t Stick
Posted on October 1st, 2008
Here, we’ll highlight 5 reasons new Catholics stop practicing the Faith soon after they’re received into the Church through the RCIA process. It’s a sad reality, but it happens more often than we would like to think it does. But have no fear! There are solutions to these 5 reasons and these fixes are given under each reason.
1. People are not brought from their initial motivation to firm conviction.
This pastoral problem is often the result of a rushed catechumenal process wherein participants are moved quickly – without the necessary and proper pastoral discernment – through the rites. A 9-month RCIA process wherein participants are expected to complete their initiation according to the school year can be a source of this haste. (See 9-Month vs. Year-Round)
Whatever initial motivation one has for going through the RCIA is a good one because God has used that as a reason to draw this person to himself. During the process, individuals need to be shepherded in such a way that they come to firmly believe the Faith with firm conviction. As the profession of faith in RCIA #491 says: “I believe and profess all that the holy Catholic Church believes, teaches, and proclaims to be revealed by God.“ Let’s make sure that this is an absolutely truthful statement when the time comes for it to be said. [Click here to read the rest of this entry… » ]
Tags: Staying Catholic
Filed under Pastoral Considerations | 5 Comments »
Pastoral Formation
Posted on August 21st, 2008
The RCIA process is a growth in intimacy as much as in knowledge. Alongside the powerful liturgical movements of the process and the faithful catechetical endeavor, there is also an intense pastoral activity, which must be initiated from the first time an inquirer expresses interest in the Church. This activity operates with the knowledge that each participant will vary in his or her background, lifestyle, motivation, and state in life. Those doing RCIA ministry should steep themselves in the lives of the participants, with gentleness, prudence and a genuine desire to open their hearts wide (cf. 2 Cor 6:11).
The pastoral components are the people who participate, some intimately and others from a distance, in Jesus’ work of conversion and discipleship. The pastoral work of the catechumenal process is accomplished through the love and labor of many people, including the following: clergy, catechists, hospitality folks, sponsors, small group leaders, prayer intercessors, and parish members. This pastoral work is a people-to-person endeavor – all the people impacting this one person for the Lord. Pastoring involves both information and formation. [Click here to read the rest of this entry… » ]
Tags: Pastoral Formation
Filed under Pastoral Considerations | No Comments »
What Is the RCIA Supposed to Be?
Posted on August 20th, 2008
Download and read the PDF article titled: To the Threshold and to the Fullness: What Is the RCIA Supposed to Be? to read a general introduction to the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.
A quote from the above article:
“The intention of the following paragraphs is to open a discussion on the nature of catechumenal ministry – that work of God and his people which seeks to invite and initiate new members into the Mystical Body of Christ… In this article, the RCIA process will be examined from three distinct aspects: liturgical, catechetical, and pastoral. It is useful to discuss the nature and scope of each period of the process in light of these three aspects. All three are equally important. It is an injustice to those considering or seeking union with Holy Mother Church to be unambiguously catechetical to the detriment of the liturgical aspect, or be wonderfully pastoral despite poor catechesis. In order for the catechumenate to be what it has the potential to be, RCIA leaders can benefit greatly from understanding the implications of its liturgical, catechetical, and pastoral dimensions to make available the fullness of the process as intended by the Church.”
Tags: Introduction to the RCIA
Filed under Catechumenate, Liturgy, Pastoral Considerations | No Comments »
