Rcia Program Resources
If you are a pastor or Director of Religious Education, this article is for you. RCIA is an integral part of any new Catholic's exposure to the Faith.
Therefore, it is in our best interest to make sure this experience is a very positive and fulfilling one. Unfortunately, so many RCIA programs in modern parishes fall far short of this ideal.So how do we put together and run a successful, educational and faith forming RCIA program? Believe it or not, can be done. In my time as a DRE, I have often thought the Church should ultimately rethink the entire idea of RCIA; not saying it should be scrapped altogether; teaching the faith in a structured, class setting has certain benefits (of course, the problem is that these days it is seldom a class and seldom structured). What I do think is that RCIA needs to be made but one part of many possible avenues of entry for coming into the Church, so that pastors can respond accordingly to the needs of various individuals. I know several Protestants who I hope will be entering the Church in the next couple of years; while I rejoice at this, I am also deathly afraid that they will have an experience of RCIA like the one I described last time - something which will drive them away from Mater Ecclesia rather than into her bosom. Emotional or Academic Experience?
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RCIA and Religion Readiness. RCIA programs and resources for adults, teens and children, plus religion readiness materials.
In the first place, we need to jettison any idea that the RCIA experience is going to be about an emotional experience; what I mean is that we need to abandon the diocesan-pushed idea of RCIA as a 'faith sharing' forum where participants discuss their spiritual journey and their feelings. Rather, RCIA will be academic in nature; a series of classes - lectures. Sure, there will be discussion and interaction, but the sessions will primarily be made up of lecture time in which you (the DRE, director, or whatever) teach and the students listen receptively. This is a very, very important point and is the first step. This step must be taken in your mind before classes ever begin - these are to be truly classes in the traditional, academic sense. Make sure you are prepared to really teach and not just share experiences, and make sure the pastor is on board with this as well.
Of course, we are not discounting the important of forming an emotional connection to the Faith. Not at all - but we are affirming the old metaphysical principle that you cannot love what you do not know. First impart knowledge, and if this is done in love and with enthusiasm, the love we want our catechumens to have for the Faith will arise out of this knowledge. Screening Candidates and Catechumens.
Before classes begin, interview all potential catechumens and candidates. Our classes began in late August, so usually in July or early August I have private interviews with everybody who has signed up for the classes.
They fill out a sheet with all their important info on it, date of baptism if applicable, etc. But the most important reasons for the interview are (1) to assess the potential catechumen/candidate to see if they have good reason for doing what they are doing; i.e., 'Why do you want to become Catholic?' (2) to inform them up front of the nature of the classes and, more importantly, of the commitments they will need to make (3) to see if they will require an annulment; if so, the case is referred to the pastor.
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A little more elaboration on the second point regarding commitment: when I am interviewing people, I try to make RCIA sound challenging, maybe a little more so than it actually is. They need to commit to coming to class every single Monday night for the next nine months, showing up at various liturgical events, coming to a few extra-curricular activities (like a trip down to Detroit for an Extraordinary Form Mass on Palm Sunday, so they can get exposure to the Extraordinary Form), coming to Mass every Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation and (if they are engaged or have a boyfriend/girlfriend) abstaining from all sexual relations. If I get a person who is cohabiting I tell them up front that they will not be received into the Church as long as that state of affairs continues (but I usually refer these cases to the pastor, who makes the final call).
This meeting presents Catholicism as something very challenging - and therefore valuable - and puts them in a disposition to be willing to work and suffer, if need be, for the Faith. It also weeds out people who would not be able to put up with all of the requirements. This is no real loss; it is better to get such people out at the very beginning rather than let them go through the motions and then let them into the Church with sinful habits already formed (like fornication, Mass-skipping, etc). What Sort of Curriculum. Now for the actual curriculum - this is important, and this is where many RCIA classes fail.
In the first place, many have no curriculum so to speak of. They have a lot about sharing spiritual experiences, but little concrete in the form of academic instruction/catechesis; this is why RCIA directors are often unable to give the Protestant catechumen any reason why he or she should become Catholic, saying instead that it is 'for her to decide.' To avoid this, we will need to come up with a definitive curriculum.
Remember, your people are there to receive something from you - what are you going to give them? So you do need some sort of curriculum.
Secondly, this curriculum must cover the whole of Catholic faith, morals and spirituality. It must not be narrowly focused on 'social justice' issues, heavily bent towards 'service projects' or parish involvement. Programs that are weighted down with these elements tend towards the heresy of activism - giving the impression that being Catholic is all about doing a bunch of stuff and making people feel good because they are doing things rather than making them holier by forming their soul.
Instead of making your program top-heavy with these sorts of efforts, develop it to be broadly dogmatic; the classes will be about what Catholics believe. Only after understanding what we believe is it proper to discuss how we act on our beliefs. (1) While helpful to occasionally discuss liturgical feasts and readings, doing so exclusively gives the impression that the classes are not going anywhere. Remember, the liturgical year is primarily devotional in nature, not catechetical. I've heard many testimonies from disgruntled catechumens who have said, 'I didn't get anything out of RCIA at this other parish; all we did was sit around and talk about the readings.' Just following the readings and the liturgical year is not pedagogically sufficient for the formation that RCIA requires.
(2) Furthermore (and this is the flip side of the first point) the Catholic Faith can only be fully grasped when it is presented in its integrity, with regard to the hierarchy of truths, and in an organic fashion. Certain truths need to be taught in a certain order, so that student can apprehend higher, more fundamental truths at the outset in order to see how other truths 'interlock' with them to form a composite body of doctrine and morality. Basing classes on the liturgical year, even partially, destroys this essential order and obstructs the instructor from presenting topics hierarchically and organically. It gives the impression that the Faith is a jumble of doctrines with little correlation to each other.
Since Catholicism is most certainly the most logically consistent religious system in existence, to deprive catechumens of the knowledge of this logical synthesis borders on sacrilege. Presenting the Curriculum I've told you what not to do with your curriculum; so what should you do with it? In our program we use the model laid out in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: first theology, then sacraments, morality, and finally prayer; I've tinkered with this a little bit by adding some apologetics at the outset and some other miscellaneous topics.
Here is an outline of what my RCIA year looks like topically (note how they are broken up into larger thematic groupings): Apologetics Sept. 14: Proofs for God’s Existence Sept.
21: The Divinity of Christ Doctrine Sept. 28: Scripture & Tradition Oct. 5: The Blessed Trinity Oct. 12: Creation, the Fall, Angels & the Devil Oct. 19: Incarnation of Christ & Crucifixion Oct.
26: The Church Nov. 9: The Blessed Virgin Mary Nov. 16: Purgatory Nov. 23: Heaven, Hell & Second Coming of Christ Sacraments I Nov. 30: Sacraments & Liturgy Dec. 7: Baptism & Confirmation Dec. 14: The Eucharist Dec.
21: Sin & Confession Jan. 4: Anointing of the Sick Morality Jan.
11: Freedom & Happiness Jan. 18: Moral Virtues Jan. 25: 1st, 2nd, 3rd Commandments Feb. 1: 4th Commandment Feb.
8: 5th Commandment Feb. 15: 6th & 9th Commandments Feb.
22: 7th & 10th Commandments Mar. 1: 8th Commandment & Church Precepts Miscellaneous Topics Mar. 8: Church History 33 - 1054 AD Mar. 15: Church History 1054 - 2008 AD Mar. 22: Saints / Communion of Saints Mar. 29: The Papacy & Hierarchy Sacraments II Apr. 12: The Mass Apr.
19: Holy Orders Apr. 26: The Matrimony Mystagogy (Post-Baptismal Instruction) May. 3: Introduction to Prayer May. 10: The Lord’s Prayer May. 17: Dinner & Reflection (I take them out to a nice restaurant and we just talk about the year) (All these lessons that I used in my parish are available for free on this website ).
There is an inner logic to this line-up: Apologetics comes first in order to specifically answer the question 'Why am I here in this class?' It is also good because it gets certain objections out of the way that can linger and fester if not dealt with up front. It's not impossible for a man to sit through four months of RCIA but keep questioning whether or not it is all hogwash because he has never had the existence of God sufficiently proven to him; and if he can't even accept God's existence entirely, why would he accept, say, the Church's teaching on contraception? Deal with the big apologetical issues first, which can be summed up in two questions: Why believe in God? Why believe in Christ?
Once these are out of the way, you are set to get into theology. The miscellaneous topics are just important stuff that people need to understand if they are Catholic, and which are greatly misunderstood. Not to say I don't work in Tradition - the lessons are seasoned with quotations from the saints, Aquinas, Church Councils (all of them) and a list of books for additional reading. Furthermore, every lecture draws on examples from Church history to make various dogmatic or pastoral points - the end result is that the catechumens do not walk away with a skewered view of Catholicism (like, there's the 'old' Catholicism and then there's the 'new', updated Church); instead, they learn to view the Church in its historical fullness as a single, organic entity and to value Tradition as a lens through which to interpret and understand the teachings of the Faith. This appeal to tradition is solidified when I take them to an Extraordinary Form Mass shortly before Easter. If you get it right, they will pick up on traditional issues as you go.
For example, if you teach properly on the majesty and reverence owed to God in justice, they will naturally start to ask, 'Then why doesn't this parish have the tabernacle more centrally located? Why doesn't everybody receive in the tongue?' And similar questions about decorum and fittingness. Just teaching the Faith makes them orthodox and traditional without them realizing it.
You should never have to stand up and say, 'Let me give you five reasons why parishes should never be built in the round'; they can deduce these conclusions from the simple truth of the Faith alone if you just give it to them. That's all an RCIA instructor needs to do. What about RCIA teams?
Do we use an RCIA team? My pastor's opinion is 'I pay you to be the DRE. You teach them.' This is good enough reason for me; but from a pedagogical viewpoint, it is disorienting to have a string of teachers instead of only one.
Can you think of any other field where this is standard? Does a company want a string of managers coming in one after another?
Does any school district think it is a good idea to have two or three different teachers take a class within a single year? What does it say about a professional sports team (Detroit Lions?) when they go through a head coach every year and a half for several years? If these examples are all unanimously agreed to be bad for the team/students/employees, why would we adopt such a model to form our catechumens, whose souls are at stake? Just when you get used to one instructor you have to adjust to the eccentricities of another. It also retards true relationships from building between the instructor and the class; at least that's my opinion.
Yet despite all these negatives an RCIA 'team' is standard for most parishes. That's because most parishes care more about their programs being inclusive, democratic and representative than they do about actual faith formation.
Evangelical Faith. In fact, more so than other approaches that lay the emphasis squarely on experience. Remember, there is no dichotomy between knowledge and relationship. In fact, before we can adequately live God we must know what we are loving. Basic Thomism comes into play here: the essential vision of God is an intellectual vision that transforms the rest of the person in consequence of the intellectual sight of God. Practically speaking, this means that the truth itself is evangelistic. If we simply teach the truth, and teach it with conviction, then its beauty and splendor are evident and compel the will to act on what the intellect has apprehended.
I have found, in five years of teaching RCIA in two different programs, that when you simply teach the truth the interior conversions experienced by the participants in the class are more profound and long-lasting. This is because the truth is transformative, and as they grasp the truths of the Church with docility (as opposed to being put on the spot to 'share' their feelings), they find themselves transformed in the will and soul even as they learn the truths with the mind. Ironically, if you focus on experience and conversion as primary ends (as opposed to education), they get neither education not conversion; but if you emphasize education, they become converted as well. I hope this helps. Please feel free to pass this post along to anyone you know who may be involved in RCIA or contact me with any questions. Oh, and don't forget to pray for your catechumens constantly.
Very much depends on this and you are accountable for their souls while they are in your care. If you've done everything right, you'll see your former students around the parish for years to come and get feedback like this: 'I most enjoyed Boniface's enthusiasm and reverence for the subject matter! He was able to relate each separate piece to every other piece, and to the whole, so that both the intellectual and spiritual Truth and Beauty of God and His Church were made obvious and undeniable. It was the most fulfilling and rewarding journey of my life! As the weeks went by I realized how important it is to truly understand the reasons why Catholicism is what it is, why we do what we do, and especially why knowledge is so important for spiritual growth.” This from a former atheist of thirty years. I don't toot my own horn here; it was the DRE before me who really got this program rolling - I just polished it up. But I bring it up because I firmly believe the key is not in me or whoever else presents, but in the fundamental approach taken towards the classes - are they for sharing or for education?
Will the instructor teach or will the catechumens blab? Will the curriculum be organic and dogmatic or based on the lectionary? These questions determine the success or failure of the program. Here I've laid out my formula for success - employ it at your parish and I think you'll get good results.!
RCIA Resources Resources on Waking Up Catholic The RCIA process can be overwhelming and confusing. I have put together these RCIA resources to help guide you along the way. This site provides, for those going through RCIA, resources that will give you a better understanding of the Catholic faith. Check out the topics below: This section of the site discusses the basic information you need to know about the Catholic Church. It gives a basic overview of the Church, its leadership, and Catholic Tradition. Here, learn more about the Trinity, Christ Himself, the Virgin Mary, the Saints, and even Satan.
Understanding the Church's views on these key figures helps to understand more about the Church itself. There are 7 Sacraments in the Catholic Church. This RCIA resource gives a brief explanation of why these practices are so important to our lives as Catholics. Of course, the purpose of RCIA is to become Catholic. The resources here give you the basics needed to begin living your life outwardly as a Catholic. Studying scripture can be tough to do on one's own.
Through regular study of scripture, we can learn more about our faith, and ourselves. This RCIA resource offers regular Bible verses with some of my own personal thoughts on those Scriptures. Learning to implement prayer into our daily life can be challenging, but the use of these common Catholic prayers can help you implement regular prayer into your life. Here are some more.