How to do Mystagogy with the Neophytes in Easter

Frank C. Senn writes about the mystagogical process for neophytes in the early church:

During the week after Easter Day, the neophytes attended the liturgy daily, wearing their white robes, while the bishops instructed them in the mysteries (sacraments) they had just experienced…. The faithful were also permitted to attend these sessions during the “week of white robes” and to ask questions of the bishop as he sat in his chair (cathedra) and expounded upon the mysteries of the faith. (The People’s Work: A Social History of the Liturgy, 70-71.)

Perhaps your bishop would never be able to clear his schedule for daily Mass at the cathedral during Easter Week. But are you sure? Have you asked him? And perhaps the neophytes would not attend in any significant numbers. But are you sure? Have you asked them?

If the bishop in his cathedra, surrounded by the still-damp neophytes, with the faithful also gathered, asking insightful questions is an ideal that just can’t happen in your diocese, how close could you come? Here are some possibilities. Click on comments to add your own ideas:

1. In larger dioceses, ask one or more of the associate bishops to fill in.
2. Ask the deans or monsignors of the diocese to each take a day of “cathedra” duty during Easter Week.
3. Ask the bishop to write a mystagogical homily for each day of Easter Week that might be read or adapted by the homilists of the diocese.
4. Record the bishop’s mystagogical homilies and upload as podcast on the diocesan Web site.
5. Provide a place on the Web site for the faithful to ask questions of the bishop about his homilies.
6. Focus smaller. Invite the neophytes of a given deanery or region to gather for weekday liturgy and mystagogical preaching.
7. Focus still smaller. Ask your pastor to prepare a series of msytagogical homilies for Easter Week.
8. For the neophytes who cannot be present for weekday liturgies, e-mail the homilies to them. “Require” them to respond with at least three questions.
9. In any of the options above, invite the faithful to ask their questions as part of the homily.
10. Publicize the mystagogical nature of this “week of white robes” throughout the diocese, deanery, or parish.
11. Begin now to make it clear to the catechumens that they will be expected to be at the liturgies during the “week of white robes” after their own initiation.

When Do You Dismiss during Triduum?

During the Triduum, the question arises about when to dismiss the Elect and the catechumens. (If you are engaged in a year-round process, you will likely have both.) If parish leaders understand the liturgical role that the unbaptized have in worship, it will be clear that the Elect and the catechumens are dismissed before the priestly action of the liturgy begins.

Holy Thursday

In the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, the first action restricted to the baptized priesthood is the prayer of the faithful. So the Elect and the catechumens would be dismissed before the general intercessions. They would ordinarily be present for and participate in the washing of the feet if your parish chooses to celebrate that option.

Good Friday

Likewise during the Celebration of the Lord’s Passion, the first act exclusively performed by the baptized priesthood is the offering of the General Intercessions. So, just as on Sunday and at the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, the Elect and the catechumens would be kindly dismissed before this prayer.

Who leads them?

In many (all?) communities, it would be a hardship to ask a catechist to leave the worshiping assembly on these days to lead the Elect and catechumens in the dismissal reflection. And, in fact, there is no need to. The Elect will have been participating in dismissal reflections for a year or more by this point. One or more of them should have no difficulty leading the reflection sessions.

Easter

If you are practicing a year-round initiation process, you will have catechumens who will not be baptized at this year’s Easter Vigil. Should they participate in the Easter Vigil? Two pastoral difficulties present themselves in this case. The first is that the powerful symbols and ritual actions of the Vigil may have less impact the second (or third) time around, in the year the catechumens will be celebrating their own initiation. Wouldn’t it be more pastorally effective for them to experience the great Paschal fire, the Exsultet, the extensive readings and prayers of this night, and so on, for the first time on the night of their own baptism?

The second pastoral issue is who would lead them in their dismissal reflection? Unlike the Elect, the catechumens are unlikely to have a great deal of experience with this process, and it would be a great hardship to ask a catechist to be absent for the first time in which the neophytes participate in the Eucharist.

The best solution, perhaps, is to have the catechumens present at the Easter Sunday liturgy—along with the neophytes in their white robes—and to ask a catechist to lead the dismissal at that liturgy.

Triduum Dismissal
When do you dismiss?	We dismiss the Elect and the catechumens from the Mass of the Lord's Supper. We dismiss the Elect and the catechumens from the Celebration of the Lord's Passion. We dismiss the catechumens from the Easter Vigil. We dismiss the catechumens from the Easter Sunday liturgy. We do not dismiss anyone during the Triduum
	Current Results

The Four Essential Doctrines the Liturgy Teaches

A recurring question among catechumenate team members is, what do the catechumens need to know before they can be initiatated. And some are often doubtful the liturgy, which is the source of all catechesis, can in fact teach them what they need to know. Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, laid out this lesson plan at the 150th anniversary of the American College Louvain on March 17, 2007.

The most important doctrines remain the same through the ages and need to be approached again and again by theology and in our preaching; namely,

• the divine and human natures of Christ;
• their union in the divine person of the Son;
• and the mystery of the Holy Trinity
• which Christ reveals in his Paschal Mystery.

I am not suggesting that theologians and preachers ought simply to stand up and talk more about these things. Rather, I am drawing our attention once again to the fact that these doctrines are the deepest sense of what the Scriptures proclaim and that this deepest sense was discovered precisely when the Scriptures were proclaimed in the liturgical assembly and when the Scriptures became sacrament in the eucharistic rite.

You can read his entire homily here. [via Whispers]

How Do I Become Catholic? - Part 1: God is calling. Now what?

The following is Part 1 of a brief overview by Diana Macalintal of the initiation process for adults considering becoming Catholic. Based on material originally written for the Diocese of San José website, you are welcomed to use or adapt it for your own parishes.

Click here to download a formatted handout (pdf) of this article which you can copy for free.

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How Do I Become Catholic?
Part 1: God is calling. Now what?
by Diana Macalintal

© 2007, Diana Macalintal.
All rights reserved.

Learning to Respond
God works in many different ways. Most of the time, God works through ordinary people and events—a parent, a friend, a beautiful sunset, a song, an inspiring story. Other times, we hear God’s call during crisis moments or major life-changes—a birth, an engagement, a sickness, a death. Sometimes, we just have a feeling that something is missing. No matter what your reason for thinking about becoming Catholic, our hope and prayer is that when God calls, you will respond. (If you’re reading this, you’ve already begun to respond!)

One part of the Catholic Church’s mission is to help people respond to God as best they can. For Christians, initiation and on-going participation in the life of the Church are the primary responses to God’s call. Through the process of becoming Catholic, we try to help people learn how to respond to that call not just for the moment of baptism but for everyday of their lives. The way we learn how to respond is by actually doing what Catholics do. So the process of becoming Catholic is not so much about learning things as in a classroom but learning a way of life as an apprentice learns from a master and that master’s community.

Becoming an Apprentice
Becoming Catholic is like an apprenticeship. In the art department of a university I attended, there was a “master potter” who was the teacher for all the pottery students. But his students didn’t really have classes in a classroom like you would have at a school. What they did have was a lifestyle, or a discipline, and they all agreed to live by that lifestyle. In their discipline, the master potter agreed to teach them everything he knew, and the students agreed to watch the potter and follow his example. In a way, they became his disciples.

Every so often, the potter showed them a new skill, like making a tiny tea cup, while the students watched. Then he told them, “Make 100 tea cups like this every day for the next month. When you can do that, then you’re ready to go on to the next step.”

Yet the potter wasn’t only teaching skills; he was also introducing them to the lifestyle of a being a potter. So he had them eat together (using the plates and cups they made), talk about life with each other, take walks together looking at nature for inspiration, and even chop wood together for the kiln that fired their pottery. Little by little and day by day, the students were becoming potters themselves, learning by watching the master, doing as he did, and living as he lived.

Becoming Catholic is a lot like this. There are stages to follow, benchmarks to watch for, and disciplines to be learned and lived before moving on the next step. The process is called the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (often called RCIA). In Part 2: Beginning the Process of Becoming Catholic, we’ll look at the first stage of this apprenticeship into Christian life.

Is Your Dismissal Pastoral Enough?

The most pastoral thing we can do
for the
catechumens is to “kindly dismiss” them, before the prayer of the faithful begins....

I have a friend, a good friend, who also happens to be a priest. He is dead sent against dismissing the catechumens from the liturgy before the general intercessions. Whenever he presides at a liturgy with catechumens present, he will call them forward for dismissal after the intercessions. He thinks it is more pastoral for them to learn to pray with the worshiping community, particularly in this important prayer of the assembly.

What isn’t clear to my friend and isn’t clear to a lot of parish leaders is the hierarchical role of the various orders in the assembly. In a typical parish on Sunday, there are likely to be present three or four orders: the catechumenate, the faithful, the presbyterate, and sometimes the diaconate. Each of these orders has a distinct part to play in the liturgy. The various parts and their cooperative action are a metaphor for the parts of the Body of Christ. Just as an arm cannot do the work of a leg, those who are in the order of the faithful cannot do the parts assigned to the order of presbyters. Nor can catechumens do the priestly work of the faithful.

To offer the prayer of the faithful is a sacrificial act. Therefore, it is a role for the baptized priesthood. Those in the order of the catechumens do not yet share in this formal intercession for the needs of the church and the world. Likewise, they are not yet empowered to participate in the great sacrifice of praise that we offer in the Eucharist. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal says, “The meaning of the [Eucharistic] Prayer is that the entire congregation of the faithful should join itself with Christ in confessing the great deeds of God and in the offering of sacrifice” (78).

Note the participation of the order of the faithful in the Eucharistic Prayer is not first of all about participation in Communion. Thus, baptized candidates seeking reception into the Catholic Church—as well as Catholics who may be restricted from sharing in Communion, and indeed any baptized person—are encouraged to participate in the offering of the sacrifice of the Mass. (See Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1271-1273, 1651.)

In the liturgy, the role of the catechumens is to conform their hearts and minds more fully to Christ in preparation for their baptism “which will join them to God’s priestly people and empower them to participle in Christ’s new worship” (RCIA, 75.3). However well intentioned it might seem, it is not a pastoral act to prematurely anticipate that unity. The most pastoral thing we can do for the catechumens is to “kindly dismiss” them, before the prayer of the faithful begins, to do the work of conforming their hearts and minds to Christ. (See RCIA, 118.)

Honoring the Baptized

Let's suppose you want to honor the baptized by celebrating their reception into the Catholic Church at the first Sunday Eucharist after they are ready. How do you deal with the pastoral issue that they will feel like they are missing something in comparison with the Elect who will be baptized at the Great Easter Vigil? The key is, from the beginning of their relationship with the parish, to identify them much more closely with the Order of the Faithful than with the Order of the Catechumens. Here are several strategies.

1. Remember the Rite of Welcome is optional. As presented in the RCIA, there are a great many similarities to the Rite of Acceptance. It would help the baptized candidates for reception identify more closely with the faithful if you skipped the Rite of Welcome altogether. Instead, use an adaptation of the very simple Order for the Welcoming of New Parishioners from the Book of Blessings.
2. Separate the candidates for reception and the candidates for baptism into different catechetical groups. Every parish is supposed to have ongoing formation for its members. The baptized candidates can be integrated into that formation process while the catechumens remain in the catechumante. If your parish does not yet have ongoing adult faith formation, use the arrival of the candidates for reception as a spur to start.
3. Set up separate sponsor training. The needs of the baptized will be different than the needs of the unbaptized, and the sponsors for each group will require different skills. The ideal sponsors for the candidates for reception will be Catholics who were baptized as infants and cannot imagine any greater joy than to have Christians all their lives. Their very being should communicate what a great gift the candidates for reception have had all these many years.
4. Do not delay their reception. Baptized candidates may be, and should be, received at any Sunday liturgy. Some will require relatively little catechesis and others significantly more. However, whenever the community discerns a candidate is in fact ready, he or she may be received. If some of the other candidates are not yet ready, their reception would take place after more formation has better prepared them.
   
5. Be sure to receive all those who are ready before Ash Wednesday so the candidates for reception can participate fully in the initation of the Elect. They should understand their mission as disciples is to "go and baptize," and not to wish they could get themselves re-baptized.
6. Give these brand new Catholics a major role at the Easter Vigil. They should be right up at the font, helping the Elect into the water, handing them towels as they emerge, escorting them to their chaning rooms, assisting the presider with holding the oils or books during the chrismation, serving as communion ministers, and so on. Yes, there has to also be room for the regular ministers of the parish to serve in these roles, but they could do so as mentors and guides to the new Catholics.
7. Ask the newly received Catholics to help serve as hosts and planners for the reception for the Elect. With the help of their sponsors, the newly received Catholics should project an attitidude that says to the neophytes: "We're overjoyed that you are now one of us."

Why Baptized Candidates Should Not be Received at the Easter Vigil

When should baptized candidates be received into the Catholic Church?

Paul Turner in When Other Christians become Catholic, says, “Whenever they are ready” (p. 161).

The National Statues for the Catechumenate say, not “at the Easter Vigil lest there be any confusion of such baptized Christians with the candidates for baptism…” (33).

As I talk to folks about this issue, it seems there are several rationales in play. There are those who think of everyone as somewhat equally on a conversion journey. Believing that, there would seem to be little difference between the faith of a catechumen, a baptized candidate seeking reception into the Catholic Church, and the average Catholic who celebrates Mass every Sunday. There is something to be said for this point of view. After all, if a thousand years is as a single day to God (2 Peter 3:8), what can the meager differences in our faith lives seem like?

Another group of folks would tend to see the catechumens and the candidates for reception as people who have had a religious awakening. They have been led by the Holy Spirit to the Roman Catholic Church because they understand Roman Catholicism to the fullest expression of their newly awakened faith. The catchechumens and the baptized candidates for reception are both groups of seekers joining the Catholic Church.

And there might be a third kind of initiation team that would see the catechumens and the uncatechized baptized candidates for reception as beginners on the faith journey. Those who have been baptized and somewhat catechized (or maybe even well catechized) are different from the beginners in faith and more like the weekly-Mass Catholics.

All of the parishes that would hold any of these views would be accepting baptized Christians into the Catholic Church at the Easter vigil, although the third group might receive only the previously uncatechized Christians.

The difficulty with each of these rationales or descriptions of particular journeys of faith is that they each assumes some level of accomplishment on the part of the individual. Each position presumes the individual has come to some level (or not) of faith that would determine the ritual celebration of his or her movement from one level of status to another.

What is misunderstood in each instance is that faith is a gift—a total, free, and undeserved gift from God. Baptism is the ritual celebration of that gift, and the sacrament of baptism forever and completely changes a person into one of the chosen, a child of God.

Afterwards, one can then become a heretic, an apostate, a backslider, or the next Mother Teresa, but one can never undo God’s choice. There is an actual and real difference between the baptized and the unbaptized. There is no comparable difference between two baptized people of different denominations. Both are heirs to the kingdom and disciples of Christ. Both are bestowed with the full rights, responsibilities, duties, and privileges of those who belong to Christ.

The entire lenten process, which has its culmination in the Great Easter Vigil, is about marking and celebrating the miracle that God has chosen yet again to name another of us as son or daughter. We should not attempt to diminish the mighty act of God by seeming to ignore the fact that the baptized candidates for reception have already been chosen, “lest there be any confusion of such baptized Christians with the candidates for baptism.”

“God Glasses” for the Man Born Blind - A Scrutiny Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Lent

The stories of the man born blind, the woman at the well and the raising of Lazarus from the dead are a set of readings that must always be proclaimed whenever we celebrate the Scrutinies. Why then are today’s readings so important for those who are preparing for initiation? Why are they so important for us who are already baptized?

These readings teach us about our baptismal promises. The story of the Samaritan woman at the well is not so much about the woman believing in Christ but about the woman fulfilling her role in proclaiming the Gospel. She reminds us that our baptism commits us to a life of evangelization. Likewise, the story of Lazarus is not so much about Jesus raising him from the dead but about having faith in Christ even when it looks like death has won. This story reminds us that we are committed to a life of faith and trust. And the story of the man born blind is not so much about the man being healed, but about seeing as God sees. Today’s Gospel reminds us that we are committed to a life that reveals God’s vision, to a life of constant conversion. This is what I mean by conversion.

If we are sincere about asking God to “open our eyes,” to see as God sees, then we must also be willing to change the way we live our lives so that our lives reflect God’s point to view, and not ours.

Here’s an example of how life changes once you’re given a new perspective. How many of you wear glasses or contact lenses? Then you might know what I am talking about. When I was in the 6th grade, I got my first pair of glasses. When I stepped out of the doctor’s office into the parking lot, the first thing I saw was this tree. Now, I had never in my life seen a tree like that. Before I got the glasses, I thought trees were just blobs of green and brown and red and orange. Theoretically, I knew what a tree looked like. I could see leaves and bark and such. But after I saw them through my new glasses, I realized that a tree was more than just leaves and bark. The leaves had lines, and edges, and curves. There were birds in the trees that I could see. There were cracks and grooves in the bark that I had missed before.

Finally being able to see the detail, the intricacies of nature, and its true beauty is like how God sees each of us. In the first reading, God told Samuel that God doesn’t see as humans see. We can only see part of the picture, what’s on the outside of a person. But God sees deeper, into the heart of that person. God sees the fullness of that person’s potential. God sees that person’s intricate and detailed beauty.

Jesus tells the blind man “you have seen the Son of Man, you have seen the Christ; the one speaking with you is he.” What if each of us could put on some glasses—“God glasses”—that allow us to see that intricate and detailed beauty of each person? Imagine how differently we would act if we remembered Jesus’ words (“you have seen Christ, he is speaking with you now”).

How differently we would act if each time we encountered our co-workers, we saw Christ. How differently we would treat our parents, our children, our spouse, and our classmates, our friends, our enemies. How differently we would treat the people who sit around us in church, the people we see here every week but to whom we never talk, the people who don’t speak our language, the people who don’t look, act, or think the way we do. How differently we would treat the beggar, the homeless, the people we label as failure, as sinner, the people we label as conservative, liberal, gay, straight, too old, too young, too dark, too light, too smart, too dumb, too much of something that doesn’t fit our point of view. Imagine if each time we encounter each other, each time we speak with one another, we “see” Christ, we “hear” Jesus. How different our world would be.

Our Elect are with us here today. In three weeks they will step into that water there in the font. They will be clothed in white and given the light of the Easter Candle. They will be anointed with oil as priest, prophet and king in Christ. And they will stand with us at this table to give thanks and break bread and drink wine, becoming with us what they eat, the Body and Blood of Christ.

Dear Elect, in a moment you will stand in our midst along with your godparents. We will pray for you that God’s light may heal the dark places of your lives and strengthen each of you. Your baptism will change you. It will change your identity. It will change the way you “see” the world, and thus, it will change the way you act within the world. For this is the duty of the baptized: to be imitators of Christ and to see as God sees.

We, the faithful, stand with each of you, not to judge you, not to test you, nor to evaluate you. No, we stand with you to give you the courage and strength that you will need to face those dark places. We will ask God to help you see those moments of failure and weakness as God sees them—not as reasons to condemn you, but as opportunities to love you with an even greater love. Seeing you as God sees you, we give thanks, for you are a sign to us that God is still making all things new.

There’s one thing about getting my glasses for the first time that I will never forget. When I saw that tree and I saw how beautiful it was, all I could do was be amazed and give praise for the awesome wonder of God’s creation. When we see as God sees, all we can do is stand and praise God for showing us a glimpse of heaven.

RCIA Discernment: What is it and How do you do it?

Discernment in the RCIA is most intensely done in preparation for the celebration of the rites. (Click here for an article about discerment for the rites.) Yet the vision of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults is that discernment is on-going. Furthermore, discernment is not just something only the catechumens do; it is something they learn by watching the parish and all its members practice discernment in their everyday lives. Ideally, all the faithful do discernment as part of their Christian lifestyle.

But even for the baptized, describing it and learning how to do it can be a little difficult. So here is part of the unformatted text from a bulletin insert that you can download, print, and copy for FREE for use in your parishes to help you catechize your assemblies about the discernment process. Please include the author and copyright information on any copies you make.

Get the fully-formatted ready-to-copy bulletin insert (pdf) here.

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Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults
Discernment
Listening to God's Voice

by Diana Macalintal

© 2007, Diana Macalintal.
All rights reserved.

Hearing and Responding
A big part of becoming and being Catholic is learning to hear God’s voice and responding. Our Scriptures tell us many stories of people hearing God and responding.

Abraham heard God’s voice from an angel, a “messenger” of God, asking him to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. Confused and probably afraid, Abraham responds by trusting God’s voice (Gn 22). Moses heard God’s voice coming from a surprising and unusual source—a burning bush. He responded to this unexpected encounter with the Divine by taking off his shoes and accepting God’s call to set his people free (Ex 3). The Samaritan woman at the well heard God’s voice in the midst of her everyday chores, in an ordinary conversation with a stranger. She responded to Jesus by becoming the first evangelist proclaiming the Good News to her village (Jn 4). And Mary heard God’s voice in an angel with unbelievable and perhaps terrifying news for one so young—she would bear God’s child. She responded in faith with amen, “let it be done” (Lk 1).

Perhaps Adam and Eve’s sin was not just disobeying God but not responding when he called, for when they heard his voice after eating the apple, they hid themselves (Gn 3).

For discussion: Do you remember a time when you heard God’s voice and knew it was God speaking? Where or who did it come from? What did you feel when you heard God’s message for you? How did you respond?

Voices in My Head?
Unlike some of the Scripture stories, however, we will probably hear God’s voice in much more ordinary ways. Most of us will never have an angel appear to us with a divine message from God. Nor will many of us encounter a burning bush or other supernatural revelation of God. More than likely, we’ll hear God the way the woman at the well did—in a simple conversation with another person while doing the simple things we do everyday—or the way Mary did—in an unexpected turn of events.

As Catholics, we believe that God is constantly trying to reveal God’s self to each person, using the ordinary things we experience in our lives to be the “messengers” for God’s word. In our family, friends, and the familiar events of our life, through the stranger and the new experience, and most especially in the poor, the outcast, and those events that shake us to the core, God is trying to say, “Here I am. Listen.”

At critical moments in our lives, God’s voice may be very strong: at the birth of a new family member or at the death of a loved one; when we fall in love, or when we break up; when tragedy happens or when we are overwhelmed by goodness; when we are deciding on a career, a vocation, a life-long partner; when we are hurt, or when we cannot forgive; when we need to choose a new way of life.

When we hear God’s voice, we might feel unsettled or out of sorts. We might feel that we need to do something, to make a change or be more resolved. Discovering who God intends us to be (our truest self), what God is asking of us at this moment in our life, and making a decision to act is called discernment.

For discussion: When was the last time something critical or significant happened in your life? What was God communicating to you at that moment?

Discerning God’s Call
For Catholics, there are four honored places we listen for God’s voice: in Scripture, in our Catholic tradition and teaching, in the Church community, and in our own conscience. Those who are preparing to become Catholics—the catechumens—participate in an on-going process of discernment throughout their preparation, learning to listen for God’s voice in these four principle ways. They do this to continue growing in their new faith in Christ and to know when they are ready to take the next step toward initiation into the Church. We who are already baptized serve as models for the catechumens, teaching them by our example how to listen for God’s voice each day, especially when we need to make an important decision.

Scripture
The Scriptures reveal who God is and how God relates with his people. The Scriptures project God’s voice most clearly when it is proclaimed in the assembly within the liturgy and connected to the real-life stories of that assembly in the homily. In the Gospel, especially, we believe that Christ is speaking directly to us, calling us again to listen and respond.

In a special way, the catechumens listen and respond to God in the Scriptures by “breaking open” the Word. They are dismissed from the Mass with a catechist to “feast” on the Scriptures and homily they just heard—to chew on them, in a sense—and to discover together what God is calling them to do at that moment in their faith journey.

Church Tradition and Teaching
You can’t find answers in the Scriptures to every one of life’s problems. But you can find Jesus’ promise that the Holy Spirit will remain with us always, guiding us, instructing us in everything (Jn 14:26). That Spirit has led our Church through the ages, inspiring saints and holy women and men to hear and respond to God’s voice in their own time and situation. Church tradition is the collective wisdom and presence of that Spirit, showing us how our ancestors interpreted not only Scripture but also the signs of the times through which God was acting.

Church Community
The apostles didn’t receive the Spirit as individuals but as a community. We believe that in the faithful, there is a “sense” of what God is calling us to be. When two or three are gathered, God is there. And so learning to hear God’s voice is a group exercise. Together we listen for God with those we trust and who know us best—our companions, literally, those we share bread with. Our companions help us to hear and see the things we may be missing. They do this not just by what they say but also by how they live. Catechumens are given special companions called sponsors to help them discern God’s voice throughout their journey to initiation.

For discussion: Who are your companions? Who is looking to you be their companion in faith? How can your own actions model for the catechumens a life of listening and responding to God?

Our Conscience
For those with faith, God’s word is not far from them—“it is something very near to you, already in your mouths and in your hearts” (Dt 30:14). God’s Spirit is in us, guiding our conscience into knowing the path God wants us to take. If after consulting all the other areas of discernment, we still feel uneasy, it may be because our conscience, God’s Spirit in us, knows it is not satisfied. But if after true discernment, we feel at peace, even with a hard decision, we can trust that we have listened and responded well to God’s voice.

A Process for Discernment
When faced with a difficult decision or turning-point in your life, or you just need to know better where God is leading you at this time, try this process.

1. Pray daily: Praying is less about saying things to God and more about being still to listen to God. Find a quiet place, and just be still and open to what God is trying to reveal to you. Making the sign of the cross, reading the Bible, or praying the Lord’s Prayer may help you focus on being attentive to God.




2. Participate at Mass: Keep your eyes, ears, mouth, and hands open to encountering God when your participate at Sunday Mass. Read the Sunday readings before you come to Mass. Be present to those around you, especially the stranger. Bring your concerns to prayer in the community. Reflect with others after Mass.




3. Look to the saints and other holy people: Read about the saints and their writings. Read Scripture stories about our ancestors in faith. Pay attention to people in your church or in your life whom you admire because of their life of faith. Share your faith with them, and let them be your companion and sounding board.




4. Return to prayer: Be still again in prayer, and listen to the small voice within you. Imagine making your decision, and notice your feelings. Journal about them if it helps. Which decision gives you a sense of peace? Which choice feels right with who God intends you to be? When this peace comes, give thanks to God.
   

RCIA Discernment: How do you know if they “know enough”?

How do you know if the inquirers or catechumens “know enough”? When are they ready to move to the next stage?

Discerning readiness is often a subjective art. Discernment in terms of faith is not a completely rational process in the way that decision-making is often simply weighing the pros and cons and choosing the most beneficial option. Discernment is more of a listening and careful observance of the movement of the Spirit and God acting in a person’s life. It is also a group activity and is not meant to be done alone. (Click here to read more about the process of discernment and the four points that assist in discernment.)

The process of becoming initiated into the Church is often measured by one’s depth of conversion to Christ. Rather than counting how many sessions a person has attended or how many hours he or she may have spent participating in parish activities or how many things they know—although these are important—discerning readiness primarily involves looking for the outward signs of internal conversion. When a person’s mind and heart turn more readily to Christ, we can see it in the visible actions and attitudes of that person.

In discerning their own readiness, the inquirer or catechumen tries to pay attention to these changes happening in their life. They are assisted, supported, and called to honest discernment in this process by the catechumenate team, their sponsor, the parish members and staff, the pastor and other clergy, and even the diocesan bishop.

Though it may seem more pastoral to “err on the side of the Spirit,” we also need to remember that the Spirit is one of truth. Discernment moves a person and a community to a deeper sense of the truth–in one’s identity, in a parish’s mission, in the obstacles that prevent us from being who God intends us to be. When discernment is done with openness and trust in this Spirit of truth, we will surely be more pastoral, for we will help both the inquirer or catechumen and the parish community deepen its commitment to discipleship. As many have often found, expediency on our part doesn’t always lead to strengthened commitment to Christ.

The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults gives some very clear criteria for readiness at each period. Here are the main things to look for in the inquirer or catechumen to discern their readiness to take the next step.


For inquirers discerning becoming catechumens

RCIA 42
“The prerequisite for making this first step is that the beginnings of the spiritual life and the fundamentals of Christian teaching have taken root in the candidates. Thus there must be:

• evidence of the first faith that was conceived during the period of evangelization and precatechumenate


• and of an initial conversion


• and intention to change their lives


• and to enter into a relationship with God in Christ.

Consequently, there must also be:

• evidence of the first stirrings of repentance,


• a start to the practice of calling upon God in prayer,


• a sense of the Church,


• and some experience of the company and spirit of Christian through contact with a priest or with members of the community.


• The candidate should also be instructed about the celebration of the liturgical rite of acceptance.”

RCIA 43
“Before the rite is celebrated, therefore, sufficient and necessary time, as required in each case, should be set aside:

• to evaluate and, if necessary,


• to purify the candidates’ motives and dispositions.”

Who decides?

RCIA 43
[Before the rite of acceptance is celebrated] “with the help of

• the sponsors,


• catechists, and


• deacons,


• parish priests (pastors)

have the responsibility for judging the outward indications of such dispositions [of the candidates].”


For catechumens discerning becoming elect

RCIA 120
“Before the rite of election is celebrated, the catechumens are expected:

• to have undergone a conversion in mind and in action and


• to have developed a sufficient acquaintance with Christian teaching


• as well as a spirit of faith and charity.

With deliberate will and an enlightened faith they must:

• have the intention to receive the sacraments of the Church,


• a resolve they will express publicly in the actual celebration of the rite.”

RCIA 131
[The Bishop says to the godparents:] “God’s holy Church wishes to know whether these candidates are sufficiently prepared to be enrolled among the elect for the coming celebration of Easter. And so I speak first of all to you their godparents.

• Have they faithfully listened to God’s word proclaimed by the Church?


• Have they responded to that word and begun to walk in God’s presence?


• Have they shared the company of their Christian brothers and sisters and joined with them in prayer?

RCIA 132
[The Bishop says to the catechumens:] “Since you have already heard the call of Christ, you must now express your response to that call clearly and in the presence of the whole Church. Therefore,

• do you wish to enter fully into the life of the Church


• through the sacraments of baptism, confirmation and the eucharist?”

Who decides?

RCIA 121
“Before the rite of election the

• bishop,


• priests,


• deacons,


• catechists,


• godparents,


• and the entire community,

in accord with their respective responsibilities and in their own way, should, after considering the matter carefully, arrive at a judgment about the catechumens’ state of formation and progress.”


RCIA 122
“[T]o exclude any semblance of mere formality from the rite, there should be a deliberation prior to [the Rite of Election’s] celebration to decide on the catechumens’ suitableness. This deliberation is carried out by the

• priests,


• deacons, and


• catechists involved in the formation of the catechumens, and


• by the godparents and


• representatives of the local community.


• If circumstances suggest, the group of catechumens may also take part.”

The true purpose of baptism

Are you getting ready to initiate the Elect in your parish at the Easter Vigil? Make sure they (and you) know what they are signing up for. In his book, The People's Work, Frank Senn says:

The purpose of proclaiming the word and celebrating baptism and the Lord's Supper is to form a community of priests who will offer a sacrifice of praise and prayer for the life of the world.

He notes that the worship of God is the purpose for which all other things are done in the church and that the mission of the church is to go find more worshipers who will perform true worship.

Is that message getting across to the Elect? Well, yes and no. According to the U.S. bishops' report on the implementation of the the RCIA, Journey to the Fullness of Life, 54 percent of those who are initiated through the catechumenate process continue to regularly participate in Mass and in parish life after Easter. The good news is that is much higher than the participation rate for the average Catholic. The bad news is almost half of those who go through the process stop participating. While we are doing well, there is lots of room for improvement.

So how is your parish doing?

Post-Easter participation

How many of the neophytes in your parish usually remain active after initiation? All or almost all A large majority About half Some, but not a lot Hardly any Current Results

A three-step Triduum evaluation

Improve next year's Triduum by evaluating this year's celebration with this easy-to-use process.

1. Remembering
The first step in evaluating is to remember what happened. In the catechumenate process, this is called mystagogy. What did you see? What did you hear? What emotion did you feel? What was especially powerful? Negative responses are as valid as positive ones. It is more helpful to use the phrase “I felt ____.” It is less helpful to use the phrase “I liked (didn’t like) ______.”

2. Theologizing
What we remember about our worship shapes how we believe. Choose two to four particularly powerful memories. It could be a memory of a symbol, a song, an action, a phrase or a sound. Then, for each memory, ask these questions:

• What did (the thing I’m remembering) tell us about God?
• What did (the thing I’m remembering) tell us about Jesus?
• What did (the thing I’m remembering) tell us about the church?
• What did (the thing I’m remembering) tell us about our community?
• What did (the thing I’m remembering) tell us about myself?

The collective memory of our celebration and what we believe about our memory is how we, as a parish, are “teaching” theology.

3. Evaluating
Our liturgy then, can be evaluated on how well it spoke about each of these areas:

• Were we satisfied with how this liturgy spoke to us of who God is? What was said clearly that we want to keep? What needs to be improved?
• Were we satisfied with how this liturgy spoke to us of who Jesus is? What was said clearly that we want to keep? What needs to be improved?
• Were we satisfied with how this liturgy spoke to us of what we believe about church? What was said clearly that we want to keep? What needs to be improved?
• Were we satisfied with how this liturgy spoke to us of what we believe about community? What was said clearly that we want to keep? What needs to be improved?
• Were we satisfied with how this liturgy spoke of who I am? What was said clearly that we want to keep? What needs to be improved?

Our final evaluation of the overall Triduum might look at these questions:

• How did this year’s Triduum make us different as a parish?
• What goal will we set for ourselves to achieve as a parish next year?
• How did this year’s Triduum make the world a better place?
• What goal will we set for making the world a better place next year?

9 Ways to Treat the Elect Like Royalty

The Elect are about to join the royal priesthood, and it is time to start getting them used to their royal status. Here are 9 ways to help the Elect enter more fully into their preparation for baptism and Eucharist.

1. Chauffeur them. At a recent Election Rite, acandidate was late for the liturgy because she dropped off her kids—and her godparent—and then went to park the car. She arrived soaked because it was raining. Bestow blessings on the Elect in your community. Be sure their godparents drive them to and from all the rituals of the lenten season and the Triduum.
2. Wine and dine them. The Elect should be in parishioners homes for dinner at least once a week during Lent. And folks in the parish can be delivering hot meals to the homes of the Elect at least a couple times a week. Relieving the Elect of the cooking duties frees them up for the essential prayer and reflection they should be doing.
3. Rehearse the godparents. Don't burden the new royalty with having to remember all the complex actions of the Election Rite, the Scrutinies, the Holy Saturday Preparation Rites and the Vigil. Put that burden on their godparents, and let the Elect relax and enter into the prayer.
4. Do make them come to all the rites. Royalty do have public duties after all. The duties of the Elect in the lenten season are to enter fully into the dialogue of worship. This is for their own spiritual growth, but just as importantly, it is also for ours. We are reminded of our commitment when we see newcomers taking up the cross.
5. Don't skip the Holy Saturday Preparation Rites. Make it an hour, a half day, or full day retreat. This is a really important step in the process. There are lots of options to be found at RCIA 185 and following. Adapt what you find there and add in other elements that have worked well for your parish at youth or Cursillo retreats. Invite the whole parish, but "require" the godparents, catechists, and family members to be present.
6. Proclaim a fast. RCIA 185 also says the Elect "should refrain from their usual activities, spend their time in prayer and reflection, and as far as they can, observe a fast." Remember, this is an extension of the Paschal fast that began on Good Friday. When the royalty fast, of course, so should everyone else. Make sure the whole parish is invited to fast and pray in solidarity with the Elect.
7. Party, party, party. I have been to one too many Vigils that ended with the final blessing and everyone heading home. If the Elect, and the parish, have really been fasting for two days, throw a banquet! Sure, it's late and everyone is tired. But it's only once a year. More importantly, it is once in a lifetime for the Elect. Make it night to remember forever.
8. Show up on Easter morning. This is so important for the "new evangelization" that Pope John Paul II talked about. Lots of Catholics only show up on Easter. What will they think if the Elect, still smelling of chrism, show up in their white garments along with hordes of weary revelers who have been celebrating all night long? It will certainly make the once-a-year crowd sit up and take notice of a Catholicism they might have written off as too stodgy.
   
9. Keep in touch. I am not a big fan of guilting the Elect into showing up for eight more "classes" after Easter, but I do think the godparents ought to be getting them to Mass for every Sunday of Easter. Vacations and trips need to be postponed and rescheduled way in advance to make sure this happens. And, again, parishioners need to be inviting the Elect to their Memorial Day barbecues, Mothers Day parties, and Fishing Opener camping trips.
   

Reckless Love: A Scrutiny Homily

Have you ever been in love with someone you weren’t supposed to love? Someone your parents or your friends disapproved of?

In the first two paragraphs of today’s Gospel, Jesus does some astounding things.

1. He goes to Samaria.

2. He walks up to a well where a woman is drawing water.

3. He sends off his disciples so he is alone with the woman.

4. He speaks to her.

5. He does this at noon, when anyone walking by can see.

All of these are very large barriers for a Jewish man to cross in Jesus’ day. His friends clearly disapproved. What does Jesus want so badly that he is willing to engage in such risky behavior?

This story really begins with the wedding at Cana when Jesus reveals himself as the Bridegroom. The Bridegroom is in search of a Bride and he has discovered that the House of Israel only seemed interested in a marriage of convenience. So Jesus stepped out. He went to the part of town he shouldn’t have. He asked out the girl with the reputation. He went to Samaria, across the border, to a place self-respecting Jews did not go.

The very nature of the God is an incessant craving for intimacy. The reason for creation is so God could have an “other” to love. The reason the Son became flesh is so God could feel how we feel, love how we love, want what we want. That God could love us like that seems almost reckless. If God had parents, surely they would not approve.

That reckless love, that intimacy with Jesus, is what Pope John Paul II said catechists are to help people find. If you’ve ever loved someone, you know intimacy is a two way street. You cannot have intimacy all by yourself. Someone has to desire you, to want to be intimate back, to share their life with you. No matter how much we desire Jesus, he desires us more. No matter how much the woman at the well needed Jesus, he needed her more.

In this story, Jesus was reckless in his love. He was willing to cross over physical and social boundaries to get what he needed. He was willing to put up with the questioning and suspicion of his closest disciples to teach them not have such a small love, not to limit their love only to places and people where they feel safe.

The disciples didn’t love the Samaritans. The Samaritans were foreigners who had strange customs and strange foods. They had odd rituals, and weird devotional practices. The disciples were willing to follow Jesus into Samaria, but they didn’t really cross over the boundary. They are like some Americans who go to foreign countries for vacation and get upset when they can’t get eggs and bacon for breakfast. When the disciples went to town to buy food, they probably went to the first century version of McDonalds. It didn’t occur to them to tell people about Jesus while they were there. Who throws pearls before swine after all?

The Woman at the Well, on the other hand, couldn’t wait. She rushed off so fast, she left her water jar, left everything. She ran, totally committed to the love she had discovered. She ran to town to announce the good news. This was the same town the disciples had just returned from. The woman went into the town and returned to the well with hearts to woo. The disciples returned with lunch.

We have Samaritan Women among us today. The Elect are here, asking the same kinds of questions the woman at the well asked. In a moment, we will pray for them that their love remains true, that their commitment is total. We will pray God strengthens all that God loves in them and that they will be healed from all that hinders their love for God.

We can be sure they do love God with a passionate, reckless love that perhaps some people in their lives may not approve of. Their catechists and this community have succeeded in matchmaking them with Jesus, bringing them to that love and intimacy Pope John Paul talked about.

Likewise, we can be sure that Jesus loves them. He loves them, needs them, desires them, wants them as much as he needed the Samaritan woman. He is crossing over their Samarias, sitting at their wells, courting them in broad daylight, not caring who knows that he is crazy in love with them. This Easter Vigil, when the Elect step up to the well of living water, they will become the Bride. Their desire, their need, their thirst for intimacy will be so fully quenched, they will never thirst again.

And we who will be witnesses at this new Cana, at the Easter Vigil’s wedding banquet, we will remember when our own love of Christ was newly in bloom and our own desire was met with overwhelming desire. On that night of overflowing water, we will remember how our baptism quenched all our thirsts. On that night, we will renew our vows, our promise, our total commitment to the love of Christ.

It is a reckless, head over heals kind of love affair we have. It is a love that crosses boundaries and seeks intimacy in places we might not have expected, in places we might not have gone, in people who are not like us, who at first might have seemed foreign and unsafe.

When we read this love story of the Woman at the Well, we hear it differently at different times in our lives. When we are new to love or when we are feeling unlovable, we might imagine ourselves to be the woman, a person thirsting for intimacy, a person parched by the day to day struggles of trying to make sense of life. When we are bored or burnt out or not vibrantly in touch with our faith, we might think we are the disciples, good hearted folks who are a bit clueless and need a little reminding of what it means to be a Catholic and a Christian.

But today, in this place, as we are about to pray for the Elect in our midst, we, the baptized, are like Christ at Cana, at the Wedding Banquet, to whom the Mother of God says, “They have no wine.” In Christ, we can turn water into wine, loneliness and isolation into intimacy and communion. With Christ, we can cross the boundaries of places we might otherwise be afraid to go. Through Christ, we can sit at the well of those who are not like us in so many ways, but are like us in the one way that matters. We all thirst for that deep intimacy that only the Bridegroom can give.

The boundary breaking, intimate, deep-as-a-well love Jesus showed the woman freed her. The love welled up in her to the point she couldn’t contain it. She had to share it. She herself became a well, a fountain overflowing with Christ’s love. She became like Jesus, crossing boundaries, finding those searching for love and telling them to come and see.

When we were plunged into the waters of life, we also became like Jesus, seeking intimacy with all the world, especially in the places that might seem risky and out of bounds—in our enemies, in those who are foreign to us, in those who would persecute us.

We when eat and drink at this wedding banquet every Sunday, we become what we eat. We become the love of Christ for the world.

Do we believe that? Can we imagine it? If so, let’s leave our little water jars and our small love behind and go out to love with astounding, reckless abandon.

Don’t catechize in Lent

Okay, that’s a little strong. But if your lenten catechesis for the elect looks a lot like the catechesis that was going on during the period of the catechumenate, something is amiss. The rite is pretty clear. If you have your RCIA handy (or maybe even if you don’t; go get it) open to paragraph 139:

[Lent] is a period of more intense spiritual preparation, consisting more in interior reflection than in catechetical instruction….

If, in Lent, you have both elect (who will be baptized this Easter) and catechumens (who won’t), you’ll have to do a little bi-locating. The catechumens will need to continue their grounding in and exploration of the content outlined in paragraph 75 of the RCIA. So, at the dismissal time during Mass, you’ll need two catechists—one to go with the elect and one to go with the catechumens.

While our ministry to the catechumens remains crucial during the lenten season, our concern for the elect in paramount. Check out paragraph 121:

The election, marked with a rite of such solemnity, is the focal point of the Church’s concern for the catechumens.

All that we have been doing with the catechumens is to get them to this point—the point at which the bishop declares them to be candidates for baptism. At that moment, it is pretty much a done deal. It’s like getting engaged—so engaged that you’ve sent out the invitations, rented the hall, and booked the flight for the honeymoon. There really is no turning back now unless something really drastic and unforeseeable happens.

So lenten catechesis is not about “catching up” on stuff that got missed in the catechumenate. It is about preparing in a soul-filled, prayerful way for a life of joy—and a life of sacrifice.

What catechesis of the elect looks like

Well, then, what does the actual lenten catechesis look like? It looks like what is happening in their lives. The major events for the elect over the 40 days of Lent are going to be the three scrutinies on the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent. Lenten catechesis for the elect will ask three questions, each with a strength and weakness side to it:

1. What have you most drunk in of Christ? What do you continue to thirst for?
2. What have you seen that you never saw before? What do you remain blind to?
3. What is most life-giving in your new intimacy with Christ? What is still dead that needs resurrection?

Structure the 40 days as a retreat for the elect centered on these questions and you will have answered the challenge of the rite “to uncover, then heal all that is weak, defective, or sinful in the hearts of the elect” and “then strengthen all that is upright, strong, and good” (141).

The Goal of the RCIA

I’m writing this on the First Sunday of Lent. Today is typically a hectic day in many catechumenate ministries. The candidates for election are stressed and may show up late for the parish Mass and the Rite of Sending. The catechumenate director or liturgist has a thousand details to attend to. There are friends and families of the candidates wandering around, perhaps sitting in the wrong pews. The pastor got an emergency call right before last week’s rehearsal and may be doing the rite “blind” today. And then, after it’s all over, you’ve got to get everyone together again at the cathedral for the Rite of Election, find the right seats, remember how the ritual goes, and not let your nervousness show. It can be like herding cats in a rainstorm.

So today might seem like an odd day to call to our attention the vision of the rite. On the other hand what better time than Lent to refocus and renew ourselves in what the RCIA—and the Spirit of God—call us to as catechumenate ministers?

Today, all those who will write their names in the Book of Life will move to a new stage in their journey. In a sense, you and the catechumenate team are handing them over to their godparents who will be their primary spiritual guides from now on. You might be thinking the godparents just flew in yesterday and have no clue how to continue the formation of the elect. Nevertheless, your discernment that these catechumens are now competent to live the Gospel means they are moving beyond your maternal care. It is time to look forward, to the future, to what the Spirit is asking of us.

I’d like to encourage you to look forward to Easter Sunday. If stress or fatigue or insecurity ever causes you to question what it is we do and why we do it, look forward to the day St. Augustine describes as the day the newly baptized “who a little while ago were called competentes—are now called infantes. They were called competentes because they were thumping in their mother’s womb, begging to be born; now they are called infantes because they—who had first been born to the world—are now born to Christ.” (Harmless, 314)

Augustine, weary from the Vigil the night before, would often drastically abbreviate his usual three-hour homily and simply point to the neophytes standing in their white robes. If you want to see the scriptures enfleshed, he would tell them, look there. Augustine made clear to his parishioners that the neophytes were a living enfleshment of the Word.

The vision of the RCIA is that day, that moment, that miracle, when we can point to the newly baptized and say, “There is Christ made flesh.”

Choreographing the Scrutinies

When you are planning for the scrutinies, be sure to move the Elect out into the midst of the assembly. The goal is to strive for both visibility and intimacy.

• If you only have one candidate for initiation this year, the action of the scrutiny should take place where it is most visible—usually at the head of the center aisle. The Elect would face the assembly.
• If you have two candidates, place the second about half way down the center aisle.
• If you have three, place the third in a side aisle, and so on.
• When it is time for the rite, the godparents move the Elect into their designated places.
• It is very important for the godparents to keep a hand on the Elect throughout the entire rite.
• When it is time for the laying on of hands, the presider would walk solemnly to each candidate and press his hands on top of each head.
• You might adapt the rite to have the director of the catechumenate follow behind and do the same.
• Similarly, each godparent might lay hands on his or her candidate as well.
• Note, the laying on of hands is a gesture of exorcism, not absolution.
  

Do not rehearse with the Elect. It is up to the godparents to guide the Elect.

The key to a reverent and dignified celebration is rehearsal. Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse.

BUT, do not rehearse with the Elect. It is up to the godparents to be well prepared and know how to guide the Elect through the rite. Their care for the Elect in the rite is symbolic of their commitment as godparents.

Readings for the Scrutinies

I’ve received some questions asking if Year C readings can be used for the Scrutiny Rites on the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent this year.

If an assembly will be celebrating the Scrutiny Rites, the readings for Year A should be used for the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent. These readings are so crucial to the Scrutiny Rites that the RCIA mandates that even when the Scrutinies are celebrated outside of Lent or on other days of Lent, because of unusual circumstances, the readings of Year A for the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent are to be used (cf. RCIA, 146).

The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults explicitly names the readings that are to be used whenever the Scrutinies are celebrated: “In every case the ritual Masses ‘Christian Initiation: The Scrutinies’ are celebrated and in this sequence: for the first Scrutiny the Mass with the gospel of the Samaritan woman; for the second, the Mass with the gospel of the man born blind; for the third, the Mass with the gospel of Lazarus” (RCIA, 146).

I know that it could get “boring” for the parish to hear this set of readings every year. But one way to look at this is to understand that the Scrutinies are primarily for the Elect, and most likely, this will be the first time the Elect will have heard these readings in a liturgical setting. These three Gospel readings are so crucial to the Elect’s understanding of Christian faith. They are the foundational stories of what happens when we become united to Christ through baptism, and they are the pre-eminent stories of healing and strengthening that are at the heart of the Scrutiny Rites. These readings also parallel the gradual unfolding of recognizing Christ that is the catechumen’s journey. As good as the Year B and C readings are, they are not the most appropriate readings for the Scrutinies. So I would encourage your parish to continue using the Year A readings for the Scrutiny Rites because they are so central to the rite and are for the benefit of the Elect.