"Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and decisive direction." (Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est)
Christ calls people into His Church at all stages of life. Adults who are curious about the Catholic Faith, either thinking of becoming Catholic or just interested in exploring what Catholicism is all about, are welcome to participate in our RCIA program.
The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults is open to all people at any stage of their journey in faith. There are various rites involved to mark particular milestones in the journey, hence the name
Rite of Christian Initiation. It's an open-ended process, suited to each person's specific pace, tailored to balance individual needs with the communal journey that all the participants take together. Our faith is both personal and communal, individual and in company with the whole Church. So the RCIA also is a journey that each person takes for him- or herself, but it is taken alongside others, within the body of believers.
The process is designed for people who either have never been baptized, or have been baptized but did not make their First Communion. RCIA welcomes:
- Children over the age of eight
- Teen-agers
- Adults of any age
The direction of the process is pointed toward reception of the three sacraments of initiation: Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharistic Communion; but the journey is taken in stages, which each participant moves in according to his/her own desire and readiness:
- The period of Inquiry ~ A relatively loosely structured series of meetings involving conversation, question & answer, and witness talks from parishioners sharing their own faith journey
- The period of the Catechumenate ~ Once a participant determines that (s)he would like to move forward to begin in earnest preparation to formally join the Church and receive the sacraments, (s)he will be invited to learn more about Catholic doctrine via a process of more in-depth instruction
- Mystagogy ~ After receiving Baptism, First Communion, and Confirmation at the Great Easter Vigil, the newly initiated will continue to meet casually with their sponsor and other parishioners who had accompanied them on their journey to share how one lives the Catholic Faith in the world today
Please call the Parish office at 978-562-2552 or email
[email protected] for more information.
