Mystagogical Catechesis

Period of Mystagogy

• The Period of Mystagogy lasts from Easter Sunday until the completion of the Easter season, fifty days later on Pentecost Sunday and completes the initiation process. Those who have just shared in the sacraments of initiation are now called Neophytes and during this period of Easter joy they reflect on what they have just gone through and look to the future as to how they can now share in the mission of Christ who came to bring salvation and life to the whole world. This period of time reminds the whole church that life in Christ constantly calls us to grow and to look for new ways to live the life of grace, personally and together.
• The Bishop gathers with the neophytes for a celebration during the Easter season.

Catechumen or Candidate?

• By means of the processes described in the document, R.C.I.A., interested non-baptized persons become Catechumens, and Catechumens become full members of the Catholic Church by means of baptism, confirmation, and eucharist, which are referred to as the Sacraments of Initiation.
• Those adults who were baptized as infants either as Roman Catholics or as members of another Christian community but did not receive further catechetical formation, nor, consequently, the Sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist are also included in the RCIA process. They are referred to as Candidates – a candidate for the Roman Catholic Sacrament of Confirmation and a candidate preparing to receive Holy Communion in the Catholic Church and thus become a full member of the Catholic Church.
• As in the case of catechumens, the preparation of candidates requires an extended time. Most often, a program of training, catechesis suited to the Candidate’s needs, contact with the community of the faithful, and participation in certain liturgical rites are needed in order to strengthen them in the Christian life.(RCIA 401) For the most part the plan of catechesis corresponds to the one laid down for catechumens. The differences in the process are tailored by the candidate in conjunction with the RCIA Director and the Church-provided Sponsor.
• Since candidates are already baptized, the liturgical rites that mark the steps of the formation process are different from those of catechumens. There is the Rites of Welcoming The Candidates, the Rite of Calling The Candidate To Continuing Conversion and a Penitential Rite. Reception Of Baptized Christians Into The Full Communion Of The Catholic Church is the liturgical rite by which a person born and baptized in another Christian Community is received into the full communion of the Catholic Church.
• The R.C.I.A., sometimes generically called the Catechumenate, is a responsibility of the whole Church; this responsibility takes particular shape mainly in parishes, the normal locus of Roman Catholic community life.  In view of this commitment and obligation of the Church, we provide an outreach person for each person who presents himself or herself as a “seeker”; these church-provided Sponsor will serve as spiritual companions as they seek to discover God’s call.

How long does it take?

• The Rite of Christian Initiation is not a program.
• It is the church’s way of ministering sensitively to those who seek membership. For that reason some people will need more time than others to prepare for the lifetime commitment that comes with membership in the Catholic Church. The usual length of preparation is from one to two years. For those already baptized and who seek full communion in the Catholic church, the time will also vary.
• It seems reasonable that catechumens or uncatechized candidates experience the yearly calendar of Catholic practice at least one time around in order to make an informed decision.
• The process of spiritual renewal and catechesis should not be hasty, especially for those not accustomed to the fasts and feasts and Sundays and seasons the way Catholics observe them.
• The Christian Initiation of Adults must be integrated into the Easter Vigil, except in exceptional circumstances. The Reception of Baptized Christians Into The Full Communion Of The Catholic Church may take place at any Mass, whenever the candidate is ready to make a Profession of Faith and/or receive the Sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist.”

What is the first step?

• Anyone who is seriously thinking about becoming a Roman Catholic-Christian or who would simply like more information,call Joyce Marie McCosco, (818) 216-5507