What is RCIA?

  The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults, or RCIA, is a communal process for formal initiation of new members into the Catholic Church. This process is a return to the formation of the earliest members of the Church in the first and second centuries.

Is God calling you into a deeper relationship with him? Is there something missing in your life? Are you searching for something more in life: its meaning, its purpose?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, we invite you to explore the RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults)

Through the RCIA, the Church invites you into its rich traditions and deep roots as the family of the Father. In the Church, you will become one with Jesus and His grace-filled community through Baptism into the Church. In that community you become a member of the body of Christ and His Bride.

Let Jesus, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6) transform you into the person God created you to be.

RCIA stands for Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. In the early Church, the normal way that adults became Christian was through a long formation process called the “catechumenate.” During these early days, the Roman Empire was dominated by pagan practices and becoming Christian carried the risk of death. By the 4th century, Christianity became a legal religion and the catechumenate flourished with large numbers being baptized. Eventually, the entire western world was Christian and the catechumenate disappeared. Centuries later, the Bishops of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) recognized that much of the western world had slipped into secular ways and abandoned Christianity. They decided to restore the RCIA as an effective way to spread the Gospel in the modern world and to enrich the life of the Church. The RCIA seeks to welcome new members more fully into the daily life, mission, and prayer of the Catholic Church.

The RCIA is a journey of spiritual growth that follows four ways - instruction, prayer, liturgy, and active work in spreading the Gospel – in order to help us mature as disciples as we consider fully entering the Catholic Church. Are you interested in the RCIA or know someone who might be?

We invite you to contact Fr. Eric Garris at the parish office (440-871-1100) for more information and with any questions.

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