St. Matthias and Queen of Angels
RCIA, the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults, is a restoration of the ancient practice, which began around 350, as a way for the Church to welcome adults into the Community of Believers. It enables people to either embrace the Faith for the first time or it helps those baptized as Catholics to complete their faith formation. It is a process of discerning the ritualizing stages of conversion leading to sacramental initiation. It is the parish community through its witness, worship, service and catechesis that offers the invitation and support necessary for men and women to be initiated in the Church. It is a time of inquiry, learning, prayer and discovery of community. Those participating have the opportunity to ask questions about the Church and to hear about the message of Jesus Christ and how it is lived out in the Catholic Church. Click here for complete syllabus:
SEPTEMBER
8th (Local Parish) Opening session:
Introductions of RCIA Team (Who will share the journey with you?) and participants;
Explanation of RCIA (both content and experience); Expectations of participants;
Presenter: Local RCIA Team
15th (St. Matthias)
Sharing of stories of past and present participants and their response to the “Grace of God”; The conversion experience which is the human longing for God in one’s life.
Presenter: RCIA Team
22nd (St. Matthias) Faith
Faith is the giving of self to the Lord in complete trust. How is it found and do I have it already? Does a person ever have perfect Faith?
Presenter: Father Bill O’Brien
29th (St. Matthias) Scripture
The Scriptures (the Bible – Hebrew and Christian testaments) is God speaking God’s relationship to the human family. The Scriptures are the guide for one’s life. What is in them? How were they written and what is their meaning for us today? Emphasis for this session will be on the Old Testament.
Presenter: Brother James Van Dyke
OCTOBER (All gatherings this month will be at St. Matthias.)
6th History and Meanings of Church
What does the word Church mean? What is the structure of the Catholic Church and how does this impact the members and the image of the Church?
Presenter: Father Frank Cimarrusti
13th Creed – Beliefs of the Catholic Church
We say the creed at every Sunday Mass. Each section begins with the words, “We believe.” The Covenants - A covenant is a promise of total unity and respect from one to another. What are the Faith Covenants? What are the major faith covenants found in scripture? What are my promises to God and God’s to me?
Presenter: Sister Mary Ann Sutton
20th Jesus Christ: true God and True Man, fully human and fully divine
This is the reason we are here. Jesus is the meeting of the divine and human flesh. Who is Jesus? How is He God? How is He human? When and how did this happen and what is the purpose? Who, then, is Jesus to me?
Presenter: Father John Griffiths
27th No gathering
NOVEMBER (All gatherings this month will be at Queen of Angels)
3rd Prayer: types and meaning - How did Jesus teach us to pray?
Prayer is the turning of ourselves to the presence of and in conversation with God. How do I pray? How do others pray? Are prayers always answered?
Presenter: Sister Barbara Quinn
7th (Sunday) Mass of Welcoming Queen of Angels Church – Time to be announced
St. Matthias Church – Time to be announced 10th Mass and discussion of the Real Presence - The Mass is undeniably the most “Catholic” _expression of our Faith. What is essence of the Mass? What is the order of the Mass? What are the sights and sounds of the Mass?
Presenter: Father Terry Keehan
17th Liturgical Year - Liturgy is the Church’s work of prayer.
The Liturgical (prayer) Year is not the same as the civil calendar year. How do I live and follow this year? And what should it do with and for me?
Presenter: Father Jason Malave
24th No gathering – Thanksgiving Eve
DECEMBER
1st (Local Parish) Tour of the Church
Every church building is a home for God and a dwelling place for God’s people. (Note: the word church with a small “c” means a building. The word Church with a capital “C” is people.) What do the various symbols in the church mean?
Presenter: Father Tom Lamping (Queen of Angels) and Father Terry Keehan (St. Matthias)
8th No Gathering - Feast of the Immaculate Conception
15th (Queen of Angels) Mary and the Saints - Why do we honor Mary?
The Saints are Christian heroes with the same strengths and weakness as ours. We are called to be saints today!
Presenter: Debra Beien
JANUARY (All gatherings this month will be at St. Matthias.)
5th Sacraments in general and Sacraments of Initiation
The Sacraments are seven signs and celebrations of Christ’s life growing in the whole Church and me. The Sacraments of Initiation are Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist (communion). Baptism welcomes me a member of the Church and Confirmation welcomes me a bearer of God’s Spirit receiving God’s gifts and promising the use of gifts in return. The Eucharist or the third sacrament of initiation will be discussed at the next session.
Presenter: Father Tom Lamping
12th Eucharist - The Eucharist sign and celebration is Christ fully present among us until the end of time.
Eucharist means, “to give thanks.” How is Jesus present in the Eucharist? What is bread and wine and why is it so sacred? What is the Eucharist in the life of the Church and believer?
Presenter: Father Terry Keehan
19th Scripture II
Emphasis for this session will be the New Testament, especially the Gospels.
Presenter: Brother James Van Dyke
26th Morality, sin, and the Sacrament of Reconciliation
Morality is the understanding of the right and just way to live our lives both for our own sake and that of others. How do I make good moral, Faith guided decisions? The Sacrament of Reconciliation is the celebration of Christ’s forgiveness. What is Reconciliation or confession? What is God’s forgiveness? What do I confess?
Presenter: Father Terry Keehan
FEBRUARY (All gatherings this month will be at Queen of Angels.)
2nd Holy Orders
This sacrament is specifically for those who are entrusted to service the Church by preaching the Word, leading the sacraments, and forming the community of believers. It is the imitation of the Lord in its three roles (orders) of a Deacon, Priest or Bishop. Where do these roles come from? What is the difference between Holy Orders (a sacrament) and Religious life (a sister or a brother), which is a blessed but not sacramental life?
Presenter: Father John Clements
9th Ash Wednesday
No gathering Participants are encouraged to attend Ash Wednesday services at local parish.
16th Lent
Lent is one of the four Liturgical (prayer) seasons. (Remember the November session on the Liturgical Year?) We follow the Lord through a season of personal investigation, prayer and change which leads to our participation in Jesus’ death and rising. It is a season when RCIA candidates prepare for the Rite of Sending: that day when you are sent from our churches to the Cathedral church of the Holy Name and presented to one of our Bishops for further prayer and encouragement. The Scrutinies will also be discussed.
Presenter: Father Bill O’Brien
23rd Marriage
This Sacrament is the Sacrament (sign and celebration) of the ever-growing love and commitment between husband and wife. What are the Church’s ideals for marriage? What is the grace of marriage? Why is marriage a vocation (a consecrated life) not just a promise?
Presenter: Karyn McGovern
MARCH (All gatherings this month will be at St. Matthias.)
2nd Sacrament of the Sick
The sacrament referred to as The Anointing of the Sick is one of God’s comfort and the comfort of His Church towards those who are ill or are near death. How do Christians accept suffering? What is my Faith in the face of death? What are some of the Church’s guidelines concerning the end of life issues?
Presenter: Father Bill O’Brien and Sister Mary Ann Sutton
9th Role and Mission of the Church
The Church teaches that the genuine joys, hopes, sorrows and concerns of every person are the joys, hopes, sorrows and concerns of the Church. Where is the Church in the world today? Why is my faith not just my business? Where am I as a believer in the world? Presenter: Sister Maria Burke S.Sp.S.
16th Customs, traditions, paralitugical events, and sacramentals
The Church is rich in many customs which frequently are unfamiliar to those who are not what we call cradle Catholics, i.e. those who are Catholic from birth. Such things as benediction, novenas, stations of the cross, etc. will be explained at this session.
Presenter: Father Tom Lamping and Sister Mary Ann Sutton
23rd RCIA Practice and Reconciliation (Local parish)
24th Holy Thursday (Local parish)
25th Good Friday (Local parish)
26th Holy Saturday (Local parish)
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