St. John XXIII Church

Becoming Catholic at St. John XXIII (RCIA)

The process by which one becomes Catholic is referred to as the RCIA. It stands for Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. The words in the title, “Christian Initiation” indicate that it is for adults who are not already Christians. In other words, they have never been baptized. The RCIA has also been extended to include a second group of adults: those who are already baptized but are not Catholic. Why do people come in to the RCIA? It is different for each person. Here are reasons given by a few individuals. “Something was missing in my life. Returning to God and the church helped to fill that void.” “We had a young child and wanted her to be raised in a Christian environment. We felt most comfortable in the Catholic Church.” “I wanted more structure in my spiritual life, and I wanted to become part of a loving community.”

You can think of RCIA as an apprenticeship in the Catholic way of life. Think of what an apprentice does …they learn on the job, by working with a person with experience. In the RCIA the person who is considering becoming Catholic participates in the life of the parish, guided and accompanied by a sponsor. The RCIA is a combination of fun, spiritual growth, service projects, feeling like you belong, worshipping as a member of the parish community, knowing others when you come to church, informal discussions about the Catholic faith, scriptures and the teachings of the Catholic Church. It builds on one’s own personal faith journey that each of us has been on since the day we were born.

Please contact the Pastor for more information about becoming Catholic.