When I began in parish ministry, I inherited an RCIA team that included one very unique member, Theresa, who was 85 years old. I was told that Theresa’s job was to bake and bring the snacks for every session—something that she was renowned for. (Her cookies were to die for!) But Theresa did more than just bring homemade cookies and pastries to our sessions. She sat in on every session and added her two cents. […]
When I started out as a catechist, I began with my parish’s Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) ministry. A few years later I joined the faith formation team that served our parish’s young people, first as a substitute, then as a regular catechist. I continue to serve in both ministries, and while teaching the faith to candidates in the RCIA is different from teaching it to young people (For example, candidates in the […]
Every DRE has his or her own approach to ministry. In my parish, our faith formation philosophy is to meet people where they are. I know it’s a pretty simple idea, but when we think about the variety of people from so many different backgrounds who come together in the Church, it is important to remember that the same approach won’t work for everyone. This attitude can prove to be especially important when working with […]
For those of you involved in RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults), I don’t need to tell you what an important week this is! One of the responsibilities of the RCIA team is to facilitate a Holy Saturday retreat for the Elect (those to be baptized at the Easter Vigil). From time to time, I get e-mails from folks asking if I have any resources for such a retreat. I do indeed! My friend […]
When I was in Santa Clara in November, I had the opportunity to see good friends Nick Wagner and Diana Macalintal (the best looking couple in ministry!) who run TeamRCIA, an excellent Web site for those working in RCIA ministry. Nick and Diana invited me to participate in a Podcast devoted to the topic of “How to build a strong Catholic identity in the RCIA.” They were kind enough to share that podcast with me. […]
In this final segment of Catechists in Action, Marge Garbacz leads her RCIA group in a concluding prayer and musical meditation. Watch for the following: Marge introduces the concluding prayer and connects it with the theme of human dignity. Marge directs the participants to their parts in the prayer and goes over the flow of the prayer so that everyone knows what is happening, how, and when. Marge introduces the musical meditation, Love Never Fails […]
In this segment of Catechists in Action, Marge Garbacz continues facilitating a discussion with her RCIA about Catholic Social Teaching. Watch for the following: Marge summarizes the discussion so far and poses a question for discussion. Participants begin talking about examples and strategies for practicing the principles of Catholic Social Teaching. Marge takes a back seat to the discussion and allows it to progress, enabling the participants to take ownership of the discussion and converse […]
In this segment of Catechists in Action, Marge Garbacz continues her introduction to Catholic Social Teaching by inviting the participants in her RCIA to apply the 7 themes of Catholic Social Teaching to current events in the news. Watch for the following: Marge distributes copies of breaking news stories from local Chicago newspapers. Marge identifies one of the news stories and invites participants to look over the themes of Catholic Social Teaching and apply them […]
In this segment of Catechists in Action, Marge Garbacz introduces her RCIA to the concept of Catholic Social TEaching. Watch for the following: Marge welcomes the group back from break…she is always SO hospitable! She introduces the concept of the “best-kept secret” of the Catholic Church and invites one of her team members to identify that as Catholic Social Teaching Marge expounds a bit on CST and then invites participants to find the 7 themes […]
In this segment of Catechists in Action, Marge Garbacz prepares to move on to the next segment of the RCIA discussion on Human Dignity but pauses to invite a participant to share a thought. Watch for the following: Marge notices that one of the participants looks like he wanted to say something so she interrupts herself and invites him to do so. Mauricio, one of the RCIA candidates, shares his thoughts on the idea of […]
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