LEADING SEEKERS TO ENCOUNTER CHRIST THE ART OF ACCOMPANIMENT

1. WHY IS OUR WORK AS CATECHISTS IMPORTANT?

POPE JOHN PAUL II, ON CATECHESIS IN OUR TIME The primary and essential object of catechesis is, to use an expression dear to St. Paul and also to contemporary theology, "the mystery of Christ."

POPE JOHN PAUL II, ON CATECHESIS IN OUR TIME Accordingly, the definitive aim of catechesis is to put people not only in touch but in communion, in intimacy, with Jesus Christ: Only He can lead us to the love of the Father in the Spirit and make us share in the life of the Holy Trinity.

POPE FRANCIS, ADDRESS TO THE PLENARY ASSEMBLY OF THE PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR PROMOTING THE NEW EVANGELIZATION (OCT. 14, 2013) We need Christians who make God s mercy and tenderness for every creature visible to the people of our day.

POPE FRANCIS, MEETING WITH THE BISHOPS OF BRAZIL (JULY 28, 2013) It is important to devise and ensure a suitable formation, one which will make persons able to step into the night without being overcome by the darkness and losing their bearings

POPE FRANCIS, MEETING WITH THE BISHOPS OF BRAZIL (JULY 28, 2013) able to listen to people s dreams without being seduced and to share their disappointments without losing hope and becoming bitter;

POPE FRANCIS, MEETING WITH THE BISHOPS OF BRAZIL (JULY 28, 2013) able to sympathize with the brokenness of others without losing their own strength and identity.

POPE FRANCIS, JOY OF THE GOSPEL, 164 On the lips of the catechist the first proclamation must ring out over and over: Jesus Christ loves you; he gave his life to save you; and now he is living at your side every day to enlighten, strengthen and free you.

2. WHAT IS CATECHESIS?

POPE FRANCIS, A BIG HEART OPEN TO GOD The church sometimes has locked itself up in small things, in small-minded rules.

RAISE YOUR HAND IF... you ever experienced small-mindedness in your parish? on your RCIA team? in yourself?

Pope Francis says we cannot get distracted by the small things. FOCUS

POPE FRANCIS, OCTOBER 14, 2013 To get diverted by many secondary or superfluous things does not help; what helps is to focus on the fundamental reality, which is the encounter with Christ.

POPE FRANCIS, THE LIGHT OF FAITH What is communicated in the Church, what is handed down in her living Tradition, is the new light born of an encounter with the true God

POPE FRANCIS, THE LIGHT OF FAITH a light which touches us at the core of our being and engages our minds, wills and emotions, opening us to relationships lived in communion.

POPE FRANCIS, PLENARY ADDRESS ON NEW EVANGELIZATION, MAY 29, 2015 Catechesis, as a component of the of evangelization, needs to go beyond the simple realm of scholastics

POPE FRANCIS, PLENARY ADDRESS ON NEW EVANGELIZATION, MAY 29, 2015 in order to educate believers, beginning with children, to encounter Christ, living and working in his Church.

3. HOW DO WE DO THIS?

The normative vision "The model for all catechesis is the baptismal catechumenate when, by specific formation, an adult converted to belief is brought to explicit profession of baptismal faith during the Paschal Vigil". (180) This catechumenal formation should inspire the other forms of catechesis in both their objectives and in their dynamism. General Directory for Catechesis, 59 Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

Aidan Kavanagh, OSB what the Roman documents contain are not merely specific changes in liturgical rubrics, but a restored and unified vision of the Church. One might describe it as a concentric ecclesiology locked together by the sacramental discipline of faith shared on all levels Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Within community The initiation of catechumens is a gradual Adult Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Adult Postbaptismal catechesis has a gradual character expressed in definite stages. GDC, 91 Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

ACCOMPANIMENT CHALLENGE The definite stages are spiritual and life stages, not academic progress We need to move away from scope and sequence models and toward a of accompanying seekers on their own journey of faith God s pedagogy is one of self-revelation that takes place progressively (in stages) Copyright 2017, Diana Macalintal. Diana@TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Adult The initiation of catechumens takes place within the community of the faithful Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Adult Catechetical pedagogy will be effective when the community is proposed as a source, locus, and means of catechesis. GDC, 158 Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

ACCOMPANIMENT CHALLENGE As catechists, we do not yet have a full understanding of faith formation as apprenticeship, a learn-by-doing A complete catechesis is only achieved by immersing seekers into the full life of the community of faith Word Community Worship Witness Copyright 2017, Diana Macalintal. Diana@TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Adult By joining the catechumens in reflecting on the value of the paschal mystery Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Adult Catechesis is distinguished from other forms of presenting the word of God by its vital deepening of the mystery of Christ; GDC, 67 Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

ACCOMPANIMENT CHALLENGE Every catechetical encounter must be a moment of healing What needs to be brought to life in this person? Copyright 2017, Diana Macalintal. Diana@TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Adult and by renewing their own conversion, the faithful provide an example Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Varies for each person Adult Gradual Catechesis must have a catechumenal style, as of integral formation rather than mere information; it must act in reality as a means of arousing true conversion. GDC, 29 Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

ACCOMPANIMENT CHALLENGE Many of our catechetical programs are not designed to accompany those who actually need evangelization and conversion Conversion happens in the heart All catechesis must be based on our prior mission of evangelization Copyright 2017, Diana Macalintal. Diana@TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

SIGNS OF CONVERSION an initial conversion a desire to change their lives a desire to enter into a relationship with God in Christ signs of the first stirrings of repentance a start to the practice of calling upon God in prayer a sense of the Church some experience of the company and spirit of Christian community (see RCIA 42)

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Within community The rite of initiation is suited to a spiritual journey of adults Adult Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Adult The discourse of faith with adults must take serious account of their experience, of their conditioning and of the challenges which they have encountered in life. GDC, 172 Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

ACCOMPANIMENT CHALLENGE In many parishes, RCIA is the only adult faith formation that is functioning Therefore, it becomes a catch-all for all adult faith formation needs We have to learn how to accompany adults on at least three different levels Unbaptized seekers Baptized, but not sufficiently catechized for mission Christians consistently doing the mission Copyright 2017, Diana Macalintal. Diana@TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Gradual Varies for each person Within community The rite varies according to the many forms of God s grace, the free cooperation of the individuals, the action of the Church, and the circumstances of time and place. Adult Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

RCIA principles RCIA #4-5 Varies for each person Adult Gradual Interpreting [individual] experience with the data of faith is a constant task of catechetical pedagogy even if with difficulty. It is a task that cannot be overlooked. GDC, 153 Within community Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

ACCOMPANIMENT CHALLENGE Most of our catechetical programs, including RCIA, are designed as one-size-fits-all curriculums Each journey of faith is unique, and as catechists our vocation is to accompany each seeker on his or her own journey Copyright 2017, Diana Macalintal. Diana@TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

Varies for each person Gradual RCIA conversion model #4-5 and #75 Within community Word Community Adult Worship Witness Paschal mystery Conversion Copyright 2017, 2018, TeamRCIA.com. All rights reserved.

HOW DO WE DO THIS? Baptismal catechumenate is the model Mission (evangelization) is the content Apprenticeship in parish life is the textbook Word Community Worship Witness Accompaniment is the methodology

4. WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF WE DID THIS?

POPE FRANCIS, JOY OF THE GOSPEL I dream of a missionary option, that is, a missionary impulse capable of transforming everything, so that the Church s customs, ways of doing things, times and schedules, language and structures

POPE FRANCIS, JOY OF THE GOSPEL can be suitably channeled for the evangelization of today s world rather than for her selfpreservation

POPE FRANCIS, JOY OF THE GOSPEL to inspire in pastoral workers a constant desire to go forth and in this way to elicit a positive response from all those whom Jesus summons to friendship with himself.