The Catholic Church experiences an annual surge in its worldwide membership during the Easter Vigil when it celebrates the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA).
This rite has been around since the first century when disciples of Jesus shared His message and brought people into the faith. From the second to the fifth centuries, local churches used a process for the initiation of a new Catholic Christian.
However, the practice waned for several centuries due to the growing practice of baptizing infants. The impetus for infant baptism was Augustine of Hippo’s “clear” definition of original sin, said Larry Fraher, director of catechetical ministries at Blessed Sacrament Parish in Scottsdale.
“Within the next 200 to 300 years, members of the Church perceived the need to have children baptized,” Fraher said. “The baptism of adults was never abandoned — it was that the demand for infant baptisms increased significantly.”
The Second Vatican Council promoted the liturgical change to reinstitute the RCIA.
“People take one year, two years, or possibly the rest of their lives to be prepared for baptism,” Fraher said.
The process for adults, and for children that have reached the age of reason, includes instruction and liturgical rites celebrated at successive intervals of time throughout the year.
However, the process has several distinct stages:
- Inquiry: The initial period to ask questions before deciding to enter the Catholic Church.
- Catechumenate: Those who decide to enter the Church are learning how to live a life in Christ and are called catechumens, an ancient name from the early Church. In this stage, individuals learn the basics about the Catholic faith and life.
- Purification and preparation: The Church helps catechumens focus and intensify preparation as they commit their life to Christ and ready themselves to be welcomed into the Church at Easter. During Lent, catechumenates experience the scrutinies.
- Initiation: The culmination of the whole process where the elect are received into the Church during the Easter Vigil Mass. (If you’ve already been baptized, you are called a candidate, and you won’t be baptized again.)
- Mystagogy: After reception into the Church at Easter, this period lets you reflect and learn more about the mysteries of the Mass and the sacraments that you now participate in fully.
The sacraments of Christian initiation are baptism, confirmation and Holy Eucharist, which are received during the Easter Vigil.
“My favorite topic to teach is the sacraments,” said Deacon Mike Carr, RCIA coordinator at All Saints Parish in Mesa. “It’s important to expose them to the life of the Church, and discuss how the sacraments bring life to each one of us.”
According to the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, “Baptism, the door to life and to the kingdom of God, is the first sacrament of the New Law, which Christ offered to all, that they might have eternal life.”
The Easter Vigil is the preferred time in the liturgical year when new members of the body of Christ are baptized. The Liturgy of Baptism is an exciting part of the Vigil when the Church baptizes the elect -— individuals who have never been baptized before in another faith.
The faithful are then signed with the gift of the Holy Spirit in the sacrament of confirmation, with the Vigil leading up to the celebration of the Eucharist. Those newly confirmed are then invited to receive the Body and Blood of Christ for the first time at the Lord’s table.
“The Easter Vigil is really so beautiful,” said Michael Garibaldi, director of evangelization and catechesis at St. Joan of Arc Parish.
“It is humbling for me to interact with [candidates and catechumens] on a weekly basis, and watch them grow and deepen their love of the Lord,” he said. “The Vigil is really where they start their journey as a Catholic.”
Each year on Holy Saturday during the Easter Vigil, thousands are baptized into the Catholic Church in the United States. Parishes welcome these new Catholics through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. Listed below are some questions and answers about the process of Christian Initiation.
What are the steps of Christian Initiation?
Prior to beginning the process of becoming a Christian, an individual comes to some knowledge of Jesus Christ, considers his or her relationship with Jesus Christ and is usually attracted in some way to the Catholic Church. This period is known as the Period of Evangelization and Precatechumenate. For some, this process involves a long period of searching; for others, a shorter time. Often, contact with people of faith and a personal faith experience lead people to inquire about the Catholic Church. After a conversation with a priest or a parish director of Christian Initiation, the person, known as an "inquirer," may seek acceptance into the Order of Catechumens, through the Rite of Acceptance. During this Rite, the inquirer stands amidst the parish community and states that he or she wants to become a baptized member of the Catholic Church. The parish assembly affirms this desire and the inquirer becomes a Catechumen.
The Rite of Election includes the enrollment of names of all the Catechumens seeking baptism at the coming Easter Vigil. Typically, on the first Sunday of Lent, the Catechumens, their sponsors and families gather at the cathedral church. The Catechumens publicly express their desire for baptism to the diocesan bishop. Their names are recorded in a book and they are called the Elect.
The days of Lent are the final Period of Purification and Enlightenment leading up to the Easter Vigil. Lent is a period of preparation marked by prayer, study, and spiritual direction for the Elect, and prayers for them by the parish communities. The Celebration of the Sacraments of Initiation takes place during the Easter Vigil Liturgy on Holy Saturday when the Elect receives the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Eucharist. Now the person is fully initiated into the Catholic Church.
As a newly initiated Catholic, they continue their formation and education continue in the Period of the Post-Baptismal Catechesis, which is also called Mystagogy. This period continues at least until Pentecost. During the period the newly baptized members reflect on their experiences at the Easter Vigil and continue to learn more about the Scriptures, the Sacraments, and the teachings of the Catholic Church. In addition they reflect on how they will serve Christ and help in the Church's mission and outreach activities.
What is meant by coming into full communion with the Church?
What is the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday like?
What does the white robe symbolize?
The newly baptized are dressed in a white garment after baptism to symbolize that they are washed clean of sin and that they are called to continue to walk in this newness of life.
What does the candle symbolize?
What does the Sacred Chrism symbolize?
The Sacred Chrism, or oil, is a sign of the gift of the Holy Spirit being given to the newly baptized. It is also a sign of the close link between the mission of Jesus and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, who comes to the recipient with the Father in Baptism.
Why was this ancient rite restored?
It was restored in the Church to highlight the fact that the newly baptized are received into a community of faith, which is challenged to realize that they too have become different because of this new life in the community.
Is there a ceremony or preparation for Catholics who never or seldom have practiced the faith?
For Catholics who have been Baptized, Confirmed and made First Communion but then drifted from the faith, the way they return is through the Sacrament of Penance. Catholics who were baptized but never received Confirmation and/or Eucharist also participate in a period of formation. This process of formation is completed with the reception of the Sacraments of Confirmation and Holy Communion often at the Easter Vigil or during the Easter Season.