Forum gives RCIA instructors ideas for improvement

Intermountain Catholic

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Ramon Moreno, director of RCIA at Sacred Heart Parish in Salt Lake City, talks about the information he has learned at the North American Forum on the Catechumenate. IC photo/Marie Mischel

DRAPER — The catechumenate – one of the periods of faith formation for adults wishing to be initiated into the Catholic Church – was the focus of a two-day forum that drew about 50 people to the Skaggs Catholic Center in Draper on June 8-9.

The facilitators were Clare Colella and Nick Wagner from the North American Forum. Colella is the director of adult initiation and adult confirmation formation at Our Lady of the Assumption Parish in San Bernardino, Calif.; Wagner is a prolific author who has more than 25 years of experience as a trainer for those involved in liturgy and catechetical ministry.

The Diocese of Salt Lake City sponsored a similar event three years ago, but that forum focused on the Sacrament of Initiation. Bringing in experts to teach local coordinators and team members involved in the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults is like "training the trainers," said Ruth Dillon, the diocesan director of the office of liturgy.

Dillon said she was looking forward to the forum because, having been in her position for less than a year, she wanted the opportunity to meet those involved in RCIA at the parish level. Also, "I want to hear the same thing they’re hearing, and gain an understanding of exactly what the catechumenate is and how you tailor it and make it work for the people in your parish."

Those attending the forum ranged from being new on the job to having years of experience.

"There are many things that I have picked up here that I will try to apply to my next class," said Ramon Moreno, who is in his first year as director of RCIA at Sacred Heart Parish in Salt Lake City. In particular, he said, he wants to concentrate on enacting the rites that are appropriate for each state of initiation.

During the forum, representatives from 17 Utah parishes from Logan to Saint George, as well as individuals from Colorado, Wyoming and Nevada, gathered ideas from each other as well as the trainers.

Ann Marie Fellows, RCIA coordinator at Our Lady of Las Vegas Parish in Nevada, said listening to other people’s experiences gave her confidence and a morale boost. "Rites are celebrated wonderfully at our church," she said, but after attending the forum she decided she would like to implement a year-round formation process at her parish. "I’m not sure when and how to do that," she added.

Like Fellows, many of those at the forum said they would like to have year-round formation at their parish. Another popular idea was that of basing the RCIA curriculum on the Church’s lectionary cycle, as Deacon Scott Dodge of the Cathedral of the Madeleine said.

"We’ve been hesitant to take the leap forward into lectionary based," Deacon Dodge said. "We know that’s our way forward but we’ve had a lot of change in the last year."

One of the most practical ideas that Jim Peters of St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Aurora, Colo., heard was to take a few minutes at the end of each class and ask what participants learned, he said. "We are going to start doing that."

Participants also shared what has gone well in their parishes. "It’s so powerfully transforming in our parish to make the journey to come to the Rite of Election at the Cathedral," said Mary Helen Strickland from St. George Parish.

"The good thing we did was trust the Holy Spirit and the pastor to discern what topics needed to be presented to bring this group to their sacraments, to their full initiation," said Lorena Needham of Saint Marguerite Parish in Tooele.

Colella urged those in attendance to look for help from others in their parish, including those whom they might not otherwise consider. "A catechist is a person who forms, so a good liturgist is a catechist," she said. "A good hospitality minister is a catechist, because a catechist is one who helps form and teach others." The initiation of catechumens is a gradual process that takes place within the community of the faithful. Asking for help can more fully involve the whole parish in the RCIA process, she said.