RCIA

What is RCIA?

The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults, or RCIA, is a communal process for formal initiation of new members into the Catholic Church. This process is a return to the formation of the earliest members of the Church in the first and second centuries.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops describes the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults as a process in which participants "undergo…conversion as they study the Gospel, profess faith in Jesus and the Catholic Church, and receive the sacraments…The RCIA process follows the ancient practice of the Church and was restored by the Second Vatican Council as the normal way adults prepare for baptism."

Likewise, the language used in the RCIA process is that of the early Church formation programs. Catechumens are those people who are seeking full initiation into the Catholic Church through all of the Sacraments of Initiation – Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation. Candidates are people who have been baptized in a Christian tradition but are seeking initiation into the Catholic Church through Eucharist and Confirmation.

All are Welcome!

RCIA is a process of study, exploration, faith-sharing, and faith formation with specific liturgical rites for seekers and inquirers. Seekers and inquirers are non-baptized adults who desire to be fully initiated into the Roman Catholic Church and/or baptized adult Christians who desire full communion in the Roman Catholic Church.

Adults or older children who have not been baptized and desire to join the Church are invited into the ancient celebration of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. During this process, which is marked by regular ritual acts, participants are introduced to the liturgy, the teachings, and the life of the Catholic Church.

Adults or older children who were baptized in another Christian denomination prepare in a similar way for the sacraments of Confirmation and the Eucharist during their reception into the Catholic Church.

RCIA is a Journey

The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults is a process that proceeds over weeks and months.

More Information

The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) is a program for adults seeking full communion in the Catholic Church. It involves the formation and education of both Catholics who are in need of the Sacraments of the Eucharist and/or Confirmation or non-Catholics who are seeking full communion with the Roman Catholic Church. It is the roadmap for the spiritual journey, a gradual process that varies according “to the many forms of God’s grace, the free cooperation of the individual, the actions of the church and the circumstances to time and place.” (RCIA #5)

If you are an adult Catholic (aged 18+) in need of the Sacraments or non-Catholic interesting in learning more about the Catholic faith, please contact the Religious Education Office at (401) 942-1323.

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you;

I am with you always, to the close of the age."