The sacramental life from Incarnation Parish GOF Adult class: Sacraments of Initiation: Eucharist and Confirmation

1. Generations Of Faith
The Magnificent Seven:
The Sacraments
Sacraments of Initiation
December 5, 6, & 8 2018

2. Opening Prayer: Our Father
This session on Sacraments of Initiation will:
1. Deepen our understanding of the sacraments of Baptism,
Eucharist, and Confirmation as seen through the eyes of
those entering the Roman Catholic faith.
2. Help us continue in our calling to lead a sacramental life.
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3. Our Journey Together
• We are each on a journey …
• The backdrop of this liturgical season is Advent when we …
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From this world
To the next
By loving God & everyone else
Wait in silence … listening to
God’s voice
While striving to be the best we
can be … letting go of what doesn’t
add value and taking on what does

4. Sacrament to Living a Sacramental
Life
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A sacrament is:
1.
2.
3.
An outward sign,
Instituted by Christ (and administered by the Church),
To give grace.
Grace is the free and undeserved help that God gives us to
respond to his call to live as children of God … to love God
and to love everyone else
We are called to live a “sacramental life”:
1. To be an outward sign by the life we live,
2. By following the teachings of Jesus,
3. In order to be instruments of God’s grace to others.

5. The Three Sacraments of
Initiation
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Outward Sign Instituted by
Christ/Church
Administered
Give Grace
Baptism
Covered During
the October GOF
Eucharist
Confirmation
• Water & Chrism
• Word
• Candle
• White Garment
• Jesus baptized
in the Jordan
• Mt 28:19 Jesus
says to baptize
• Indwelling of the
Spirit
• Entrance into the
Faith Community
• Chrism
• Word & Name
• Sponsor
• Bread
• Wine
• Last Supper:
“Do this in
remembrance of
Me”
• We become
what we eat
• Faith Community
as One
• John: Jesus
breathes on them
• Acts: Spirit as
tongues of fire
• Indwelling of the
Spirit is
renewed/
strengthened

6. A Reflective Question
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Suppose you were not a Roman Catholic and you were
looking for which community of faith to join. Would you
choose to be a Roman Catholic?
1. Why might some people say “No”?
2. Why might some people say “Yes”?
•
•
•
•
•
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7. The State of Our Church Today
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In an Op/Ed article written in the Boston Globe (October 8,
2018), Alex Beam stated that the Catholic Church has lost
more than 3 million congregants in the past 10 years.
1. Every time the church adds a member,
2. Six members leave the church.

8. A Deeper Reflective Question
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Why do you remain being a Roman Catholic?
1. Each of us will have a different individualized answer.
• My story!
• Some of yours!
2. But for all of us there is a similar answer.
• We are responding to grace given by the spirit of God
to be present.

9. The Present Opportunity
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We will take this opportunity to renew our conscious choice
to be a member of this faith community by:
1. Looking through the lens of an adult entering the Roman
Catholic faith, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults
(RCIA), and
2. Accompanying them along their pathway to receive the
three sacraments of initiation:
Baptism
Eucharist
Confirmation

10. Rite of Christian Initiation of
Adults
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The Second Vatican Council:
• Revised the rite of Baptism for adults,
• Restored the Catechumenate of adults (i.e., person
receiving instruction in the Catholic religion), and
• Delineated the steps to be taken.
Brain Dump: what should a person entering our faith for the
first time be taught?
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•
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11. Rite of Christian Initiation of
Adults: Some Grounding
Thoughts
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RCIA is:
• Designed for adults who, after hearing the mystery of
Christ proclaimed, consciously and freely seek the living
God and enter the way of faith and conversion as the
Holy Spirit opens their hearts.
• A person who is already baptized is called a “candidate”
whereas a person who is not baptized is called a true
“catechumen”.
• The initiation of a catechumen is a gradual process and
takes place within the community of the faithful.
• RCIA is about conversion … it is a process and cannot
have a timeframe put against it. We meet each person
where they are and accompany them on this journey.

12. The Journey Through RCIA
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The Journey through RCIA:
• Begins by the person listening to the Spirit and is moved
to seek out our faith community.
• “Acceptance into the Order of Catechumenate” – Our
faith community led by Fr. Steve accepts the person who
declares an intention to join the church.
• Period of “Catechumenate”
– Person attends Mass up through the Gospel and then
meets with their catechist (teacher) to dive deeper into
the Gospel readings,
– Because this person is in the process of building an
understanding of what we believe as a faith
community.

13. The Journey Through RCIA
(continued)
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• Day of Election
– 1st Sunday of Lent (usually in the afternoon), all the
catechumens gather at Holy Cross Cathedral.
– Each enters his/her name into the Book of the Elect
and are now called “elect”.
– They enter into the final and more intense preparation
for the sacraments of initiation.
• Period of Purification & Enlightenment lasts through the
remainder of Lent.
• Easter Vigil – elect receives the Sacraments of Initiation:
Baptism, Eucharist , and Confirmation.

14. Period of Purification &
Enlightenment: A Deeper Dive
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This is the period of teaching that lasts from the First
Sunday of Lent to sundown of Thursday of Holy Thursday
and has a two-fold purpose:
• Uncover and heal all that is weak, defective, or sinful in
the heart of the elect.
• Bring out and strengthen all that is upright, strong, and
good in the hearts of the elect.
This period is marked by:
• 3 scrutinies (from Latin referring to those who search
through piles of rubbish in hopes of finding something of
value; current day meaning is careful examination and
inquiry) – the 3 Gospels, and
• 2 presentations (Creed & Lord’s Prayer).

15. Period of Purification &
Enlightenment: A Deeper Dive
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• 3rd Sunday of Lent: First Scrutiny – Gospel of the
Samaritan woman at the well. Why is this important?
– Covers personal sin & Christ as the living water.
• During this week given the first presentation – The Creed
which he/she will recite at Baptism during the Easter Vigil.
• 4th Sunday of Lent – Gospel of the man born blind. Why
is this important?
– Covers social sin & Christ as the light of the world.
• 5th Sunday of Lent – Gospel of the raising of Lazarus
from the dead. Why is this important?
– Victory over sin and death … resurrection and new life
– Given second presentation The Lord’s Prayer

16. The Journey Through RCIA:
The Easter Vigil
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The elect receives the Sacraments of Initiation: Baptism,
Eucharist , and Confirmation.

17. The Journey Through RCIA
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• Period of Postbaptismal Catechesis/Mystagogy:
• This 50 day period between Easter and Pentecost
is devoted to the study of the mysteries of our faith.
• Person is no longer called elect but is now a
“neophyte”.
• Celebration – held near the end of the Easter Season but
before Pentecost and celebrates this full member of the
faith community who, like all of us, continues to deepen
their understanding and practice of our faith.

18. Journey of the Catechumen- Elect-
Neophyte Mirrors our Own
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Each of us is journeying from this life to the next as:
• We seek to deepen our own understanding and practice of our faith,
• By listening to the urgings and assistance of the Spirit (to be the best
we can be),
• And to walk along this journey with the rest of our Faith Community.
So that each of us may continue to live a “sacramental life”:
• being an outward sign
• by the life we lead following the teachings of Jesus to love God and
everyone else
• in order to be an instrument of God’s grace to others as a means of
helping them to meet life’s challenges.

19. Servant Song by
Jeanne Cotter & David Haas
Will you let me be your servant
Let me be as Christ to you
Pray that I might have the grace
To let me be your servant too
We are pilgrims on the journey
We are brothers on the road
We are here to help each other
Walk the mile and bear the load
I will weep when you are weeping
When you laugh, I'll laugh with you
I will share your joy and sorrow
Till we've seen this journey through.
When we sing to God in heaven
We shall find such harmony
Born to all we've known together
Of Christ's love and agony
I will hold the Christ light for you
In the night time of your fear
I will hold my hand out to you
Speak the peace you long to hear.
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20. A Request
• As good Catholics, we typically do not volunteer for roles
… probably out of humility … we wait to be asked!
• So, we are asking you to consider being a Lector or
Eucharistic Minister, or your child as a Server.
• If you would like to engage in any of these ministries,
please feel free to contact Ann Lahiff.
• There will be training for whichever role you select. 20

21. Final Prayer
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Prayer is from Hillary Clinton’s Methodist Minister, Rev. Bill
Shillady, who celebrated the funeral rites for Hillary’s mother
and the marriage ceremony for Chelsea and her husband.
“We pray that we may:
• Do all the good we can,
• By all the means we can,
• In all the ways we can and all the places we can,
• To all the people we can,
• For as long as we ever can.
• Amen”

22. What We Attempted To Do:
This Session
This session on Sacraments of Initiation:
1. Deepened our understanding of the sacraments of
Baptism, Eucharist, and Confirmation as seen through the
eyes of those entering the Roman Catholic faith.
2. Help us continue in our calling to lead a sacramental life.
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23. What We Attempted To Do:
Overall
Overall GoF attempts to move us closer to what St. Francis
held as an empowering goal by:
• Accepting the things I cannot change,
• Having the courage to change the things I can, and
• Possessing the wisdom to know the difference!
You can decide how well we accomplished all of this by what
you do from here!
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24. December 5, 6, & 8 2018
Thank you for being with us today!
Generations Of Faith
The Magnificent Seven:
The Sacraments
Sacraments of Initiation