My First Year as a Catechist, a Retrospect
I received a comment from a reader asking me to review my first year as an RCIA catechist. I had my first breaking open the Word session in October, and I had about two sessions per month until recently. You can find most of my session material in the blog, just look for the RCIA category.
Our teaching year “ended” with the beginning of Lent, but we already had a new group of people for the next year of RCIA. So, while the director guided the elect through Lent to the Easter Vigil, the rest of the catechists started afresh with the new group.
Aside from that transition, what have I learned in the first year? Firstly, that I will always have more to learn, both about my faith and in how to share my faith with others. Just recently I came to a better understanding that it is all about our relationship with Jesus. I personally evolved into a relationship with him without even really knowing I was in the midst of it. And so I focused on learning about the nuts and bolts of the faith. Well, the people we had in our group needed to form that relationship with Jesus, and I’m not sure I imparted that really well.
The director and the main lesson material seemed to focus on “how did the readings at Mass make you feel?” I wasn’t comfortable with that. I wanted to teach them about the faith. Well…. in hindsight, what they needed was somewhere in the middle of those two ideas.
So I am learning more about the faith by preparing the lessons and I am learning, hopefully, how to help people find Jesus in their journey to the Catholic Church by interacting with some people who have a better concept of that than I do. There are so many different paths that lead people to the Church; some are at the door knocking, but they really aren’t sure why they are there, or they just can’t express it at the time. I need to help them discover Jesus and the wonderful gift he gave us. The Church is so much more than dogma and doctrine. We want to “follow the rules” because we love Jesus. It’s a long journey, but we can all make it, with prayer and God’s help.
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Hi Kathy,
Thanks for sharing. I have been asked a few times in the past to be a sponsor for RCIA. I just feel like it’s such a commitment and I don’t feel worthy to do it. I feel I have to know everything about the faith and be this “perfect” example to the Candidates and Catechumens. Someone told me that I have it all wrong and I should share with them what it is like for me on my own faith journey and how I have my own struggles, etc. It’s more real that way. I don’t know. I still feel a great responsibility that I can’t live up to. Thanks for sharing your experiences. I appreciate it. I am considering doing it next year. God bless you.
Suzanne
thanks suzanne, please be a sponsor. good sponsors are greatly needed. not that it’s “bad,” but most candidates and catechumens choose sponsors that are close to them and most of the time they aren’t that well catechized either. They need good, solid Catholics to guide them.