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RITE OF CHRISTIAN INITIATION OF ADULTS

"I received the living God, and my heart is full of joy. He has said: 'I am the Way, And my Father longs for you; So I come to bring you home To be one with him anew."

( "I Received the Living God," Anonymous )

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.....The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults, or "R.C.I.A", is the spiritual journey of adults who seek full communion with the Catholic faith. The candidates seek to be formed by spiritual grace, to be adopted in a special way as children of the heavenly Father, to be sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit, and finally to sup at the Eucharistic banquet at the Lord's Table.

There are three main stages of R.C.I.A.

  1. The person makes an inquiry into the faith and expresses a desire to become Christian or to come into full communion with the Church.

  2. The person is accepted as a catechumen. During the catechumenate is a period in which the person grows in the faith of Christ and receives instruction. At the conclusion of this stage, the catechumen is "elected" in the Rite of Election to receive the Sacraments.

  3. After a time of deeper spiritual preparation, the candidate receives the Sacraments, usually at the Great Vigil of Easter. After this joyful celebration, a period called mystagogia follows, allowing the neophyte to better exprience the Sacraments and life in the Christian community.

.....St. Stephen's has a special program for those wish to learn about the Catholic faith with a view toward possibly becoming Catholic. It offers an overview of Catholic belief as well as preparation for adult Catholics who wish to receive the sacraments of Baptism and/or Confirmation. If you are interested, please call Fr. Sirianni at the parish office at 202-785-0982.

   
ST. STEPHEN MARTYR CHURCH l 2436 Pennsylvania Ave, NW Washington, DC 20037 l (202) 785-0982 l