The Rite is rather involved. Think about how much work it is to join a club, a fraternity, or a cult. There are many steps and stages. First you must show interest and learn the ins and outs of the group. Then you must commit and pledge yourself to the group. Finally there are some rituals to welcome you in. Then and only then are you part of the group, and you will be let in on its ways of doing things and perhaps its trade secrets.
We often forget that Christianity is a ancient near-Eastern cult. Cult literally means worship, though today it has negative connotations and is contrasted with established religions like Christianity. But originally and at its heart, Christianity is still a cult one must be initiated into.
There are several stages of initiation, and at each stage the person being initiated has a different name or title.
The Rite of Acceptance into the Catechumenate
Following a year of inquiry, when you are an "inquirer" receiving preliminary catechesis, you are accepted into the catechumenate, the group to be catechized, and you become a "catechumen." Catechesis means instruction or, more literally, echo. During this period. The life and teachings of Christ echo in you. You receive them and echo them back in your words and actions.
The Rite of Sending and the Rite of Election
Once you are ready to join the church, you are presented to the parish community by your catechists and godparents. If the parish thinks you are indeed well prepared and disposed to join the Church as a follower of Jesus, they elect you to sign your name in the Book of the Elect and be presented before the bishop. If the bishop agrees, then he "elects" or chooses you as one called by God to join the Church. He signs the Book of the Elect, making you one of the "elect."
The Easter Vigil Celebration of the Sacraments of Initiation: Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist
The ancient Rite of the Easter Vigil was restored at Vatican II and is rich with meaning and purpose. While celebrating the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ at Easter, the elect are initiated into the faith, ritually dying and rising with Christ in Baptism and Confirmation, and literally receiving Christ's body, soul and divinity in the Eucharist. You are now a Christian! You are called a "neophyte" because you are a new ("neo-") plant ("-phyte"), a vine branch newly grafted onto the True Vine that is Christ.
The final step of Christian initiation is a period of postbaptismal catechesis called “mystagogy,” which means a studying of the Holy Mysteries. Being renewed in mind through Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist, you now have “a new perception of the faith, the Church, and the world.” Attend Mass, ideally with your godparents, and talk with them or your parents about the readings, the liturgy, the homily, and your new life in Christ. It is fitting to celebrate the end of this period at Pentecost, although mystagogy never really stops. We're always continuing to study the great mysteries of our faith as we continue to participate in them.
