About RCIA / OCIA

There are four steps to the OCIA process:

Step 1: The first period consists of inquiry on the part of participants and evangelization on the part of the Church. It ends with the Rite of Acceptance.

Step 2: The second period may last for a year or more, and includes catechesis and the corresponding rites. It concludes with the Rite of Election.

Step 3: The third period ordinarily coincides with Lent along with appropriate rites in preparation for Easter and the celebration of the Sacraments of Initiation. It is a time of purification and enlightenment.

Step 4: The final period extends through the whole Easter season and is devoted to postbaptismal catechesis or mystagogy. It is a time for deepening the Christian experience, for spiritual growth, and for entering more fully into the life and unity of the Christian community.

The initiation of catechumens (those seeking baptism) and candidates (those seeking full initiation in the Catholic Church) is a gradual process that takes place within the parish community of the faithful.

Are you a Candidate? A Catechumen? A Confirmandi? What do these names even mean?

Catechumens are unbaptized persons who desire to be fully incorporated into the Catholic Church through the Sacraments of Initiation: Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Eucharist.

Candidates are those who have been baptized in the Christian faith and are seeking full communion in the Catholic Church through the Sacraments of Confirmation and Holy Eucharist. Proof of valid baptism in a recognized Christian denomination (by way of a certificate of baptism or letter of verification from one’s pastor or church of baptism) is required of all candidates.

A Confirmandi is a Candidate who has already been baptized in the Catholic Church, and has made their first Holy Communion, but is in need of Confirmation. They may be a teen or young adult who is a practicing Catholic already, or an adult who has been away from the church for a while and is ready to complete their initiation into the Catholic faith. It is never too late.