Notes from the Liturgical Catechesis and the New Evangelization Conference Part 6 - William Keimig

Here is the 6th and final installment of my notes from the Liturgical Catechesis conference at the Liturgical Institute at University of St. Mary of the Lake, Mundelein. This is from the talk by William Keimig, St. Mary's of Piscataway, Clinton, MD



"The RCIA Process: The Church's Measure for Liturgical Catechesis"

Common Errors

• Diabolica division between liturgists and catechists 
• Liturgy is "used" becoming the servant of catechesis
• Liturgy does not determine your catechetical emphasis
• No Rite book nearby means no exploration of the liturgy
• Thinking that people have sufficiently-sticking conversations through teaching only: no vision that prayer and liturgy are the glue of conversion; they stick you to God.

People outside the church think our liturgical practice is just weird. They can't imagine that is the way we show love to God.

Liturgy models utterance- Love longs to share itself
Liturgy models sacrifice - Love longs not to count the cost
Liturgy models surrender - Love longs to trust absolutely
Liturgy models dialogue - Love longs to speak to the beloved

All of these elements need to be present in our catechesis:
Lex orandi - Liturgical
Lex credendi - Catechetical
Lex vivendi - Pastoral

Catechecal component
Introduces worship - Gives a first exposure to sacred space
Incarnates worship - Explains signs, gestures and beauty
Informs worship - offers a compelling vision into the myster
Inculturates worship - Bestows orthodoxy, authenticated by Mother Church
Invites worship - Points all doctrine to the Story and tot the love that never ends (see Catechesii Tradendae 23)

We need to understand liturgy well enough that we become able to mentor others into loving the liturgy. We need to know why liturgy is an authentic need and why the liturgy is the center and soul of the striving for perfection. Cf. Fr. Cyprian Vagaggini, OSB. Liturgy is relational- not mechanical. To strive for perfection means you want to experience the love beyond all telling and total intimacy. That is what is being offered in the liturgy, along with the means to attain it.

Pastoral formation (fellowship of the group and their hospitality, witnessing and sharing of opinion) and catechetical formation are ABOUT Christ but only the liturgy OFFERS Christ.

READ Aidan Kavanaugh OSB: "A Rite of Passage" the experience of how a catchumen was prepared in the early church.

Lectionary-based Catechesis
During the period of Purification and Enlightenment there should be no more doctrine but a spiritual preparation for the sacraments. Mystagogy teaches from the rites.

*Lectionary-based catechesis is just wrong except in early Lent and Mystagogy. It assumes a mystagogical framework. For a full explanation, see his article in Appendix IV of The RCIA Catechist's Manual (Liturgical Training Publications)

Teaching a doctrinal point through the liturgy. 

Example: Purgatory. We offer every Mass for the departed souls and they are present at every Mass. That takes teaching about it from sterile doctrine to a lived reality.

Benefits of catechumenal catechesis that is authentically liturgical:

• Fosters more genuine and deep conversions to God and His calling on individual lives
• Allows for more frequent and more full appropriation of grace
• More fully expressive of the Church nature 
• Fosters docility to the ancient ways of the Church
• Mitigates polemic tendencies regarding the teachings of the Church
• Helps the parish community grow in its communal and liturgical life
• Helps people to grasp the liturgical life of the Church in a daily pragmatic way
• Creates a greater diversity of ministries for differing gifts and abilities of parishioners
• Assists in vocational awareness due to the regular focus on saints who have lived fully their vocations
• The ordered nature and paschal focus of the liturgical year implies and demands systemic catechesis
• Provides more diverse means of approach for children; in better accord with the learning types of children
• Gives people a chance to experience the priest's liturgical ministry more frequently and in a less-distant setting
• Because the liturgical year forms the context of parish life, people become that much more integrated into parish life
• Helps catechesis accord with the adult learning model better than more didactic and academic forms of teaching
• Demands more people (sponsors, godparents, team) to be more liturgically aware and in tune with the cycles of the Church's life

Dangers of a parish that lacks a liturgically centered vision of the RCIA process

• The catechumenate is viewed as unnecessarily effort-intensive, or it becomes "canned"
• Doctrine is explained without reference to Jesus. His simple call is lost in the details
• Not expecting serious progress; or not having patience with how Jesus woos a soul
• Liturgical rites become celebrations of community entirely, not encounters with Christ
• The trust given to catechists and leaders never translates into trusting Jesus
• Forgiveness explained poorly can result in seeing Jesus' mercy as weakness or lenience

Questions to discuss in a parish setting to improve

• How do we prepare RCIA participants and the parish for the major liturgical rites?
• How do we reflect on these rites after they take place?
• How often and how well do we make available the various minor rites
• If we dismiss the catechumens from Sunday Mass, how often do we do so? If not, how can we change things to offer this opportunity?
• What takes place at Breaking Open the Word (Reflection on the Word?) is it just another teaching session, or perhaps just a sharing of opinions?
• What happens during Lent? Is Lent a time for interior reflection or primarily catechetical instruction?
• Do we celebrate all of the Scrutinies, the Presentations, and the preparation Rites on Holy Saturday?
• What is our Easter Vigil like? How many parishioners attend? Do the elect and the candidates feel welcomed and at home by their experience of the parish at the Vigil?
• Are sponsors and godparents deeply involved before and after the Easter Vigil? What sort of formation do they receive?

What should a parish see in its neophytes over time that gives evidence as to whether the RCIA process has been successful?

• Do your neophytes really feel they have a need for the Mass?
• Do your neophytes really have a desire for Jesus that is restless for more?
• Do your neophytes really desire to help others get to Heaven?
• Do your neophytes really have thankful hearts?
• Do your neophytes really need God in daily life?
• Do your neophytes really desire to sin less each day? 

Other suggestions

• Use guided meditations on prayers, ritual texts, Scripture, Eucharistic prayers, the Gloria, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, the Communion Rite, litanies, Lord/s prayer, other well-known prayers
• Tour the church, sacristy, diocesan cathedral, local monasteries or retreat houses, local shrines, other Catholic churches, an Eastern Rite Catholic church, a Catholic cemetery
• Use different prayer forms - Adoration, Liturgy of the Word, Silent prayer alone - indoors, outdoors, in small groups, in a chapel - Explain and offer Masses for different intentions, explain and pray Lectio Divina, Liturgy of the Hours, the Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet, Stations of the Cross, Stations of Light, the Angelus, the Regina Caeli, a litany, pray by laying on hands, pray a novena for a specific intention, pray in Latin, Sing psalms, Sing hymns, sing common Mass setttings, personal silent meditation on Scripture, an event in Church history, a saint's life or writings, a prayer text, a hymn text, a poem with suitable themes.
• Other creative elements: walk through the Mass,through the Bible or a specific Gospel, through a missalette, through one of the Liturgy of the Hours (Morning or Evening Prayer, for instance), walk though Examination of Conscience, demonstrate how to go to Confession, how to receive Communion, how to offer a thanksgiving prayer after Communion, explain and hold a Passover Seder, explain Catholic objects, vessels, sacramentals, statues, medals, devotional items; do a virtual or video tour of Catholic places, watch a video of a major Catholic event watch a movie on a biblical story, the life of a saint, a Catholic theme.

An exercise in liturgical catechesis:
Take 5 common doctrines, and come up with (in a single sentence for each) an ear-catching proclamation of how each doctrine connects to the sacred liturgy. Do not limit this to articulating connections to the Mass only, but also the broader liturgical reality that the Church understands.

Previous Posts in this series
Part 1 - James Pauley keynote
Part 2 - Fr. Douglas Martis
Part 3 - Petroc Willey
Part 4 - James Pauley
Part 5 - Jim Beckman

No Sympathy for the Devil: The Scrutinies and Sin

My best guess is that the people in the pews this weekend who witness the First Scrutiny - a purification rite for those preparing for baptism - have no idea they are actually witnessing a liturgical exorcism.  The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults states the scrutinies are intended to

....uncover then heal all that is weak, defective or sinful in the hearts of the elect; to bring out, then strengthen all that is upright, strong and good. For the scrutinies are celebrated in order to deliver the elect from the power of sin and Satan, to protect them against temptation, and to give them strength in Christ, who is the way, the truth and the life. These rites therefore, should complete the conversion of the elect and deepen their resolve to hold fast to Christ and to carry out their decision to love God above all. (RCIA 141)

If their preparation has been what the Church desires, the elect have already been "instructed gradually about the mystery of sin." (143).   The explanatory material before the rite continues, mentioning that the elect "have already learned from the Church as their mother the mystery of deliverance from sin by Christ" (144)

Most already-baptized adults in the pews received this kind of instruction on sin in 2nd grade, and perhaps again in 8th grade or high school. At best, the last time they thought about it was when they talked about it again in the context of the preparation for baptism of their children.

Do we really understand what is meant by "the mystery of deliverance of sin by Christ?" "Mystery" is not a word we hear often in relation to sin. Just what does this mean for the catechumens, and for us, the baptized, as we watch the ritual casting out of the demons of sin over the next three weekends?

Remember that those over whom the priest or deacon will pray the Prayer of Exorcism over the next three weeks are not yet baptized, and are therefore subject to the full effects of Original Sin and seduction by the Devil.  At baptism, they will put on Christ and receive the blessing of eternal life and the strength to resist temptation. In the meantime, the exorcism and our prayers will strengthen them in their last days as unbaptized people moving toward baptism. It has been said that the closer a person gets to the font, the more the Devil tries to keep him or her away. The prayers of the scrutinies are designed to combat that.

We are talking about "sin" here - with no "s", not "sins" - which, of course, still are committed after baptism by even the best of us.  "Sin" - the consequence of the Fall of Adam and Eve, condemned us to eternal death. Christ's coming reversed that. And THAT is the mystery. The fullness of this mystery will be revealed at the Easter Vigil, when, during the Exsultet, we sing:

O wonder of your humble care for us!
O love, O charity beyond all telling,
to ransom a slave you gave away your Son!
O truly necessary sin of Adam,
destroyed completely by the death of Christ!
O happy fault
that earned so great, so glorious a Redeemer.

This is the mystery - that God could bring something wonderful - eternal life - out of the darkness of sin and death. That Christ's rising from the dead conquered Satan, sin and death for all time.

So, this weekend, as the elect come forward to have their demons exorcised, we the baptized should rejoice that we have been saved in Christ by our own baptism and are no longer subject to the full effect of Original Sin. For us, this is part of preparation for our renewal of baptismal promises at Easter, when we will once again reject Satan and his empty promises.

An Ambitious Video Project - Mystagogical Preparation for the Easter Triduum

Want to experience the Easter Triduum differently this year?  Looking for a unique way to do in-depth preparation?  Timothy O'Malley, Director of University of Notre Dame Center for Liturgy has embarked on a 20-segment video series on the new blog Oblation: Liturgy and Evangelization.  He promises to provide a guide to mystagogical reflection on the Easter Triduum, so that by learning how to read the symbols embedded in the Three Days we can better access the mysteries that are so much a part of that great celebration of Jesus' suffering, death and resurrection.

In Episode 1, O'Malley says "we don't do mystagogy well, because we do mystagogy wrong".  He points out that too often we limit mystagogy to reflection on the rites the catechumens have experienced at the Easter Vigil.  What if, he suggests, we thought about it as "the spiritual theology necessary for an adult formation into faith" -  if we saw liturgical catechesis as a way of helping people see the world sacramentally? As a way of revealing the mystery of the triune God? Take a look at his opening episode - here. 

O'Malley's hope is that this approach will make a difference to how people experience the Easter Triduum.  Join him every Monday, Wednesday and Friday throughout the remainder of Lent - to participate in this project - and to see how it affects your experience of Triduum this year.

First Scrutiny - Moved to Tears

This morning at Mass, we celebrated the First Scrutiny with our catechumen.  Casey is a very young adult, and very unchurched.  She came to us this morning, her hair in a messy pony tail, wearing jeans with holes and a hoodie with the word "Love" emblazoned on the chest, and was seated in the front row.

As the cantor, I could see her clearly.  Her participation in Mass was minimal, but it was clear she was listening. The story of the Woman at the Well seemed to engage her attention. After the homily, she stood up, obviously only knowing the bare outline of what was to happen (as is proper, she was not over-rehearsed).  She stood in the center aisle, among the people, with her sponsor, bowing her head as the invitation to prayer over her and intercessions were read.

Then the surprise happened.

The presider asked the people from the parish community seated immediately around her to stand and place their hands on Casey's shoulders.  A group of people rose and joined her and her sponsor as the Prayer of Exorcism was read, asking for healing and protection for her from Satan as she enters her final preparations for baptism at the Easter Vigil.  Her face told it all - she got it.  She was fighting back tears all through the prayer at the enormity of the realization that the entire community was supporting her and holding her up in prayer. It was powerfully evident that she understood that Christ wanted her for his own so much that his whole people was praying for her in love.... that "Love" on the front of her shirt had finally found the reason she had chosen to wear it this morning.

Good liturgy finds ways to foster those "gotcha" moments - to demonstrate the love of God in such ways as can move participants along in their journey to conversion.  This morning, Casey was moved to tears - and later on to delight, as near the end of Mass, a couple renewed their marriage vows on their 25th anniversary - once again surrounded by the love and affirmation of the community. She grinned with joy as she realized what was about to happen when they came up - this, too, was obviously new to her. Again, she got it.

Church is essentially the love of Christ poured out to and through his community of faith. We have to keep trying to find good ways to show that through how we celebrate - to newcomers and to each other.

Thanks to Jerry Galipeau, for his great idea from his recent workshop about placing her in the center of the people and inviting them to lay hands on her.... it works! And thanks to my parish RCIA leaders and pastoral staff - for having the courage to try this.

Third Sunday of Lent: Discipleship of Hope in Christ

The following is the article that will appear in this week's bulletin at my parish, as the third installment of our reflection on the qualities of a mature disciple, as outlined in paragraph 75 of the RCIA.

Third Sunday of Lent:  The Discipleship of Hope in Christ

At baptism, we were called to become disciples of Jesus.  Adults preparing for baptism and children baptized as infants look to us to teach them how to become people who “in all things… keep their hopes set on Christ.” (RCIA 75)  A true Christian never loses hope, never gives up, because he or she knows that Jesus has already won the victory – that through his suffering, death and Resurrection, Christ has defeated sin and death.   No matter how much we suffer in this life, we know that Jesus has gone before us to prepare a place for us with God, where we and our loved ones who end their earthly life as baptized, believing disciples of Christ, will live, not die.  Nothing can overcome that promise.  What does that mean for our daily life?  Our baptism calls us to be beacons of hope in a very dark world.  While non-believers point to evil in the world, we must not fear to show that as Christians we are not afraid. 

Look at Jesus, not at the darkness.  Like the woman at the well, know that he is the Messiah, our Savior. Show your children and those preparing to become Christians that this is not a world of despair, but one of hope.  Even in worldly unhappiness, we can have a deep, unconquerable joy because of the “living water” Jesus gives us and because of what He did for us.

Joyce Donahue, for the St. John’s Liturgy Planning Committee

The Third Scrutiny - what does Lazarus have to say to us?

This weekend, my parish used the readings for the Third Scrutiny, focusing the theological reflection of the entire faith community on the Gospel of John account of the raising of Lazarus, as the adults readying themselves for Baptism enter their final two weeks of preparation. Although the Third Scrutiny was actually celebrated at another Mass, I could still sense the power of the presence of our two catechumens in the community.

Since our focus this Lent was on recovering the power of our own baptism, as we walk with the catechumens, our reflection on the Rite of Baptism this week focused on the Ephphetha - the opening of the ears to hear the Word of God and the opening of the mouth to speak its witness. Our pastor, in his homily, chose the figure of Martha, whose profession of faith in Jesus is a model for our own:

“Your brother will rise.”  Martha said to him, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.”

Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God,  the one who is coming into the world.”  (John 11:23-27)

In this passage lies the power of witness and a clear model for how we are to speak up for Jesus and the Gospel.

Beyond this great connection made in the homily, however, I found myself once again processing the death of my beloved friend Jim, who, coincidentally was born on the Feast of St. Lazarus. Jim's final work of art was a powerful photographic series called "Lazarus" and in his artist statement, he wrote:  "Once I was told it might be possible to live twice..."  The photos showed a variety of symbols of life, time, death and resurrection, many of them coated in pristine white paint, which "preserved" them, as did the photographs. The first photo in the series (left) featured paint-coated Easter lilies over the text of the story of Lazarus in Latin from the Vulgate.  The final photo was of rotting, spoiled fruit... not coated in paint - what would have happened to many of the other objects had they not been preserved "eternally" in the photographs.

What does the raising of Lazarus say to those of us who grieve the death of a loved one?  Since his raising was a one-time miracle  "for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it" are we to hope for anything more for us and our loved ones than the resurrection on the Last Day?  As I heard this reading yesterday, I found myself saying with Martha both "Lord, if you had been here my brother would not have died" and "yes, Lord I have come to believe that you are the Christ..."  In the process of grieving, that is the conundrum - the struggle between feelings of betrayal and faith - saying "Lord, if only you had been there..." and "Lord, I know you are here..."

Second Scrutiny - Looking Within to Find the Light of Christ

The two young women stood at the front of the church, motionless and transfixed, their sponsors' hands on their shoulders, as we celebrated the Second Scrutiny with those preparing for baptism this week during the choir Mass. It was a simple and powerful moment, as the commuity embraced them in prayer and invoked the power of Christ to defend them against evil during their final weeks of preparation for Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist.

Our pastor outdid himself in bringing the theme of  the Light of Christ into the homily, connecting it with the words spoken when our godparent lights our baptismal candle: our baptismal symbol of the week, which, of course fit right in with the Gospel reading of the Man Born Blind. The hymn texts were all laced with references to light and darkness as well.  It is truly amazing to liturgy planners when all elements of the Mass fall into place as if naturally on a given theme - and this was one of the best moments I have experienced.

After inviting the two catechumens to the front, and saying a brief prayer, our pastor invited us to recite the Creed - and it instantly made tremendous sense as the community stepped up to the plate -reciting it with more gusto than usual, as if everyone in the room suddenly recognized the privilege of being Catholic and became proud to profess their belief (see my previous post on that topic). We then prayed the intercessions over them, Father prayed the Prayer of Exorcism and the choir and Assemby responded with a hearty rendition of  "Stand Firm."

When the Rites are well celebrated they teach. I hope that everyone there today learned as much as I did from this simple, dignified and heart-felt experience.

The Liturgy of joy: we can dance when we want to!

Liturgy really can be a celebration.  This is the most amazing moment from the Rite of Election - from the Diocese of San Jose. It opens with the song "Sign me up for the Christian Jubilee" (you can hear the closing bars of the song before the cantor moves on to the invitation of the elect to stand.)  Be sure to watch the whole thing. (The fellow in the foreground apparently can hardly wait!)


Rite of Election 2009 video, Diocese of San Jose (hi-res) from Diana Macalintal on Vimeo.


What does this teach us about welcome, about joy, about the love we want to share with our catechumens? Volumes!

User-Friendly Online RCIA Resources

Hunting around for more online resources for the U Dayton VLCFF "Introduction to Liturgy" course. Here are some good ones.

If you are looking for nice explanatory articles, bulletin inserts, and more about the RCIA to use with team members or the assembly, check out the Diocese of Davenport online Liturgy Library page at http://www.davenportdiocese.org/lit/litlibrary.htm#RCIA.

A resource I have used for a while, and find indispensible is the online texts for the basic rites of the RCIA - which you can save and edit to customize for local celebrations, on the Diocese of Fargo, ND site: http://www.fargodiocese.org/educationformation/evangelization/Evangelization/rcia_rites.htm