Church of the Most Sacred Heart
RCIA
New RCIA cycle starts October 6th .....
BECOMING A CATHOLIC
At the Sacred Heart Parish, Ruislip
The R.C.I.A
Have you ever wondered what it entails to become a Catholic?
Would you like to talk with others who are also
interested and learn more about the Catholic faith in a relaxed setting?
Here at The Sacred Heart, Ruislip, if you want to know more about becoming
a Catholic, you are warmly invited to attend the RCIA programme of informal
and enjoyable meetings where you can learn more about the Church and find
out what it means to be a Catholic.
Whether you are baptised or not, whether you are a practising Christian
or know very little about Christianity, you are welcome to ask questions
and to share your interest with others in the same situation with no pressure
and in a relaxed setting.
RCIA Meetings are weekly and start in October each year and carry through
to Easter, where those who wish to fulfil their wish to become a Catholic
are received into the Church at the Easter Vigil Service, through the
sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist.
The letters "RCIA" stand for the "Rite of Christian Initiation
of Adults".
This comes from the initiation of Vatican II. It is the process by which
adults are initiated into the Roman Catholic community and are guided
and cared for as they follow the path of their faith and are gradually
introduced to the Catholic way of life.
If you are interested in becoming a member of the Catholic Church and
joining our meetings in October 2003, contact Father Michael at the Presbytery.
| The Church
wants to welcome all adults who are interested in the Roman Catholic
Faith. The RCIA is designed to assist you in learning Catholic Christian
teaching, accepting Catholic values and morality, developing a life
of prayer, and becoming active members of the local faith community. |
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May name is Paul Newman and I was received into the Catholic Church along with 11 others at this year’s Easter Vigil. I took part in the last RCIA course at the Sacred Heart Church, which ran from October 2004 until April 2005. My wife and both my two children are baptized Catholic. Even though I wasn’t Catholic, I still used to go to church with my family, as some of you know; it is not very easy for one parent to keep two young children quiet during Mass! It was whilst attending church with my family that I realised that I didn’t really understand much of what was going on. When my son would come home from school with homework regarding saints and their lives, I knew that I wanted to be the one that he asked for help, and not just my wife. I wanted to be “included” in so much more of my children’s lives, particularly at school. I wanted to know what was so special about Easter, and about Christmas and so much more of what I was experiencing every Sunday at Mass. Every week my wife and I would read the newsletter and she would often mention to me about the RCIA. So last year I decided that I had had enough of not knowing answers to my son’s questions and had a yearning to know more about the faith that the rest of my family had. The RCIA gave me the opportunity to explore the Catholic faith more thoroughly, and without any pressure, and ultimately to make any decision to convert to the Catholic faith. We met once every week normally at the Priest’s house, on a very informal basis. Every week there was a different topic to learn about and to discuss. It gave us all the opportunity to share our views on our lives, faith and many other subjects and to ask questions which might seem silly to a Catholic, but which we needed answers to in order to fully understand what we were undertaking. I drew strength from the other people attending the course and the fact that I wasn’t the only person looking to become a member of the Catholic Church. I think we all found new inner strength from Fathers Michael and Mark, as well as Les and Julia, who helped us so much on our journeys to become Catholics. It was an amazing experience, something I wish I had done a long time ago. But the time was right this year. I urge anyone who is in the situation that I found myself in to go along and sign up for the RCIA. There is no pressure on you. Once you start the course you can leave at any time if you feel it is not right for you, everyone is very friendly and it is very informal. Changing my religion was certainly life-changing for me, it might help you too.
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My name is Anna Harrington
I took part in the first RCIA course at Sacred Heart Church which ran from October 2002 to April 2003, culminating in myself and six other RCIA members being received into the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil.I was baptised C of E, my husband is Catholic and our three children are baptised Catholic. It was whilst attending church on a weekly basis with my family that I realised that I wanted to be "included" in everything that was happening during the Mass. The RCIA gave me the opportunity to explore the Catholic faith more thoroughly and ultimately to make my decision to convert theCatholic faith.We met on a weekly basis and shared our views and thoughts on our situations, faith and many other subjects.I drew strength from the other people attending the course and also from Father Michael and the other helpers on the RCIA course.
It was a truly enlightening experience and I urge anyone who is in the situation that I found myself in to go along and sign up for the RCIA
RCIA Catechist :- Les Board