RCIA: The Community
By nature we are relational beings. As Catholic Christians we affirm this truth not merely as an observable fact of human existence, but as a graced aspect of our life with God.
Yet our experience of relationships may at times be a source of pain and threat to us as well as a source of joy and fulfillment. When an inquirer begins to explore the possibility of becoming a member of the Church, attitudes and assumptions and experiences of community quickly become relevant to the quest to belong.
What are the conversion issues that may emerge for inquirers around this topic of community? While each individual is unique and wrestles with a unique combination of concerns and questions, some common issues, such as the following, frequently will come to light:
- In our individualistic society, people often feel much more at home with a “me and God” kind of faith than with a faith grounded in community. One of the conversion issues that inquirers may face, therefore, is the very acceptance of community, not as an “add on” or an “extra” for our faith, but as an integral part of it.
- As Catholics, we also believe and profess our faith in a Church which is not merely a “spiritual” community, but is shaped in critical ways by external forms - found in the sacraments, organizational structures, places, people, and things that we regard as touchstones for the holy. Whether or not we are willing accept the “visible Church,” with its smells and bells, popes and piety, is a conversion issue which therefore emerges.
- Personal relationship and face-to-face community experience, as well as exposure to the ways and the works of the parish, can raise crucial conversion issues for inquirers. Do I want to be part of this community? Will these people welcome me? Do they want to be in relationship with me? Can I find this community trustworthy? Will they listen to me and accept me as I am? Not just any community, but this community is the focus of concern.
- One may take to the externals of the Church like a fish to water, but what about its heart? Jesus spoke to his first disciples and continues to speak to us in parables which overturn our usual way of thinking and acting. In contrast to belonging to the Lions or the Elks or a cadre of Mary Kay representatives, belonging to the Church is to be caught in a parable. This means that the Church is not a club or a formula for success, and indeed it may not meet all my personal needs. To belong to the Church is, rather, to be seduced into the mystery and glorious madness of the Gospel. Has this Gospel, the heart of Church community, spoken to your own heart?
- Commitment is notoriously difficult for modern people. And indeed, inquirers may come to us having “tried out” a commitment to several different religions or faith groups before exploring Catholicism. While it is premature to expect a commitment during the period of precatechumenate, one aspect of evangelization is sharing the Good News of God’s covenant, or commitment, to us. A conversion issue therefore is “Am I drawn to this covenant relationship? Does it attract me?”
It is not to be expected that these issues will be completely thrashed out during the precatechumenate, or that every question will be experienced by every inquirer with the same frequency or intensity. Yet some of them will probably appear. Conversion issues about community recur in various ways throughout the whole process of Christian initiation, and experience of community in the Church, under the reign of God. By being attentive to these and other issues as they emerge in this period, we can minister to inquirers, helping them to discover for themselves the next step on their journey.
