St Benedict’s Parish warmly welcomes new members into the family of God, regardless of age. For those people who choose to enter the Catholic Church as adults the parish offers a process of discernment and prayer. This process is called the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). The course is open to all adults searching for faith from those who are not yet baptised and know little about Christianity to those who have been baptised into another Christian faith tradition.

 

The RCIA process is for those who have heard the call of God in their lives and desire to find their place in the family of God as revealed through the Catholic Church. Having heard the call of God candidates (called catechumens) enrol in the process that takes from three to six months. The course is designed as a discernment process providing a series of faith sharing sessions covering different aspects of Catholic faith, thinking and practice. Discussions take place, as required, in a caring and supportive environment either in groups or on a one-to-one basis.

 

At the end of the discernment process catechumens are fully initiated into the parish family through the three Sacraments of Initiation and the Sacrament of Reconciliation. These sacraments of Initiaion are the Sacrament of Baptism, the Sacrament of Confirmation, and the Sacrament of Eucharist. These three sacraments are received together in one celebration during a Parish Mass.