What is OCIA?
(formerly RCIA)

 The Order of Christian Initiation for Adults, or OCIA, is a communal process for formal initiation of new members into the Catholic Church. This process is a return to the formation of the earliest members of the Church in the first and second centuries.

What's in a name...?
 
Well... that's a bit of a story....
 
In 1972, the Church promulgated the 1st Latin edition of the Ordo initiationis christianae adultorum (OICA); the first English translation came out in 1974. In 1986, the US Bishops gave us the National Statutes for the Catechumenate. The 1974 texts were retranslated and reorganized, and rites were added for baptized candidates. This gave us the 1988 text that we are using today: The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA).
 
This text and the National Statutes are in the process of being revised and retranslated. When the new ritual book becomes available, the title (translated from the Latin) will be Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA)... more closely matching the Latin original, and better reflecting that an "Order" is a collection of "Rites."  

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops describes the Order of Christian Initiation for Adults as a process in which participants "undergo…conversion as they study the Gospel, profess faith in Jesus and the Catholic Church, and receive the sacraments…The OCIA process follows the ancient practice of the Church and was restored by the Second Vatican Council as the normal way adults prepare for baptism."

Likewise, the language used in the OCIA process is that of the early Church formation programs. Catechumens are those people who are seeking full initiation into the Catholic Church through all of the Sacraments of Initiation – Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation. Candidates are people who have been baptized in a Christian tradition but are seeking initiation into the Catholic Church through Eucharist and Confirmation.

All are Welcome!

OCIA is a process of study, exploration, faith-sharing, and faith formation with specific liturgical rites for seekers and inquirers. Seekers and inquirers are non-baptized adults who desire to be fully initiated into the Roman Catholic Church and/or baptized adult Christians who desire full communion in the Roman Catholic Church.

Adults or older children who have not been baptized and desire to join the Church are invited into the ancient celebration of the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults. During this process, which is marked by regular ritual acts, participants are introduced to the liturgy, the teachings, and the life of the Catholic Church.

Adults or older children who were baptized in another Christian denomination prepare in a similar way for the sacraments of Confirmation and the Eucharist during their reception into the Catholic Church.

Contact Christine Pershey at 815-722-6653 ext 225 or christine@straymond.net.

OCIA is a Journey

The Order of Christian Initiation for Adults is a process that proceeds over weeks and months. It has several steps:

List of Services

OCIA Team

People journeying through the OCIA process need sponsors and community support to help them grow in faith. The oCIA team of sponsors help guide, support and instruct those discerning whether to become members of our Catholic community. Team members share their faith with inquiring who are seeking more information about the Catholic Church, many of whom seek to celebrate one or more of the Sacraments of Initiation: Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation.
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