Franciscan at Home

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What is the Neophyte Year?

Many of us may be aware of the RCIA process that is undertaken in many parishes, but have we stopped to ask ourselves the question, “What happens to the new Catholics after the Easter Vigil?” The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults offers a period of Mystagogy for the seven weeks leading up to Pentecost, but then what?

The new Catholic, for the period up to the anniversary of their reception into the Catholic Church, is known as a “neophyte,” that is, “one who is initiated at the Easter Vigil. The term comes from the Greek word meaning newly planted.”[1] During this period, the parish should support the new Catholics in various ways to deepen their understanding of the faith. Ongoing catechesis is a necessary undertaking, if we are to continue to grow in faith and in love of Jesus Christ. This is echoed in the experience of the apostolic and early Church; for example, St. Paul counselled against neophytes becoming bishops too early (cf. 1 Tim 3:6) “lest their lack of experience in the faith render them arrogant or deficient.”[2] Similarly, the Council of Nicaea (325 A.D.) prohibited acceptance of a neophyte into holy orders, “lest being puffed up with pride, he fall into the judgement of the devil.”[3] It is clear from this prohibition that even in the fourth century, when the period of the catechumenate would have lasted several years,[4] the neophyte is still seen very much as in a period of early spiritual development. The questions might be asked: What kind of spiritual development is needed in new Catholics today? What should be happening during the Neophyte Year?

The Neophyte Year is a time which:

allows the neophytes to reflect on their experience of the sacraments, Scripture, grow closer to Christ through the Eucharist and participate more frequently in the parish. The parish community is called to mentor the neophytes as they begin to live as Christian disciples and fulfill their baptismal vocation to evangelize.[5]

Research into Current Neophtye Formation and Patristic Catechesis

In my M.A. and License studies at Maryvale Institute, Birmingham, I wrote and defended a dissertation on neophyte formation and patristic catechesis. This involved an empirical research element that studied responses of a questionnaire sent to 211 parishes in the Archdiocese of Westminster. It is not necessary to go into the results in any major detail here, but what was of interest was that a large majority of parishes did not appear to offer any ongoing formation during the neophyte year. Admittedly some parishes struggled in finding the extra resources and catechists to support ongoing neophyte formation. I also conducted research into sacramental participation in Sunday Eucharist, because the obligation of a Catholic “to attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of Obligation”[6] is the first precept of the Church. Participation in the Sunday Eucharist is a “testimony of belonging and of being faithful to Christ and to his Church”[7] and a way of witnessing to the truth of the Gospel.

My expectation was that a high percentage would be regularly attending weekly Sunday Eucharist as Christian living “requires being nourished through regular attendance at Mass.”[8] I also expected an enthusiasm for receiving Jesus weekly, because as the YouCat says: “Anyone who is really seeking Jesus’ friendship responds as often as possible to Jesus’ personal invitation to the feast.”[9] However, the reality was that less than 50% of those who had been through RCIA in a five year period were attending Sunday Eucharist weekly.[10] This is a worrying trend, because “some estimates indicate that as many as 50-70% of new Catholics (neophytes) cease to practice their faith within two years.”[11] This illustrates why ongoing neophyte formation should be a priority for parishes.

“Mom, what’s that?” a little girl in the grocery store unabashedly asked as I walked past them in the produce aisle. Slightly embarrassed at her daughter’s rather loud and candid question, her mother simply and timidly responded “She’s a lady who loves Jesus.” I smiled at both mother and daughter and gave a little wave as I kept on in pursuit of the items on my list. In living my call to consecrated religious life over the past thirteen years, there have been plenty of experiences similar to this and I am sure that every sister has a supply of her own. Humorous as they may be, still they point to a sad reality that consecrated religious life is not as visible or fostered as it was in decades past and that the simplistic answer may have been the extent of that mother’s knowledge of the reality of this state in life. There was a time when most young people were exposed to sisters in the classroom, parish, or even in the family, but those days are gone. Most knowledge of religious life comes rather from movies like “The Sound of Music” or “Sister Act,” but the life of consecration has a depth and beauty worth studying and sharing with a generation that tends to long for more and settle for less. Throughout Salvation History, God has called men and women to follow him in the consecrated life. They have borne witness to the Gospel by living heaven on earth. In this way, they have revealed the providence of God in every age through their trust and their loving service to their brothers and sisters in need. From the earliest days, God called individuals to himself, as with the desert fathers, but that expression of single-hearted following of Christ eventually flowered into individuals living a dedicated life in community. Founders and foundresses responded to the needs of each particular time and established religious institutes within which members consecrated themselves to God through vowing the Evangelical Counsels, living in community, and serving according to their particular situation in apostolates such as health care, education, and care for the poor and needy of every condition. God’s call goes forth even today inviting young people to forsake the promises of the world for the sake of embracing his eternal promises. Vowing to live poverty, chastity, and obedience in a world that exalts material goods, sexual license, and individualism is counter-cultural to say the least, but it is a path worth discerning and a journey worth taking. Catechists have a particular role to play in assisting young people to encounter the truth and beauty of a call to be consecrated to God through the profession of the evangelical counsels through education and exposure. While the General Directory for Catechesis instructs that “every means should be used to encourage vocations to the priesthood, and to the different forms of consecration to God in religious and apostolic life and to awaken special missionary vocations,”[1] it is essential to remember that God is the source of every vocation. The role of the catechist is to propose to students that such a particular vocation is not just in the movies and that there is a real possibility that they could be called and ought to learn to listen to the gentle voice of the Good Shepherd.

The language of discernment has its pitfalls. Often, such language is employed by Catholics to cover over a significant fear of commitment. For example, a young man may be “discerning” a vocation to the priesthood. Such discernment could be a good insofar as he is engaging regularly with a spiritual director, attending daily Mass, and praying the Divine Office. It could also be the case that the young man’s “discernment” is really a matter of relying solely upon his affections to assess the validity of the priestly call. He assumes he is “called” to the priesthood only when he feels excited about the idea of being a priest.

Such language of discernment becomes even more problematic when applied to marriage. In the context of a Catholic university, one often hears young men and women say that they are discerning marriage. Notice that the language of discernment in this case is related to the consideration of a formal state of life, rather than a particular existing relationship. One is “discerning” marriage in general not nuptial union to a living and breathing human being—a person with affections, desires, and an imagination separate from one’s own. The center of the act of discernment is the self, not the other.

Don’t get me wrong. Of course, it is possible to have a general sense of calling toward a specific way of life. One may be attracted to the priesthood insofar as one recognizes the legitimate value of a life given over in sacrificial love through teaching, preaching, and sacramental ministry. One may perceive the gift of marriage by recognizing a longing that the human heart has for union with the beloved and (God-willing) children. These basic affections that draw toward a form of life are intrinsic to the process of discernment. They cannot be discounted unless we deny our humanity!

But those who remain entrenched in the first stage of discernment, not moving toward concrete forms of love, can leave a wake of havoc in the lives of other human beings. For example, young people can be in the midst of discerning marriage, perhaps even dating someone at the time. Then, for whatever reason (perhaps a powerful encounter with God in adoration or in liturgical prayer), they decide that they need to discern consecrated life. They leave the person that they are dating behind to pursue their new path of discernment. They remain on this new path until there is a reason to call into question whether they are called to religious life. Because many young people base the process of discernment in the affections, in the discernment of a general state of life, they become incapacitated for a concrete commitment. They become professional discerners.

This vacillation caused by exclusive reliance upon the affections, as well as a focus on a “general” state of life in discerning marriage is sympatico with life in a liquid age.

Luego de una larga sucesión de documentos magisteriales orientados a la importancia de un ambiente comunitario que fomente el cultivo de la vocación de cada miembro[1], el Documento Preparatorio de la próxima XV Asamblea General Ordinaria del Sínodo de los Obispos, “Los jóvenes, la fe y el discernimiento vocacional” [2], declara:

"Toda la comunidad cristiana debe sentirse responsable de la tarea de educar a las nuevas generaciones y debemos reconocer que son muchas las figuras de cristianos que la asumen, empezando por quienes se comprometen dentro de la vida eclesial. […] En todas las partes del mundo existen parroquias, congregaciones religiosas, asociaciones, movimientos y realidades eclesiales capaces de proyectar y ofrecer a los jóvenes experiencias de crecimiento y de discernimiento realmente significativas."[3]

A lo largo de mis años de servicio en el ministerio, en todas las pláticas que he escuchado, y aun las que en ocasiones he dado, el enfoque suele orientarse al cultivo de la propia vida espiritual por medio de la oración personal y la vida sacramental de la Iglesia. Aparte de la importancia de la vida espiritual[4], y sin restarle nada a la necesidad del acompañamiento en el discernimiento, lo cual es un tema central del Documento Preparatorio[5], quisiera enfocar una realidad frecuentemente olvidada en el campo del discernimiento vocacional: la comunidad. Ya que el próximo Sínodo centrará la atención en la juventud, dirijo mis pensamientos a las comunidades de adultos quienes atienden o enseñan a los jóvenes (por ej. equipos nucleares de pastoral juvenil, catequistas, profesores de escuela, etc.).

En lugar de citar múltiples razones por las que una comunidad de discernimiento sea esencial en el discernimiento vocacional, quisiera mejor proporcionar algunas consideraciones para el cultivo de este tipo de comunidad. El Documento Preparatorio resalta esta necesidad, ya que dice:

"A veces esta dimensión proyectiva [de experiencias de crecimiento y de discernimiento para los jóvenes] deja espacio a la improvisación y a la incompetencia: es un riesgo del cual defenderse tomando cada vez más en serio la tarea de pensar, concretizar, coordinar y realizar la pastoral juvenil de modo correcto, coherente y eficaz. Aquí también se impone la necesidad de una preparación específica y continua de los formadores."[6]

No me declaro experto en el tema, ni puedo proporcionar un “plan pastoral” comprensivo, pero sí me daba cuenta de la importancia del cultivo de una comunidad que conduzca al discernimiento vocacional durante mi tiempo como agente de la pastoral juvenil rodeado de un equipo de adultos voluntarios. Apoyándome principalmente en mi propia experiencia en la pastoral juvenil, quizás algunas de mis percepciones puedan servir como catalizador para cultivar un ambiente comunitario que fomente el discernimiento vocacional. Aunque mis ejemplos provengan de la pastoral juvenil parroquial y una comunidad de voluntarios que prestan su servicio en el marco de un equipo nuclear, muchas de estas nociones son también aplicables a otras organizaciones o estructuras parroquiales o escolares, e incluso a la misma familia.

Following a long line of magisterial documents that address the importance of a communal environment conducive to fostering one's vocation,[1] the Preparatory Document <

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“I know my kid has problems, but at least she’s not on drugs!” You’ll hear this uttered by moms appealing to their child’s teacher or by fathers trying to rationalize their son’s lackluster behavior. The intent of the phrase is to make one’s existing defects of character seem less significant when compared to someone who has “real” problems. In fact, I remember a mildly heated conversation during my own teen years, when my parents were beside themselves trying to get me to manage my personal life. My mom, sensing the tension and realizing that I really was a good kid, paused at one point and said, “Son, we really are pleased with you, at least you’re not on drugs.” Comforted by this low bar, I continued in my mediocrity.

While this statement is intended to give comfort, it offers a skewed perspective on our purpose for living. Our purpose is not to achieve an absence of vice but to pursue the presence of virtue (Gal 5:22-24; CCC 1784, 1803). If our life is simply measured by the lack of destructive behaviors, we will have set a low bar indeed.

Many parish RCIA processes operate on the “at least you’re not ___________” principle. They measure a candidate’s progress by the lack of obvious sin, more than the presence of virtue or adherence to the Gospel. Due to the challenges in the conversion process, a pastor or RCIA director can unwittingly believe that as long as one is willing to be baptized and there is no presence of serious sin, the RCIA has done its job. If you have found yourself in this place, allow me to inspire you to raise the level of expectation and transform your RCIA into what the Church intends, that is, to generate unbaptized evangelists.

Great Expectations

The expectation of the Church is that the RCIA is supposed to train catechumens (apprenticeship) in the entire Christian life.[i] By entire, the Church really means entire. By God’s grace, everything that should be part of the post-baptismal Christian life, with the exception of sacraments, should be present in some form before baptism: faith, hope, charity, repentance, prayer, moral life, good works, etc. (RCIA 75.1-3). There is one more aspect in which the Church expects catechumens to participate: the apostolic work of evangelism. The Church says, “catechumens should also learn how to work actively with others to spread the Gospel and build up the Church by the witness of their lives and by professing their faith (RCIA 75.1, AG 14).

So often those working in RCIA are just hoping catechumens will come to Mass every Sunday, and the thought of including catechumens in the apostolic work of the Church never crosses their minds. Most RCIA processes are structured for catechumens to only be receivers and not givers.