Lesson

 In Italics are Class Handouts from the ACM’s RCIA Participant’s Guide & Apologetics Pages from The New Catholic Answer Bible

1st Class, 9/15     Is there anyone out there?  Can you hear me now?  Why Religion?  Does God exist?  Reasoning to Faith & Gift of Faith Introductions & Testimonies
Handouts:  Does God Exist?, God’s plan for salvation

2nd Class, 9/22    Where am I going?  Looking for directions?   Who is God? Trinity: A communion of persons  Why Did God make/create me? Image and Likeness What is RCIA and RCIC?
Handouts:  Blessed Trinity; Attributes of God; God the Creator; God the Father; The Holy Spirit; Beauty; Made in His Image

Special:  The Sign of the Cross

3rd class, 9/29     Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places”  Then why am I so messed up?  Sin and the Fall  What did God do for me?  Jesus is the answer, the  Paschal Mystery And the Angels Sing – The Heavenly Hosts

Handouts:  What is sin?; Original Sin; Temptation; God’s Justice; God’s Love; God’s Plan of Salvation; Providence; The Incarnation; Jesus:  The Way, the Truth & the Life; The Paschal Mystery; The Touch of Jesus; True God and True Man; Miracles:  Proof of Christ’s Claim; Did Jesus Always Know He Was God?; Did Jesus Have to Suffer & Die?; Resurrection; Jesus:  The Unexpected Messiah; Angels

4th class, 10/6     AT&T:  Reach out and touch Someone   How do I know what He wants for me?  --   Revelation, Scripture & Prayer

Handouts:  Divine Revelation; Sacred Scripture; The Deposit of Faith;  Intro to Prayer; Jesus:  Our Exemplar in Prayer; The Battle of Prayer; Aspects of Prayer; Types of Prayer

5th class, 10/13   Answering the Call    What do I do about it?  Join yourself to His Church What is RCIA?  the long answer &/OR common objections

Handouts:  Mystical Body of Christ; Catholic Family; Disciple of Christ; People of God

6th class: 10/20      Does it matter which church? Time for a background check           The prime factor:  Peter  Apostolic Succession & Church Hierarchy

Song:   “Cell 91”

Handouts:  The Church is Apostolic; One, Holy, Catholic…; Separated Brethren; Servant of the Servants of God; Infallibility; Magisterium; The Precepts of the Church

Special:  Canon Law; History of the Church; Titles, Terms, Ministries

7th class, 10/27   Check out His Book:  It’s a best seller!    Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth:  Sacred Scripture The Family Story:  The Story of Our Salvation               

Handouts: Can the Bible be Taken Literally?; Deuterocanonical Books; (Sacred Scripture, see class 4);  The Covenants of God with Us; (People of God, see class 5)

Special:  Solemnity of All Saints; Structure of the Bible

8th class, 11/3     Tradition, Tradition!  Did you know Scripture is part of      Tradition?  --Why do RC’s go to Mass every Sunday?  The  Meaning of the Mass

Handouts:  Sacred Tradition; Liturgy:  An Introduction; The Sabbath and Sunday Worship

Special: History of the Mass; Parts of Mass; What is a Rite?; Liturgical Vocabulary List

9th class, 11/10   Mi casa es su casa!  A tour of our Church; Good to the Bone:  Sacramentals & Relics

Handouts:  Veneration of Holy Images:  Idolatry?

Special:  (Liturgical Vocabulary List, see class 8), Sacramentals; The San Damiano Cross

10th class, 11/17 Where are we going?   The last stops on the line:  The Last Four Things;  Can you give me an example to follow?  Mary & the Saints              

Songs:  Martin Doman’s “Maria”

Handouts: Communion of Saints; Praying to Mary:  Idolatry or the Will of God?; Indulgences; The Four Last Things:  Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell; Purgatory; The Second Coming of Christ; The New Heavens and the New Earth:  The Real Rapture; The Kingdom of God; Resurrection of the body.

Special:  The Catholic Funeral; Canonization of Saints

11th class, 12/1   Holes or Holiness; Me, a saint?  Yes, you too!  Holiness:  a universal call; The Theological Virtues:  Faith, Hope and Love

***  PRACTICE RITE OF ACCEPTANCE: answering the call

Handouts:  Holiness & Joy; Responding to the Great Mysteries; Sacramental Living; the beatitudes things; The Virtue of Charity; The Virtue of Faith; The Virtue of Hope

Special:  Daily Examination of Conscience

12th class, 12/8   Tell me more about this Woman:  Something’s different about Mary  I love my calendar gift … liturgically.  The Liturgical Year

Handouts:  The 5 Doctrines on Mary; Mary, the New Eve; Mother of God & Our Mother.

Special: Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception; Solemnity of the BVM, Mother of God; Solemnity of the Assumption; Apparitions; Our Lady of Guadalupe; The Holy Rosary; The Liturgical Year; Advent

13th class, 12/15 Does God give me any suggestions to help clean up my life? The 10 Commandments are not 10 suggestions! The Cardinal Virtues and Virtues of Chastity & Humility

Handouts:  God’s Law; (Veneration of Holy Images: Idolatry?, see class 9); Profanity; (The Sabbath & Sunday Worship, see cl. 8); Honoring Our Parents; Chastity & Modesty; Virtuous Living; The Seven Deadly Sins; Stealing, Lying, Cheating; Conversion to Jesus Christ; Grace & Conversion; The Christian Meaning of Freedom; The Light of Conscience

Special:  Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord

14th class, 12/22 Road trip!!! Christmas Lights and Dinner at Our Lady of the Snows:  Community, not just Jesus and me!

15th class, 1/5     Jesus must have had a computer, He always SAVES.  The Sacramental Economy and Grace

Handouts:  Grace; Justification; Good Works; Once Saved, Always Saved?; The Sacramental Economy; Sacraments:  God Uses the Material World to Sanctify Us; (Sacramental Living, see class 11)

16th class, 1/12  It’s not just a job, it’s a life adventure:  Aim High! Holy Orders and the Consecrated Life

Handouts:  Celibacy for the Sake of the Kingdom; Holy Orders; In Persona Christi;  Women & the Priesthood; The Consecrated Life:  Living the Vows of Poverty, Chastity, & Obedience; (Chastity & Modesty, see class 13)

17th Class, 1/19  The spiritual energizer…how we keep on going and going …Called to a new life and strengthened in it…Baptism &  Confirmation                              

Handouts:  (The Holy Spirit, see class 2); Baptism; Infant Baptism; Confirmation; The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

18th class, 1/26   Oops, I did it again:  What to do when I fall down;   The Sacrament of Reconciliation & how to go to confession

Handouts:  Confession to a Human Being; Continual Conversion & Penance; Reconciliation; (Conversion to Jesus Christ, see class 13)

Special:  Examination of Conscience Before the Sacrament of Reconciliation; Helps in Using the Sacrament of Reconciliation

19th class, 2/2     Is It Real or is It Wonder Bread?  The Eucharist

Handouts:  The Eucharist; Real Presence; Reservation of the Blessed Sacrament

20th class, 2/9     Why do bad things happen to good people?   Anointing of the Sick

Handouts:  Anointing of the Sick; The Christian Meaning of Suffering; Viaticum; The Mystery of Evil

21st class, 2/16   The love connection:  2gether 4ever = success; Holy Matrimony & Family Life, what has happened to it?   1st comes love, then comes marriage?  Parents, the primary educators of their children … so says Vatican II

Handouts:  Matrimony; What is a Sacramental Marriage?; The Catholic Family; (Honoring Our Parents, #13) (Marriage, Sexuality, and Contraception - week # 23 or 24?

22nd class, 2/23  “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you”Creation & Life Issues, The Natural Law Lent, the Period of Purification and Enlightenment

 Handouts:  The Sanctity of Human Life; Natural Law; Errors of Modern Culture; The Dignity & Vocation of Women; Made in His Image; Male & Female He Made Them; Spirit & Matter

Special:  Lent:  Period of Purification and Enlightenment; The Stations of the Cross

23rd class, 3/2    Let me tell you about the Birds and the Bees from God’s perspective Sexual Morality  (Janet Smith tape)
Rite of Election:  Stepping Out of the Boat

(Handouts:  Marriage, Sexuality, and Contraception- from week # 21)

24th class, 3/9    God’s way … The natural way, Natural Family Planning.Co-creators

25th class, 3/16   Has anyone ever asked you if you wanted to be a priest?    The Priesthood of the Faithful & Evangelization

Handouts:  Priesthood of the Faithful and Evangelization; Evangelization; Social Teaching of the Church; Works of Mercy

26th class, 3/23   Big Daddy:  The Our Father - a prayer of unity Spiritual Life; Workshop on Reconciliation –being in the hot seat for a                                moment beats the hell out of eternity.

Handouts:  God the Father; Forgiveness           Special:  The Lord’s Prayer

27th class, 3/30   Holy Smoke & Holy Week; A review of The Creed; Meditation on the sacraments… church fathers.

Handouts:  Light & Fire; Typology: The Sacraments of Initiation and the Bible

Special:  Creed; The Chrism Mass; Holy Week; Solemnity of Easter

28th class, 4/6     PRACTICE FOR EASTER VIGIL

                        The Prayer of Jesus … that we might all be one

29th class, 4/13  You have NO CLASS, go to MASS; Holy Thursday, go to Mass

                4/14 Good Friday, go to services

                4/15 Easter Vigil, please be in the Mary Ann Room at 6:45--I                            believe; as the date gets closer I firm up that time for you

30th class, 4/20   Special surprise tonight;" Somebody give me a witness.  What’s your story?"; Testimonies to the vigil. 

Handouts:  The Disciple of Christ

31th class, 4/27   You won’t believe what we are talking about tonight! 

32st Class, 5/4     Eternal and Earthly Banquets, A Celebration;                        Adoration at Sisters’ Chapel and Dinner at Tony’s