Two online gatherings this spring brought RCIA and sacramental coordinators together with a vital reminder: the church’s mission to evangelise begins with relationships, not programs.
Held on 26 August for RCIA teams and 23 September for Sacramental teams, the gatherings drew approximately over 50 leaders to each session. Led by the Parish Renewal Team’s Mission Leader, Tania Rimac and RCIA and Sacramental Co-ordinator, Varun Perera, the meetings featured practical insights from Christine Solomon on leading RCIA sessions and Pina Bernard on sacramental preparation for children, both leaders from the parish of All Saints, Liverpool.
For many seeking to grow or return to the faith, or become Catholic, parish RCIA and sacramental teams are the first point of contact. They are, quite literally, the first point of contact ushering people through the church’s welcome, and, as Tania emphasises, first impressions count.
“The Church exists in order to evangelise,” Tania emphasises. “If somebody is knocking at our door, we need to be ready and have someone ready to open that door immediately, because we want them to know we are excited to have them and welcome them.”
The archdiocesan Becoming Catholic inquiry page alone receives over 10 inquiries each week. Those first moments matter enormously. Any lag between inquiry and parish response risks sending an unintended message: that the Church is too busy to care.
“It’s always first about the heart,” Tania says. “First connection is always about relationship. Who did they encounter? What was that conversation like? How did we make them feel?”
The gatherings emphasised that RCIA and sacramental ministry must balance catechetical excellence with hospitality, welcoming and belonging. Parents and families accompanying children to sacramental preparation may experience the church only in these moments. That encounter shapes whether they feel welcomed or like outsiders.
“Sometimes this will be the only opportunity that we get to welcome them and make them feel, and know, that they belong,” Tania notes. “We want to make sure that they are formed well, but we also have to remember that they’re having an experience of the church and the Body of Christ, which must be welcoming.”
This is not ministry by program. It is ministry by relationship.
Why bring RCIA and sacramental teams together? Because, as Tania explains, “Sacraments are the life of the church. This is the lived faith alive.”
The gatherings called leaders to remember that they are not simply processing people through steps. They are connecting souls to Christ: through the sacraments, through the community, and through themselves as the Body of Christ.
This work will culminate in a day of renewal and reflection. On 17 October, RCIA and sacramental teams are invited to an in-person retreat at St Brendan’s, Annandale, with the theme “I have called you friends” (John 15:15).
“Our hope for our teams, those who are doing the hard work on the ground at a grassroots level, is that they have an opportunity to pause and reflect and build that relationship with Christ, who is their friend and serve in the mission that Christ has given them at this time.”
The day will include Mass, adoration, and a talk by Fr Matthew Meagher, creating space for team members to deepen their own relationship with Christ, so they return to their parishes refreshed and ready to welcome others as friends, not applicants.
Anyone involved in RCIA or sacramental teams is welcome at the October 17 retreat.
For more details about the retreat go to the Go Make Disciples Events page: Events – Go Make Disciples
