Not too long ago, adults who wanted to become Roman Catholics attended a few weeks of "convert instruction" and were quietly baptized in a private ceremony by the parish priest.  It was a totally private process that involved only a priest and the inquirer.  One of the great gifts of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s was a renewed process of forming and initiating adults called the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA).

The RCIA restores for the modern world the process the ancient Church used in initiating members.  Early Christians realized that initiation is a process that proceeds through certain stages and that necessarily involves the entire faith community.  At St. Thomas More, the process typically takes a year and is designed to meet each individual’s needs.  It begins with a series of Inquiry sessions and continues through weekly Catechumenate sessions until the individual is ready for Baptism or reception into the Church.  It is a dynamic process that includes both instruction in the faith and formation for a life of Christian discipleship.