Announcements
Beginning on August 28th, St John the Evangelist will be offering an opportunity to obtain unfiltered information from qualified teachers about what the Catholic Church believes and how her members are called to live out their faith. Sessions will be held at St John’s on most Saturdays up until Pentecost 2022.
Click here to fill out a registration form to email to the church office at stjohnwaynesville at gmail dot com.
Becoming Catholic Here at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church
While the Catholic Church is the largest religion in the world, it is sometimes also the most misunderstood.
The beliefs of the Catholic Church and her beautiful teachings are consistent through the ages.
- We believe that human beings were created by God in love and that everything God creates is good and created out of love. While we have the capacity for sin, the Church believes in the dignity of the human person above all else.
- We also believe that goodness infuses all of God’s wondrous creation. All creation, made by God, reflects that goodness. Catholics see the world and its beauty, renewed by the Incarnation, as sacramental – speaking of God’s goodness and love.
- We believe in stewardship. Everything is given to us by God and our Catholic responsibility is to share our time, talent and treasure with those around us.
- We believe in the Holy Trinity, that God has revealed himself to us as Father, Son and Holy Spirit – a communion of knowledge and love – has created us to share in that life.
- We believe in community and a living Church – believers are a part of the living Body of Christ and, as such, we are a reflection of the communal nature of the Trinity.
- We believe that God loved his creation so much that he became human in the person of Jesus to walk among us.
- We believe in the communion of the saints – models of faith who help us and guide us in our daily lives.
- We believe in Jesus’ crucifixion, death and resurrection, and we hope that one day we will rise to new life with him.
Becoming Catholic today means joining an ancient faith, deeply rooted in the teachings and traditions of Christ, that is filled with hope and vibrancy as we continue to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to all the ends of the earth.
If you are an adult seeking Baptism and/or Confirmation and Eucharist (or Communion) within the Catholic Church, or if you are a baptized Christian seeking to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church, then you should first take some instruction in the faith so as to prepare you not just to “become” Catholic but also to “be” Catholic. The usual way this is accomplished in this parish is through participation in our course in “Basic Catholicism,” which includes the RCIA program described below.
Adults or older children who have not been baptized and desire to join the Church are invited into the ancient celebration of the Rite 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.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops describes the Rite 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 RCIA 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 RCIA 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 to enter into the fullness of Eucharistic life within the Catholic Church by receiving the sacraments of Confirmation and Holy Communion.
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.
Current and returning Catholics will also find Basic Catholicism helpful in refreshing and renewing their knowledge about their faith and deepening their walk with the Lord. Come and join us!
A syllabus of the subjects we cover during our Basic Catholicism Course can be accessed here.
All are Welcome!
WHAT WE BELIEVE
SECTION ONE
“I BELIEVE” – “WE BELIEVE”
26 We begin our profession of faith by saying: “I believe” or “We believe”. Before expounding the Church’s faith, as confessed in the Creed, celebrated in the liturgy and lived in observance of God’s commandments and in prayer, we must first ask what “to believe” means.
THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN MYSTERY
SECTION TWO
THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN MYSTERY
Why the liturgy?
1066 In the Symbol of the faith the Church confesses the mystery of the Holy Trinity and of the plan of God’s “good pleasure” for all creation: the Father accomplishes the “mystery of his will” by giving his beloved Son and his Holy Spirit for the salvation of the world and for the glory of his name.1
LIFE IN CHRIST
SECTION THREE
LIFE IN CHRIST
1691 “Christian, recognize your dignity and, now that you share in God’s own nature, do not return to your former base condition by sinning. Remember who is your head and of whose body you are a member. Never forget that you have been rescued from the power of darkness and brought into the light of the Kingdom of God.”1
CHRISTIAN PRAYER
SECTION FOUR
CHRISTIAN PRAYER
SECTION ONE
PRAYER IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
2558 “Great is the mystery of the faith!”
The Church professes this mystery in the Apostles’ Creed (Part One) and celebrates it in the sacramental liturgy (Part Two), so that the life of the faithful may be conformed to Christ in the Holy Spirit to the glory of God the Father (Part Three).