Welcome to the
place for news and information
about sharing in the life of the
Roman Catholic Community --
worldwide and locally here at
Christ the King Parish
Pleasant Hill, CA
We are ready to
help you learn about our beliefs and way of life,
whether you are in the category of "mildly curious" about the
Roman Catholic Community
or "eager to get started and ready
to become Catholic."
A new Inquiry
series is now in progress.
We meet
on Thursday evenings through the month of June.
We will be on hiatus during
July and August
and resume on Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009
It's not too late to join this year's group of Inquirers
and participate
with "no strings attached."
Call or e-mail for
details.
Hi, my name is
Al Garrotto. I coordinate the Inquiry and New Catholics programs
here at
Christ the King Parish. It is my pleasure to assist people whose spiritual
journey
has led them to discover if God is calling them to find their spiritual home
within the Roman
Catholic Community.
Many of our new Catholics say that the hardest step in the
whole process of becoming Catholic is making that first phone call to say,
"Here
I am. What do I do next?" Well, I'm the "next."
When I receive
the message that you called or otherwise approached the parish for information,
I'll contact you and set up a time when we can get together to discuss your
interest and spiritual needs.
Then, I'll suggest the best way for you to pursue
your inquiry.
For most people
that "best way" is a group instruction process called Christian Initiation of
Adults (RCIA).
The R stands for Rite (or liturgical ceremony). So, the full
title of our process is the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.
Sounds
pretty stuffy, doesn't it. It's not. We laugh a lot while discussing some
"heavy" spiritual and moral themes.
Don't be shy. I'd love to hear from you. You can contact
me by calling the parish office at
(925) 682-2486
or you can
e-mail me.
Yours in Christ,
Alfred J.
Garrotto
RCIA Coordinator
Christ the King Parish
Pleasant Hill, CA
algarrotto@comcast.net
(925) 682-2486
Listen to a
Testimonial
by Nancie C., one of our New Catholics.
It begins with an introduction by our Pastor, Fr. Brian Joyce.
Searching for a Spiritual Home?
In our parish's RCIA process we talk a lot about the need we all have to find a spiritual home. It's our hope that inquirers who come to us will find such a home at Christ the King Parish and in the broader Roman Catholic Community. In his book, The Restless Heart, Ronald Rolheiser expresses the need for a home in these terms:
"Finding a home is not so much a question of finding a building, a city, a country, or a place where we feel we belong. That's part of it. More deeply, finding a home is a question of moral affinity, of finding another heart or a community of hearts wherein we feel at one, safe, warm, comfortable, able to be ourselves, secure enough to express both faith and affection. To find a home is to feel what Adam felt when he first saw Eve: 'At last, bone from my bone, flesh from my flesh.' That's not so much an expression of sexual attraction as it is of moral comfort. What Adam sensed in Eve that he didn't sense in the rest of creation was a home."
You're always welcome at our house! The photo at the left shows 20 adults just like you who found their spiritual home at Christ the King Parish and in the Roman Catholic Community. We welcomed them at Easter 2009.
Let us help you find your spiritual home, wherever that might be. If you are interested in being part of our program, I'd like to have a chance to meet you before you attend your first class. Call or e-mail me for an appointment.
"This
is not my house; it is the house of Christ.
It does not ask any comer whether he has a name
but whether he has an affliction.
You are suffering; you are hungry and thirsty;
be welcome."
Words of Bishop Myriel to Jean Valjean,
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
What it Means to be a
Catholic Christian
in the 21st Century
In his Easter
2006 message to the CTK community, Fr. Brian Joyce,
Pastor, wrote:
"The author James Joyce once described the Catholic Church as 'here comes
everybody'! Recently, when Fr. Daniel Berrrigan had a book dedicated to himself
as a 'Christian,' he corrected the author to say that he had left out one
phrase: 'would-be.' We are all 'would-be Christians.' Easter brings together
both 'seekers' and 'finders' (or at least those who think they have found
it all). It gathers once-a-year Catholics and daily Mass communicants. It
welcomes the rigorist and the unsure, the liberal and the conservative,
convinced Catholics, curious non-believers, and everyone in between.
"There's an
important life-giving lesson here. We cannot build a society or a church with
just liberals or just conservatives. To build true community, we need to work
with more than just those who are like-minded. A community, church, or parish
built with just the like-minded is hardly worth belonging to, because it
reflects neither what's best inside the human spirit nor the inclusive embrace
of Christ."
At
the end of every RCIA series,
those who were "seekers" became "finders."
Read some new Catholics'
stories.
This could be you.
What Catholics Mean by "Conversion"
Here is a two-part answer to the question.
The first part,
"Day
and Merton: A Downward Path to Salvation,"
looks at two significant converts to Catholicism of the 20th century.
The second considers conversion in a broad sense that applies to
every person, every day, not just to major changes in the direction of our lives
"The
Meaning of Conversion."
Listen to our RCIA theme song.
"You Called
My Name"
Inquiry
-- • --
Catechumenate
-- • --
Preparation/Enlightenment
--
Mystagogia
---
Music by Tim McCarthy,
Lyrics by Alfred J. Garrotto
Copyright (c) 2006 by T.
McCarthy and A. J. Garrotto
All rights reserved. Contact us to request permission to use.
At the Easter Vigil service on Saturday, April 11, 2009, we received 20 men and women into full participation in the Roman Catholic Community here at Christ the King. These folks will prepared themselves for 9-12 months and now are excited about their new life in the Roman Catholic Christian Community.
A candidate and her sponsor met
Bishop Allen Vigneron
of the Diocese of Oakland, CA)
at the Rite of Election.
Fr. Joyce introduces our new Catholics
to the Christ the King Community.
"Around the Snack Table"
This is where we'll
answer some of the questions our inquirers
ask during snack breaks.
We do our best to respond to all their
questions.
We'll keep adding to this section.
(If there's something particular you must
know--RIGHT NOW!--send the RCIA coordinator an e-mail.)
Q:
What are the usual
steps in an adult's process for becoming Catholic?
A:
Becoming Catholic is a 4-step, or 4-phase, process. The linked
chart will
give you a better understanding of this process.
NEW
®
Q. How long
does it take to become a Catholic?
A. Click here for the answer
to this question that everyone wants the answer to.
Q:
"What do Catholics believe about the Bible?"
A:
I'm so glad you asked. The Holy Scriptures are one of the most important ways in
which we make contact with God. It isn't the only way, but the Bible is
an essential ingredient in Catholic belief. Let me refer you to two brief
teachings by Fr. Brian Joyce, our pastor, on this topic.
-- "The
Bible: What It Is and What It Is Not"
--
"How
to Read the Bible"
Q:
"I feel so dumb when I go to Mass. I don't know the prayers and responses people
around me are saying."
A:
Okay,
click here
and you'll find a two-page "cheat sheet" with all the Mass responses on it.
Take
it to church next Sunday and you'll be praying like a cradle Catholic.
Q:
"Speaking of the Mass, I've started attending a Catholic Church, but I still
don't know what the Mass is all about? Can you help me?"
A:
I think so, follow this link to an explanation of the
essence of the Mass.
Q: Are science and faith incompatible?
Q. Where does Catholic theology stand on Evolution vs. Creationism?
Q: Why do Catholics display statues and sometimes "pray to" them?
Q: What's up with this Purgatory thing? More about Purgatory (What Ever Happened to It?).
Q: Why are Catholics allowed to celebrate Halloween?
Q: What's an Advent Wreath and what does it mean?
Other Catholic Sites of Interest and Information
Catholic
Encyclopedia--Everything
you ever wanted to know about Catholicism . . . .
(Note: This is very complete and may give you more information than you want,
but it's a gold mine of Scripture, theology and Catholic Tradition.)
Saint of the Day--Practically every day of the year one or more of the saints is honored throughout the Catholic world. Click on the link to read about today's special saint.
Fr. Ronald Rolheiser--One of today's most insightful Catholic spiritual writers, this Canadian priest has written the highly recommended books, The Holy Longing, Against an Infinite Horizon, and The Restless Heart. His weekly columns on his website are thought-provoking and deeply insightful. This is a sight you will want to return to every week.
[NOTE: As we build this site, we will continue to add links to web sites of interest to those inquiring about the Catholic faith.]
If you experience a problem with any of
the links on this website,
please report it, so I can fix it. Thank you.--Al
Garrotto
Can't Find a Local Roman
Catholic Community
with an RCIA Program?
Not to worry!
You can take instructions in the
Catholic faith as a distance learner.
Yes, you'll need to find a local faith community at some point,
but you can get a good head start at:
Catholic Homestudy
Service
offered by the Vincentian Fathers in Missouri
and
Catholic Classes
podscasts of RCIA sessions offered by
St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Holladay, Utah
Site created 9-19-2004
Last updated: 6-2-2009