RCIA Lessons & Schedule
Lesson 1—Wednesday 23rd July 2025
Introduction & Welcome
This first lesson of our Becoming Catholic program is a very gentle first step. Today we will:
Meet our classmates and get comfortable with our surroundings.
Review our plan going forward and look at how to access the homework videos that make up a large part of the program.
We will reflect on what brings us to here to RCIA.
We will discuss the necessity of coming to Mass on Sunday going forward.
We will discuss the need for you to choose a sponsor who will be with you at key moments in your journey. A sponsor must be at least sixteen years of age, have received Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Communion, be someone other than a parent, and be in good standing with the Church.
The RCIA team will answer any questions you might have.
As a first step, we will talk briefly about the Trinity and what this word means.
In preparation for this week’s class please watch Bishop Robert Barron’s video on prayer below.
Prayer: When we enter the church for our group prayer this week we will learn some of basic catholic prayers like the Sign of the Cross, the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and other prayers too. We will also learn the difference between vocal prayer, meditation, and contemplation.
Lesson 2—Wednesday 6th August 2025
The Existence of God & Faith
Can we really know if God exists? What is faith? The homework videos this week are a selection of YouTube videos exploring both of these interesting questions. Much of this material is drawn from philosophy—philosophy being just thinking really hard about things. While this is very ‘heady’ material it’s important to see how seriously people take these questions.
Prayer: When we enter the Church for our group prayer this week we will learn about and practice praying the Examen prayer. The Examen is a way of praying developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola which helps us to notice and reflect on God’s presence and action in our day.
Lesson 3—Wednesday 20th August 2025
Church Excursion
There are no homework videos this week.
In this lesson we take a tour through the church and learn about the various things and areas we see in a catholic church. We will pay special attention to:
The sacred vessels used at Mass.
The various vestments the priest wears.
We will learn how to use holy water.
We learn why, how, and when to genuflect.
We will smell the incense used at Mass.
We will look inside the confessionals.
We will spend some time understanding the sanctuary (the tiled area), the altar (the table), the sanctuary lamp (the red light), and we will learn about the tabernacle (the gold box covered with the veil).
We will look at the baptismal font where many of the group will be baptised, and look and smell the Sacred Oils.
We will look at the votive candle stands (we light candles and pray here in a later lesson), learn why organs are so often found in churches, and the purpose of stained glass windows.
We will look at how we know which hymns are going to be sung at Mass.
We will also learn proper church etiquette—how to dress for Mass, how to move about a church, and being conscious of other people praying.
Prayer: This week we will pray the Stations of the Cross together—a meditative method of prayer developed by St. Francis of Assisi focusing our attention on the last hours of Christ’s life.
Lesson 4—Wednesday 3rd September 2025
Divine Revelation: God Seeking us and the Compass for our Lives
Do we decide ourselves what is true, or what is morally right or wrong? In this week’s lesson we see that God loves us too much to leave us to our own devices. Instead, He lovingly reveals Himself and showed us the truth and His plan for our lives by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, as the fullness of His divine disclosure. This week we will explore the ways in which God has revealed Himself to us.
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and pray a guided Examen.
Lesson 5—Wednesday 17th September 2025
The Bible: God’s Love Letter to Humanity
What is the Bible? Why is there so much emphasis on it? Is the Bible more than just a collection of ancient writings, more than simply an important historical document to be appreciated but ultimately dismissed? Is it possible that God reveals His truth to us through Sacred Scripture? If so, what does that really mean for our faith?
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and practice a method of prayer called Lectio Divina (Divine Reading). Lectio Divina is the practice of praying with the scriptures (the Bible) to hear God’s voice and deepen one’s relationship with Him.
Lesson 6—Wednesday 15th October 2025
The Story of Salvation—Creation, the Fall, and Redemption
The story of salvation, which we profess in the Creed, is, as the famous movie title says, ‘The Greatest Story Ever Told.’ That great story assures us that there is a purpose to life and a reason for our own lives. It tells us that we aren't merely spectators to the passage of time. From the beginning of history when our first parents rebelled against God, through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus, God has been writing His plan of salvation. We each have God-given roles to play in that story which continues to unfold, and if we refuse God's loving invitation, the entire world is poorer. The reality is that God's story of love isn't complete without each one of us. What's your role in this great story? Are you ready to accept it? These are some of the important questions we will explore in this week’s session on the story of salvation.
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and together and light candles at the votive candle stands. We will learn what litanies are and we will pray a couple of different litanies together. We will then sing the litany of the Saints that will occur during the Easter Vigil Mass just before the baptism of many in our group.
Lesson 7—Wednesday 29th October 2025
Who is Jesus—Just a Good Man or Lord of Our Lives?
Many people today view Jesus as just one of the many great moral and religious teachers the world has offered. But Jesus himself claimed to be much more than that. He claimed to be God. As Christians what does it really mean to say that Jesus is true God and true man?
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video. Please also watch the additional YouTube Video below.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and together learn about the Jesus Prayer. We will also have an opportunity for some spiritual reading.
Lesson 8—Wednesday 12th November 2025
A Walk Through the Mass—Exploring the Sacred Liturgy
Each Sunday Catholics gather together to celebrate the Mass, the central act of worship that makes Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary present to us. With the entire Church, we enter sacred rites that date back to the time of the Apostles. In the Mass God’s revelation is proclaimed through the scriptures and we partake in the Body and Blood, soul and divinity of the Lord in Holy Communion.
This week we will look at the ancient origins of the Mass as described by an early Saint named St. Justin Martyr, we will look at what a Missal is (the book some people use at Mass); and the modern equivalent app available on smartphones.
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and together learn what the Liturgy of the Hours is, and pray it together.
Lesson 9—Wednesday 26th November 2025
The Holy Spirit and the Life of Grace
Who is the Holy Spirit? How does the Spirit work in our lives and in the life of the Church? Why is it so important that we know and love Him?
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and pray a guided Examen.
Lesson 10—Wednesday 17th December 2025
This lesson is pushed back a week to the 17th of December because there is a year 6 graduation Mass on the 10th of December.
After this lesson, we break for Christmas Holidays but we don’t break from personal prayer, spiritual reading, or coming to Mass on Sunday.
There are three sessions of Christmas Holiday Homework to do over the break to prepare us for what we will learn next year.
Why Do I Need the Church?—The Mystery of the Catholic Church
Though Jesus saves us as individuals, He calls us to live out our salvation as members of a communion of believers. But that can be hard if we don't understand what the Church is and what it is meant to be. Why does the Church claim to have authority over what Catholics believe? How do we reconcile both the divinity and humanity of the Church that Christ himself created? Why is the Church essential to the life of every believer?
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church where we will learn about the Nativity Scene and its origins, we will learn to pray with statues and votive candles, and we will learn about the practice of ‘paying a visit’ to the Lord by dropping into the church during the day.
Christmas Holiday Homework 1
The Sacraments
The word ‘sacrament’ is a new word for most of us but an important one going forward.
To help prepare for a study of the sacraments in the new year, you are invited to watch the YouTube videos below.
As a primer: The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. The visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament. They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required dispositions. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1131.
In other words, the sacraments are visible rituals with words and actions that Jesus Himself instituted. While symbols in these rituals are used, they are not merely symbolic, these symbols are understood to be efficacious, that is, they bring about an effect. And what effect to they bring about? They communicate grace, that is, God’s own life and holiness to us when we are well prepared and disposed to receive them.
There are seven sacraments which the whole liturgical (public worship) life of the Church revolves. These are Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance (Confession), Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony.
Christmas Holiday Homework 2
Miracles
Some people feel uneasy when the issue of miracles arises, others get excited. In the glossary of The Catechism of the Catholic Church, a miracle is defined as: A sign or wonder, such as a healing, or control of nature, which can only be attributed to divine power.
There are many miracles to investigate but the three that we will look at are:
The Shroud of Turin
Our Lady of Guadalupe
The blood of St. Januarius
Please read the online magazine article and watch the YouTube videos at your leisure.
What Constitutes a Miracle?
Online Magazine Article by Karlo Broussard
Miracle 1—The Shroud of Turin
Miracle 2—Our Lady of Guadalupe
Miracle 3—The Blood of St. Januarius
Christmas Holiday Homework 3
The Holy Eucharist
This is where the rubber meets the road. This is the great secret of the Catholic faith. God is with us, God is truly with us.
You are now invited to begin to contemplate the greatest mystery of faith; the mystery that changes people’s lives and the whole world. The mystery of the Holy Eucharist.
For those who can accept and truly believe this most sublime mystery, everything changes. This mystery is arguably the most difficult for people to believe, but it is true. This truth challenges perception and reason but at the same time communicates the purest love and closeness of God.
No words can prepare anybody for the mystery of the Eucharist. To accept it fully and completely is a sign that God has worked a wonder in one’s life.
Please watch the video in the link below, and then the two accompanying YouTube videos.
https://watch.formed.org/presence/season:1/videos/god-is-with-us
Lesson 11—Wednesday 28th January 2026
Mary and the Saints: Our Spiritual Mother and the Communion of Saints
What do we think of Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and how does our relationship with her impact our relationship with her Son? What is the connection between our understanding of Mary and the rest of the saints? Why do we ask Mary and other "dead people" to pray for us? The answers to these questions serve to give us a framework for the Catholic Church's teachings on life after death and what we call "The Communion of the Saints."
Please begin to think about who you intend to choose as a Confirmation Saint.
Please watch the YouTube video on the Blessed Virgin Mary below, and click the link to be redirected to this week’s other homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and together learn what the prayer The Rosary is, and pray it together.
Lesson 12—Wednesday 11th February 2026
The Last Things: What Happens After We Die
What does the Church really teach about death, judgment, Heaven, and Hell? It's time to separate the myths from the reality. We will learn about the often misunderstood doctrine of Purgatory and learn about Mass offerings.
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and together pray for the Holy Souls in Purgatory.
Entry into the Catechumenate—Sunday 15th February 2026
Morning Mass
Those enquirers who desire baptism and reception into the Church formally and publicly elect to become Catechumens and Candidates at the 9:30am Morning Mass. At this Mass these enquirers are invited to come up on the sanctuary to signify their intention going forward.
Ash Wednesday—Wednesday 18th February 2026
Ash Wednesday Mass
Ash Wednesday is the day that marks the beginning of the season of Lent—the penitential season that prepares us for Easter when we celebrate Christ’s Resurrection from the dead; and the baptism and reception of our catechumens and candidates into the Church.
As Easter is now very close, lessons and RCIA events will become more frequent. You are invited to come to an Ash Wednesday Mass and present yourself to receive ashes on your forehead.
As you do, you will hear the priest say: ‘Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.’ In this way, we recall the temporal nature of our mortal life and the eternal nature of our spiritual life. We receive ashes on our foreheads as a act of repentance, an act of turning to God and being sorry for our sins in preparation for Christ’s Resurrection at Easter which enables our own resurrection to new life in Christ.
Rite of Election—Sunday 22nd February 2026
St. Mary’s Cathedral
The Rite of Election is an important spiritual step in becoming Catholic. It is a ceremony at which Archbishop Anthony Fisher, the head of the Church in Sydney, is presented with the new catechumens & candidates. The Archbishop will accept the catechumens and the candidates for baptism and reception into the Church.
Date: Sunday 22nd February 2026
Time: Meet at 1:30pm in the cathedral forecourt for a 2:00pm start. The ceremony will go until 3:30pm.
Place: St. Mary’s Cathedral, 2 St. Mary’s Road SYDNEY
Transport: There is cheap weekend underground parking adjacent to the cathedral; and there is also parking underground at the nearby Domain. St. James train station is located a three minute walk from the cathedral.
Guests: Please invite your sponsor to join you; your sponsor will walk you down the aisle with all the others to be presented to the Archbishop.
Tickets: The RCIA team will organise tickets for the event so we are guaranteed a seat—if you are bringing your children let the RCIA team know early so that they book enough seats to accommodate your family.
Lesson 13—Wednesday 25th February 2026
The Sacraments: Baptism & Confirmation
Most of us are familiar with the word "sacrament." We participate in sacramental rites often as Catholics. But do we understand what a sacrament is—and what it means for us and our everyday lives?
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and together pray Lectio Divina with two scripture passages related to baptism:
Nicodemus Visits Jesus, John 3:1-12
The Parable of the Marriage Feast, Matthew 22:1-14
Lesson 14—Wednesday 4th March 2026
The Sacraments: The Eucharist
Following on from the Christmas Holiday homework, we now revisit the great mystery of the Eucharist.
It looks like bread and wine, yet it is called the Real Presence of Jesus. It is also called the Eucharist, but many Catholics would struggle to explain what that word means. What do Catholics really believe about the Sacrament of the Eucharist, and why has it become the center point of the Mass and our lives as Catholics?
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and experience Eucharistic Adoration.
Lesson 15—Wednesday 11th March 2026
The Sacraments: Confession & Anointing of the Sick
Why is the Sacrament of Reconciliation essential—and potentially life-changing—for Catholics? How does the Anointing of the Sick make a difference to those who are suffering or dying? How doe these sacraments reveal God’s mercy?
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Prayer: After our group discussion we will head into the church and together pray a guided Examen.
Lesson 16—No Class This Week, Please Complete This Lesson Privately
The Sacraments: Marriage & Holy Orders
More than merely a contract between two people in love, marriage was created by God as part of his plan for humanity. How we fit within that plan may depend on our view of the Sacrament of Matrimony and its profound meaning for the world. Holy Orders, meaning priesthood is another sacrament of service.
Click the link to be redirected to this week’s homework video.
Easter Vigil Practice—Wednesday 25th March 2026
Practice
This evening we will practice for the Easter Vigil when we will be baptised, received into the Church, confirmed, and receive Holy Communion. This practice run will help us feel comfortable with what we have to do on the evening.
Easter Vigil Mass—Saturday 4th April 2026
Christ is risen! Indeed, He is risen!
The Easter Vigil Mass is the most significant Mass of the whole year. It is the Mass where we celebrate Christ’s Resurrection from the dead and it is the Mass where our catechumens and candidates are Baptised, received into the Catholic Church, Confirmed, and receive their First Holy Communion.
Please arrive at the church early to get settled before the big event.
