Discover, Embrace, Become

by the Rev. Canon Greg Foraker & Tracy Methe

How do we feed and nurture the seeker in our midst? The seeker is one who comes to church not quite sure what brought her there. A seeker is someone who has been away from church but now feels the need to return. A seeker is also the steady parishioner suddenly called to go deeper into his faith.

How do we engage with these and the many other types of seekers about the spiritual truths that bring us into the fullness of Christian life — a life of relationship, meaning-making, renewal, grace, joy, and even sorrow? Bishop O’Neill explains, “This is not about onboarding members or cultivating new Episcopalians. Nor is it about theology. Engaging with seekers of the faith is about helping people get at the heart of Christianity and in the process revealing to them the main thing, which is the undiluted, unconditional love of Christ and the call to share this love with one another, for the sake of a hurting world around us.”

In ancient times this work evolved into what became known as the catechumenate. Christianity (The Way) was new to the world and the catechumenate was a (three-year!) process for forming people in the faith in a world unfamiliar with Christianity. Since the time when the earliest Christians gathered, seekers came asking questions, searching for meaning, and yearning for an experience of the risen Christ in their lives.

We find ourselves in a similar position now, with many people either having no personal experience of the Christian faith, or a narrow and perhaps misleading view of Christianity seen through the lens of the media. We live in the age of the spiritual-but-not-religious person. What is our process for bringing these individuals into the faith in modern times?

The Faith Formation team in the Office of the Bishop has been called to help parishes create a process of faith exploration for seekers of the faith by:

• Coming alongside parishes to identify how this work can become an integral part of the way they embrace seekers.
• Identifying valuable, realistic resources to assist parishes with this work.
• Facilitating in-person and hybrid learning environments that cater to the needs of our different demographics and geographies.
• Bringing the energy and passion of the catechumenate together with technology to create a series of experiential modules that can be used in part or as a whole to frame a modern catechumenate experience.

A New, Hybrid Process for the Historical Catechumenate

Discover-Embrace-Become will be introduced in the fall of 2018, inviting seekers from across The Episcopal Church in Colorado who are yearning for a deeper relationship with God and closer bonds in community. The process will be welcoming, flexible, and open-ended in order to create a space where seekers can explore the questions stirring in the depths of their hearts. It will take advantage of current technology and learning innovations, allowing it to meet the diverse needs of parishes around the state.

Similar to the traditional catechumenate, Discover-Embrace-Become will be made of three modules, or periods. The three modules provide an invitation to encounter the arc of Christ’s life, death, resurrection, and ascension, and the liturgical rhythm of Holy Week. Through this process in community, participants will discover their own journey of faith — the eternal path through life and death, to resurrection and enduring hope.
Discover-Embrace-Become modules will each consist of six sessions, with sessions following a predictable flow: a brief teaching (in-person or video), lectio-style scripture reflection, and prayer. Some people may move through the modules sequentially and others may react, “I really like this process and I’m growing spiritually, but I’m not ready to move on to the next period.” Because the focus of sessions is reflecting on life in light of scripture, modules can be repeated, offering a familiar structure that always invites new reflection and sharing.

Discover

Time of Inquiry

This period is a time to help seekers identify how God is already present and working in their lives. It is a time for seekers to begin to tell their own stories, answering the questions: Where have I experienced God in my life? How can I tell my story? How do we make meaning in our lives? Is there something greater than ourselves? Seekers will explore key themes of the Christian faith, what it means to be in relationship, and the core spiritual truths of love, grace, and renewal. In-person groups will gather at a predetermined time each week and may share a meal before a time of learning and sharing. A pilot online group of participants from across the state will gather Sunday evenings and follow a similar format. All groups will be facilitated and nurtured by trained mentors.

Embrace

The Rite of Welcome

This initial rite, for seekers desiring to enter the catechumenate period, will be celebrated in each seeker’s/participant’s parish on the first Sunday of Advent. It will take place at a principal Sunday service, marking the passage of seekers into the catechumenate and helping parishioners realize that there are people in the congregation going through the process toward baptism, reception, and reaffirmation of their Christian faith.

The Catechumenate Period

The second module builds on the work of Discover. This sequence will support participants as they embrace a new way of being in the Christian faith and are equipped through experiences and practices that nourish and sustain them in The Episcopal Church. This is a time for seekers to hear the Church’s story, and to begin to understand what it means to live as a Christian Episcopalian. Throughout Embrace, participants explore the most important beliefs and practices of the Christian community. Questions may emerge: What is the Bible? How are Episcopalians different from other Christian communities? What is the Eucharist? Who are bishops? How are Episcopalians part of the Anglican communion? What practices and ministries are important to Episcopalians? Why do we do liturgical aerobics every Sunday? Having progressed in faith and entering into the catechumenate proper, catechumens are accepted into more intense preparation for the sacraments of initiation, baptism, reception, and reaffirmation during Lent.

Become

The Rite of Enrollment

This second rite will be celebrated first in parishes on the first Sunday of Lent, when catechumens enroll in the Book of the Elect in the parish, and then at Saint John’s Cathedral early in Lent, when catechumens are welcomed and received at the Cathedral. In this way, the rites involve the whole parish as well as the seat of the diocese, helping the catechumens recognize that they are joining the larger Body of Christ. Celebrating this rite at the Cathedral recognizes both the ancient tradition of the bishop administering baptism and the particular gift of the episcopacy in life and leadership of The Episcopal Church.

Preparation for Baptism

The third module will build on the spiritual work of Embrace, as participants enter a time of extended retreat and spiritual preparation, delving more deeply into the questions arising for them, and integrating all they have been experiencing and learning into what it means to live the Christian life. Catechumens become candidates in preparation to receive the gifts of the sacraments of baptism and the eucharist at Easter Vigil, when they become knit into the Body of Christ. For seekers who have already been baptized, Easter is a time of celebration as they reaffirm their faith in the Risen Christ.

Where Do We Begin?

The needs of individual churches around the state are wonderfully unique. Discover-Embrace-Become is being created to be flexible and adaptable to the diverse needs of parishes.

• Some parishes may have a large enough group of seekers to have in-person sessions, but may choose to follow the Discover-Embrace-Become hybrid process and use the weekly teaching videos and other resources found online.
• Parishes with individual seekers, or a small group of seekers, may find the online version of Discover-Embrace-Become is both practical and a meaningful way to be in community with seekers from other parishes across the state.

We look forward to conversation about what will work best for you at your parish.

Join the Pilot Group

We invite individuals and parishes from around The Episcopal Church in Colorado to join in our pilot online offering of Discover-Embrace-Become this fall. If you would like to join in this journey beginning in September 2018, contact any member of the Faith Formation team in the Office of the Bishop at 303.837.1173 or Faith@EpiscopalColorado.org.

THE REV. CANON GREG FORAKER is the Missioner for Faith Formation for The Episcopal Church in Colorado.

TRACY METHE is the Faith Formation Programming Coordinator.