OCIA Coordinators’ Latest Update: 1/16/2026
Saint Clement Catechumens and Candidates Welcomed
(Order of Christian Initiation of Adults)
(for the previous update, please scroll down and click the left arrow found towards the bottom of the screen)
This past Sunday, 65 of our 75 Inquirers & Candidates were welcomed into the Catechumenate, the rite marking the first stage of their journey toward the sacraments of initiation at the Easter Vigil. Rites are grace filled, reminders of God’s invitation and life-giving grace on our spiritual journeys. Those seeking baptism are now known as “catechumens,” learners, while those baptized whether Catholic or in other denominations are called “candidates.”
At the liturgy’s beginning we gathered just inside the doors of the vestibule which leads into the church, where they publicly identified themselves, promised to prepare spiritually & were signed with the cross on the forehead by Fr. Radley & their sponsors. Then they were invited into the community of the church.
Following the homily, Fr. Radley blessed small olive wood crosses from the holy land which they received in the chapel before reflecting on the day’s gospel. They were encouraged to leave the cross on a nightstand or where they usually pause for prayer and to hold the cross as they pray. Truly, it’s the cross which holds us! God draws back into community, the community of the Trinity and the community of the Church, through Christ’s gift of himself for the life of the world.
Registration for our Spring – Fall OCIA will open in March. Please email Ed Harasim, our OCIA Coordinator, eharasim@clement.org, for further information on the process of joining the Church or completing your sacraments of initiation through Confirmation and/or First Communion.
Questions? Contact Fr. Radley Alcantara (Associate Pastor) and Ed Harasim (OCIA Coordinator).
Learn more about OCIA