This weekend was RCIA retreat. In some ways it reminded me of Chrysalis back in the day, but it was definitely different. First of all, this retreat was for sponsors as well as candidates. Second, all the candidates had something in common: we are being received into the Church next weekend. Those two things made it much more meaningful for me. There were some slightly silly activities going on of course. Discussions and reflections that I'm sure others got more out of than I did. But I enjoyed it.



I think my favorite part was when some of the candidates and elect shared their stories with the whole group. Where their lives had taken them, how they found themselves drawn toward the Catholic Church, how they came to be here -- looking forward to baptism/confirmation/communion in just 5 more days. I love hearing conversion stories. Maybe because I'm a convert myself and a lot of times I can pick out elements of myself in the experiences of others. Funny, now that I think about it, I never used to like conversion stories. They always sounded the same. "My life sucked, I did all sorts of crappy stuff, and it was a downward spiral... and then Jesus saved me!" It's not like that though. Everyone's experience is different. For some, it's dramatic. I think I always wanted "dramatic" -- that "moment" when you just KNOW -- because I saw and heard it so much. But I was looking for the wrong thing. My story is a process, not a moment. Those are the kinds of stories I like. The dramatic ones are great, but I can't relate to them. It has been neat to see and hear from people whose stories are similar to mine.



Next favorite part was when we finally had an "extended break"... 45 minutes of quiet time for reflection, prayer, whatever... for us it was conversation. Joe and I have some great conversations. :)



If I were to change some things about the retreat: set small groups. Like "tables" at a Chrysalis or Walk to Emmaus. You do things where the whole group gets together, but any small group reflection times, always the same group. I guess you don't meet as many of the different people that way, but you ideally form tighter bonds with the ones you DO meet. Also, I'd keep the sponsors with their candidates for the small groups. The retreat is for the candidates... the sponsors are there to support their candidates. At least that's how I see it. :) The other thing I'd do is hand out songbooks so everybody can sing. I love having music! I love the praise songs and the guitars and all that stuff, but I want to be able to join in. This weekend we had two guitar players who sang, and did a lovely job. But I didn't know the songs, and that bothered me a little. Especially Saturday after lunch when we had an hour or so of just music time. We even sang "Jesus is the Rock" which is one I like... but we didn't have the words so I felt like we couldn't participate as well. I dunno. That type of music is meant to be sung, not heard... if that makes any sense! ;)



But anyway... yeah. It was a fun time and I'm glad I went. And I'm glad Joe came too, because I think having him there helped me get more out of it. I'm sure I would have been okay on my own, but I liked having him to talk to about the different things we did. :)