The Belgrave Story

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="02c285a1erlcgo.gif"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFCC66" FACE="Arial" ><B>Welcome to Project Linkup</B></FONT><B>     |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Welcome to Project Linkup"><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <div> The Belgrave Story</div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000" background="02ad2c00dkelyh.gif"> <div> <A HREF="id24.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="A Prayer for Project Linkup"><U><IMG SRC="03ba0aa0.jpg" border=0 width="160" height="170" ALT="A Prayer for Project Linkup" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>About Us</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>The Belgrave Story</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Belgrave Photo Album"><U><B>Belgrave Photo Album</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id17.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Current News Article"><U><B>Current News Article</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id18.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="News Archive"><U><B>News Archive</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Resources"><U><B>Resources</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links to Friends of Project Linkup"><U><B>Links to Friends</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id6.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact Us"><U><B>Contact Us</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> <div> <B>The Belgrave Story</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="#a" TITLE="The Belgrave Story"><U><B>Paul O'Bryan's article</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="#b" TITLE="The Belgrave Story"><U><B>A word from Ron</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <B> <A NAME="a"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B><B> </B></div> <div> <B>Paul O'Bryan's article</B></div> <bR> <div> It was Jim Dunning in 1994 who stated clearly the vision for situating the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) into the Small Church Community experience: "I see little long term hope for the catechumenate unless there is a connection between small church communities and the catechumenate before, during and after initiation."  Dunning was well known to have observed that the catechumenate often seemed to be a "revolving door" - that too many people ended up back on the street again because, having participated in an intense small catechetical community, they were disappointed with the relative anonymity of ordinary parish life.  Missing the intimate experience of community, they often floundered and did not survive as active members of the Parish community.</div> <bR> <div> For many years, Belgrave Parish ran parallel programs for the Catechumenate Journey of the RCIA candidate and for the establishment and ongoing development of Small Church Communities. Despite the "talk" of connecting the two, it was not until mid-1997 - under the inspiration and research done by Cheryl Graham, Annette Hanigan and Irene Wilson - that steps were taken to situate the Catechumenate journey into a Small Church Community setting.  Prior to this, the RCIA Team had sought to connect the journey experience of the RCIA with an experience of Christian community by fostering a neighbourhood community around those participating in the RCIA journey.</div> <bR> <div> In mid-1997 Jan and Ron Ruzzier and their two children Josh and Gemma became the first candidates to be invited to join a Small Church Community as an initial step of their RCIA journey.  The existing Small Church Community was invited to welcome Jan and Ron and their children into the community as sponsors of their journey of Initiation and to journey with them through the steps of Enquiry, Catechumenate, Enlightenment and Mystagogia. Since their initiation, two other couples and a single person have followed the same path and three of Belgrave's Small Church Communities have had the experience of journeying with these candidates. In all cases these people have become committed members of the Small Church Community they initially joined and are visible members of the wider parish community. The RCIA-SCC connection takes nothing away from the public journey of the Candidates and the wider participation of the parish community - as the parish community itself also journeys with the RCIA candidates. </div> <bR> <div> Briefly I would like to draw your attention to two of the most dynamic features of this program:</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">The first relates to the experience of the RCIA candidate. Candidates find support, encouragement and help in a community that welcomes them and makes room for them. There is NO "letdown" at the end of the RCIA journey, once the journey is complete. Candidates are initiated into church as part of an evangelizing, catechizing, gospel-based, life-centred community. The experience is real and meaningful and ongoing in so far as candidates remain members of the SCC. </div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">The second relates to the experience of the community. In all cases, the experience of the community - in journeying with the candidates - has been a most enriching and rewarding one for them. It has brought greater unity to the community,  greater depth of Christian maturity, and deeper understanding of "church" to the communities that have been involved and I would hope that this experience would become an experience of all our communities. </div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id15_m.htm" TITLE="The Belgrave Story"><U>Back to Top</U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B> <A NAME="b"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B><B> </B></div> <div> <B>A word from Ron</B></div> <bR> <div> My wife and I decided to belong to a church immediately after we accepted the grace and love of Jesus into our lives. The turning point for us had been the serious illness of our son, and after a divine experience, we both became believers in the love and power of Jesus. </div> <bR> <div> Accepting Jesus into our lives was the easy bit! Choosing to become part of a wider community of people who share similar views was also easy, but the question was...  "Which Church?"  I have one sister who is a Catholic and two that are not. My mother is not a Catholic, nor was my father.  I have one aunt in Australia who is a Catholic.  My wife Jan (who grew up in England) had been involved in a few different Churches in the UK  but had not formed a strong bond with any denomination. </div> <bR> <div> My first instinct was to attend the local Catholic Church in Belgrave.  We began to attend Mass as a family not knowing anyone or knowing anything of the order of the Mass.  After some months of attending Mass in this fashion, I must say that we were left with the deep impression that something was missing.  Our parish priest suggested to us that we might like to undergo the RCIA under the wing of a Small Church Community.  My wife and I both felt that this was a great idea. </div> <bR> <div> The benefits to us as new Christians were immediately apparent.  We felt accepted into a body of people that we wanted to belong to.  At Mass, we had people we knew to say hello to, and attending Mass and other Church activities normalised the process for the whole family, the SCC group were of benefit to us in a number of different ways:</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Spiritually: In that we learned about prayer, reflection and the Word of God.</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Practically: in that we learned about the processes of liturgy and liturgical rites.</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Socially: in that we shared dinners, our children played together and we had met people that we felt we could develop long friendships with.</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700f000000000.gif" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Emotionally: in that members of the SCC attended all of the church rites we attended, including a wonderful dawn service on Easter morning and subsequent celebration at our house. </div> <bR> <div> In many ways the journey of our family has had some benefits to the SCC.  My wife and I were able to offer different perspectives on the gospel and even the church.  As mature adults, we were confident enough to express different opinions and views.  The group itself certainly bonded during the process, and it was at times exciting, moving, emotional and sometimes draining. </div> <bR> <div> At a time when the church seems to be losing many good people and not attracting many others, the role of the SCC in nurturing catechumens is, in my view, critical.  I know for a fact that had we not been part of a SCC, we would have tried other church communities in the local area, and the one we would have chosen would have been the one that was most welcoming. </div> <bR> <div> Now that we have been involved in the parish community for some eighteen months, it has become clear to me that the Belgrave Parish is unique (as are all parishes obviously) in terms of its commitment to Small Church Communities.  Being part of a Small Church Community makes sense to us.  It is people who make up the Church, not the Church that makes people.  The people in the parish of Belgrave have left us feeling privileged to be a part of their spiritual lives. </div> <bR> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><B>18 months later</B></I></div> <bR> <div> It is now nearly eighteen months since I wrote that first piece.  Since then we have maintained our involvement with the community, and have been fortunate to have had another family undergo the process of becoming Catholic in our community through the RCIA journey.  In many ways it has been a period of further reflection for us, but it has also been a period when the new catechumens have availed themselves of our support and encouragement.  In some senses we are no longer the "new kids on the block", and we feel very much a part of the church and parish life.  We have been graced with the opportunity to have had another family undergo the RCIA process and our own role and status within the community has changed. </div> <bR> <div> My initial view expressed in January 1999, that the role of SCCs in nurturing catechumens is critical, still remains.  I doubt whether our new RCIA family would have remained with the church if they did not have the local contact and support.  In many ways, fostering new Catholics via a Small Church Community is a process of renewal for all concerned individuals, communities, parishes and the Church itself. </div> <bR> <div> One final note - if one is predisposed to examine the role of SCCs in fostering catechumens from an andrological perspective, then one must draw conclusions that are extremely positive.  Much of the literature around about adult learning suggests that learning is far more effective in terms of acquisition and retention of new knowledge and skills when peer learning and instruction occurs.  The SCCs use this model of peer learning very effectively.  William Butler Bates stated that, "Education is lighting a fire, not filling a pail."</div> <bR> <div> Long may Small Church Communities light many fires in the hearts and minds of all involved. </div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id15_m.htm" TITLE="The Belgrave Story"><U>Back to Top</U></A></div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>