In RCIA, what are the two categories of participants?

In RCIA, what are the two categories of participants?

• A. Baptized members and unbaptized seekers.
• B. Converts and aspirants.
• C. The two categories are catechumen and candidate.
• D. Priests and laypeople.

Answer: (C)

In RCIA, participants are organized into two groups: catechumens and candidates. Catechumens are people who have not yet been baptized and are preparing to receive all three initiation sacraments—Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist—typically at the Easter Vigil. Candidates are those who have already been baptized but are not yet fully initiated in the Catholic Church; they join to receive Confirmation and the Eucharist and complete their communion with the Catholic Church. This distinction guides the rites they celebrate and the sequence of their initiation. Other terms like “baptized members and unbaptized seekers,” “converts and aspirants,” or “priests and laypeople” aren’t the official RCIA categories.

In RCIA, participants are organized into two groups: catechumens and candidates. Catechumens are people who have not yet been baptized and are preparing to receive all three initiation sacraments—Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist—typically at the Easter Vigil. Candidates are those who have already been baptized but are not yet fully initiated in the Catholic Church; they join to receive Confirmation and the Eucharist and complete their communion with the Catholic Church. This distinction guides the rites they celebrate and the sequence of their initiation. Other terms like “baptized members and unbaptized seekers,” “converts and aspirants,” or “priests and laypeople” aren’t the official RCIA categories.