New RCIA Coordinator Kim Barbour Reflects on RCIA Process: “It’s Never Too Late

It’s never too late to find your way home to the Catholic Church. This great truth is something that our new Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) coordinator, Kim Barbour, knows from personal experience. Kim joined the Church through RCIA two years ago at St. John Before the Latin Gate. Although she had been a practicing Episcopalian for the first 50 years of her life, Kim came to a deeper understanding of Christ and His Church as a participant in RCIA.

When Kim first enrolled in RCIA, she had no idea just how transformative the next nine months would be.

“I thought I had it all going on,” Kim says. “I was very much a prayer warrior. I had parents who were very faithful and taught me Jesus’s message, and the Episcopal church was very reverent. But I had some questions about things.”

The more she learned, the more Kim fell in love with the Catholic Church.

“I was 50 years old when I felt like my eyes were opened up wide and it all made sense to me, the entire tradition from Genesis to Revelation,” she says. “I do believe in my heart that this is a faith that goes way back to the very beginning, and I love that. I love the apostolic tradition that the faith brings, and that has answered all of the questions and filled the blank spaces that I was feeling as I was moving through my adult years. That’s the background I bring to RCIA, and that informs this year’s program.”

Thankful for her own experience in RCIA, Kim was thrilled to help Pat Netzer co-lead the program for 2019-20. This year, Kim has taken the lead while Pat continues to assist with the coordination of RCIA. Fr. John, Fr. Carlos, Deacon Dan, and Deacon Charlie lead the sessions, which are currently meeting in Fr. Lynch Hall to allow for social distancing.

For Kim, one of the most important aspects of the RCIA process is that it meets participants wherever they may be on their faith journey — whether they are fallen-away Catholics, come from another faith background, or have no faith background at all. Likewise, anyone interested in learning more about the Catholic faith is welcome to begin attending sessions at any time — after all, Kim points out, “The Holy Spirit doesn’t always work on a school schedule!”

Having experienced RCIA for herself and now in her second year working with the process, Kim loves watching the spiritual transformations that often take place in participants.

“The part that is the most exciting is watching the light start to go on when the connections are made,” she says. “Sometimes it’s hearing a certain Scripture, learning about a rite and realizing they are going to be a part of something so much larger than themselves, or just seeing a path open up and seeing that it leads them to Jesus. It’s a slow process, with many lampposts along your path. Then the light goes on, and the world looks richer and brighter and there is someone to catch you, and that’s a beautiful thing to see.”

Stewardship — the sharing of one’s time, talent, and treasure — is also explored in the RCIA sessions and often becomes a natural result of the process. As candidates and catechumen prepare to enter our faith community, the parish strives to support them in every way. In turn, those who feel transformed by their RCIA journey are excited to find ways to share this blessing with their new parish family.

Perhaps the most life-changing aspect of RCIA for Kim was the renewed lightness of heart she experienced as she learned to share her worries and anxieties with the Lord. She has noticed this same spiritual growth in others who go through the process as they realize that we don’t have to go through this life alone. Instead, Jesus is always there with open arms.

“It’s never too late,” Kim says. “That is such a beautiful message of the Christian faith. Jesus is waiting for us and God is calling to us all the time. We only need to stop long enough to listen to what His will is for our lives, and maybe that means taking the time to look at the Catholic faith.”

Are you interested in learning more about the Catholic faith or helping with RCIA in any way? Parishioners are invited to serve as sponsors, help with hospitality, or simply come meet and welcome our RCIA participants. Sessions are held at 7 p.m. on Thursdays. For more information about joining or helping with RCIA, please call the parish office at 918-336-4353, or contact Kim Barbour directly at 952-270-4665 or thebarbours2@gmail.com.

RCIA Coordinator Kim Barbour at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, which she visited with Fr. John and a group from our diocese when she was going through the RCIA process herself.