Neophytes from the English RCIA at Blessed Sacrament Church share testimonies of their RCIA journey.
Joining RCIA had been a deeply transformative experience for me. From the moment I began the journey, I felt a profound sense of welcome and community. Each session brought new insights and reflections on the Scripture, sacraments, and the teachings of the Church. RCIA has equipped me with a solid foundation in the Catholic faith and prepared me for a lifelong journey of discipleship. Being confirmed has fortified my commitment to living a Christian life and encouraged me to seek God’s presence in everyday moments. Overall, I am grateful and look forward to continuing my faith journey with the support of the Church and fellow Catholic community.
As I journeyed into discovering the meaning of Christianity, I have come to realise that there is more to accepting Jesus and following his path. The past year of attending classes has given me directions and meaning into the structure of the way we should and need to think in our everyday lives. The classes have given me insights as to why we do things and how we should do them. I must admit that I have discovered the keys to help me be a better person and a better Christian. The structure and the meaning of the Church are complicated, but since attending this class, I have learned the ways to enrich my faith and, more importantly, the ways to strengthen my relationship with the Lord.
I began the RCIA process with little knowledge of God or the Catholic Church and even less of an understanding of how they fit into my life. I decided to go through the RCIA since I had never been baptised. The RCIA co-ordinators, team leaders, my sponsor and fellow RCIA participants all played a role in my journey to be baptised in the Catholic faith. I had learnt many things in RCIA, the most important was that the journey of faith can begin at any time. RCIA has helped me to form a closer and more meaningful relationship with God, my family, and my friends.
I went to RCIA because my wife and I needed to receive blessing from the Church for our marriage (matrimony) as part of the seven sacraments and to be received into the Catholic community. Because my wife was Catholic and I was a non-Catholic, I had to undergo the process of RCIA for our blessing. During the nine months attending the classes, I gained some knowledge about Jesus, the Catholic faith and also learnt its meaning to become a part of its community. With the help of all the facilitators who continuously taught us and explained to us the RCIA process as a whole, I was able to complete the course and become one with the community.
I was born a Buddhist. In 2022, my brother had a spiritual attack by an evil spirit. He heard voices whispering in his ear and it was the evil spirit who was talking to him. He was deceived by the spirit that he would be tormented and die. The spirit would not stop attacking him until he barely ate or slept. We tried to bring him to the temple to deliver the spirit, but it didn’t work. So, I told my wife (a Catholic) about this, and then she called one of the Church servants to perform deliverance. His name is Joshua, and he serves at the Church as a Eucharistic minister. Once they came to pray over my brother, the spirit was delivered in Jesus’ mighty name, and my brother became well again. Praise the Lord. God showed his mercy to my brother. Then, my whole family submitted to Christ and decided to convert to Christianity. During my journey with RCIA, I encountered a lot of challenges, such as being unable to attend classes due to my work responsibilities, but I kept going on, and I did not lose my faith. I continued learning through online videos in order to learn more about the Catholic Faith. Finally, I managed to complete the RCIA and was baptised with the living water! Many thanks to our teachers and sponsors who sacrificed their time to teach us about God’s Word. Many thanks to my family, who continue to support me as well. Last but not least, when we accept Christ as our Lord and the Holy Spirit dwells in us, the peace of the Lord shall be with us always, no matter what happens in our lives. Glory be to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
I was non-Catholic and married to a Catholic. My wife was the one who introduced me to Catholicism and brought me to Mass. Many things felt a bit strange and very new, especially for me. As time passed, I slowly caught up. Early last year, my wife requested that I join the RCIA class in June, and I went to the parish office to register. On 9 July, I attended my first class. Throughout the RCIA classes, I learnt a lot about the Catholic faith, its history and its relevance to living a holy life. After nine months of attending class, I gained various knowledge about Jesus’ life and the Catholic community, and it changed my life as a Catholic. All this would not happen without our RCIA facilitators. Big thanks to them because they did a great job for us and myself as one of the students. I really appreciate it all. Lastly, from me, keep up the good work and faith in Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
For quite some time, I had always wanted to be baptised and become a Christian. With God’s providence, last year, my friend and also my sponsor Diana Chua approached me and told me about the RCIA classes. So, I signed up for the 2023-2024 class. I did my best to attend every class, come rain or shine. The facilitators were very enthusiastic about teaching us, the catechumens. Finally, the most important day arrived: baptism and confirmation on Easter Vigil. This was the day I had eagerly waited for. Becoming a Catholic is committing a new life through our Lord Jesus. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who helped me in my RCIA journey, especially the facilitators, my sponsor, Fr Leonard Yap, and Blessed Sacrament Church. May God’s blessing be with you all.
Thank you to Fr Leonard, my RCIA teachers and fellow friends of RCIA for the past nine months of journeying, being together, learning and sharing together. Many thanks to my sponsor, Mr Kendrick, for being willing to be my sponsor throughout this journey, and special thanks to my girlfriend, Dorothy. She was the one who registered me in this programme; without her, I would not be here today on the journey of knowing more about Jesus Christ. Before registering for this programme, we argued a number of times, and I kept on mentioning that the class was on Sunday, my busiest day. I asked her about who was going to compensate my loss. I also have bills to pay and sales targets to hit, staff salaries to pay, etc. For the sake of not quarrelling anymore, I agreed to join the programme. Throughout the past nine months, I received several complaints from my clients that it was very hard to book an appointment with me as I was constantly not in the shop on Sundays, even during the peak months such as Christmas and Chinese New Year. I had to move all the appointments every Sunday between 1.30 pm and 4.30 pm to attend the programme. I struggled quite a bit for these past nine months.
Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” This was the first time I realised that God had a plan for me! God created everything, seen and unseen, including me and He loves us unconditionally. However, we all have chosen to violate God’s rules and do evil, and this sin separates us from God. Jesus paid the penalty for our sins and offered forgiveness of sin to us for free; however, we must accept it by praying to Jesus, turning from our sins and accepting Jesus as the Saviour and Lord of our lives. Life since I joined the RCIA class today has been very different. I still struggle with different areas but have the peace of knowing that I’ll spend eternity with Jesus when I die.
My life verse is Colossians 1:10 – “And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.” This verse talks about the desires of my heart: that my actions would be worthy of God, that my attitudes would please Him, and that I would produce godly fruit in my life.
Last year, I was at a very low point in my life, and as I always wanted to be a Christian, I turned to God for help and God really helped me. I grew stronger each day, became more and more independent, more self-reliant, had more courage to do the things I needed to do knowing it was God’s plan, and at the same time, there were these RCIA classes that I was able to attend. I began to know more about God and I learnt how to pray and self-healed myself so much so that I feel proud of it. Not the ‘proud’ proud but more like I really did achieve my own target of becoming a better person, becoming the exact opposite of my former self. I really thank God my Father, Lord Jesus, Holy Mary, my guardian angels, all my beloved RCIA teachers for their beautiful teachings, and my fellow students for being there for me. And I also thank Fr Leonard for his preachings, which really opened my eyes and touched my heart. Thank you.
My faith journey is a journey of thanksgiving and praising God for joy and abundant love. It is a time to pray, to study, and to reflect. It is a time to grow in my relationship with God. Each day is an opportunity to follow Jesus, not my own wishes and desires.
Mengikuti kelas RCIA ini terbuka dari hati saya sendiri tanpa paksaan dari mana-mana pihak. Tujuan saya terbuka hati mengikuti kelas ini ialah saya ingin mempelajari tentang iman, dan yang penting tentang Tuhan. Pada awalnya, saya adalah seorang yang sangat daif dari segi pengetahuan tentang ilmu keagamaan ini. Saya hanya tahu wujudnya Tuhan tetapi tidak mengetahui dengan lebih terperinci berkaitan dengan semua ini. Sepanjang menyertai kelas RCIA memang banyak perkara yang telah saya pelajari. Bermula sebagai seorang yang kosong, saya telah belajar sedikit demi sedikit dengan bimbingan para pembimbing yang sangat membantu. Saya mula mengetahui cara untuk berdoa dan membaca Firman.
Kelas RCIA atau IKD ini merupakan hasrat hati saya sejak 15 tahun lalu. Ketika menghadiri Misa Kudus bersama keluarga, saya sudah mula berminat untuk menyertai koir gereja. Namun begitu, saya tidak berpeluang untuk menyertai koir gereja kerena status saya yang belum dibaptis. Saya juga selalu merasa sedih sebab tidak dapat menerima Ekaristi pada masa itu. Walaupun begitu, saya tidak pernah meninggalkan Misa Kudus. Begitu juga sepanjang tujuh tahun saya bersekolah di SMK Three Rivers Mukah, termasuk pra-universiti (Tingkatan Enam).
Dengan minat yang sama, saya menghadiri Misa Kudus di Gereja Sts Peter & Paul yang sejauh 40 minit berjalan kaki dari SMK Three Rivers. Walaupun perjalanannya agak jauh, tetapi saya selalu mengajak rakan-rakan saya berjalan beramai. Setelah saya memulakan sesi kuliah saya di UNIMAS, saya dan ayah merancang perjalanan iman saya di tempat yang baharu, suasana baharu. Ayah saya juga berpesan bahawa tekanan di sini juga agak lain, dan iman kitalah yang menjadi tempat bersandar dan berharap.
Pada bulan Julai 2023, saya memulakan perjalanan iman sebagai salah seorang katekumen. Saya dan ayah saya rancang dengan teliti segala perbelanjaan, tempat tinggal dan pengangkutan untuk menghadiri kelas setiap minggu. Syukur kepada Tuhan, semuanya berjalan lancar seperti yang dirancang.
Pada 10 Disember 2023, saya tidak dapat menghadiri kelas RCIA sebab pada masa itu, saya menjaga ayah saya yang mengalami komplikasi selepas pembedahan hati. Selama dua minggu saya dan kakak saya berjalan kaki ke Carmelite Chapel dan berdoa demi kesembuhan ayah saya. Saya dapat merasa akan kehadiran Tuhan Yesus walaupun saya belum dibaptis pada masa itu. Ayah saya telah meninggal dunia pada 15 Disember (2023), dan saya dengan keluarga saya terus kembali ke kampung. Saya pulang ke Kuching pada 7 Januari (2024) dan kembali menghadiri kelas RCIA kerana ia merupakan salah satu sumber kekuatan saya setelah jatuh di titik yang paling bawah dalam hidup saya. Saya memulakan hari-hari saya dengan sentiasa memikirkan bahawa Tuhan Yesus sentiasa berjalan bersama dengan saya di setiap suka dan duka hidup saya. Kawan-kawan Katolik saya juga sentiasa ada mendampingi saya dalam menjalani fasa yang paling mencabar pada masa itu. Kelas RCIA telah menjadikan Hari Minggu saya berbeza daripada orang lain. Saya tidak menyangka bahawa saya dapat menghadiri kelas hingga ke saat ini. Bak kata Fr Leonard, perjalanan iman saya baharu bermula, sekarang, dan selamanya. Ribuan terima kasih saya ucapkan kepada semua fasilitator, Fr Leonard dan wali saya, Aunty Margareta, yang tidak pernah lelah mengajar kami semua setiap minggu. Saya pasti akan merindui kelas RCIA selepas ini. Semoga kita semua sentiasa diberkati oleh Tritunggal Maha Kudus. Amen.
