Contact a parish near you
One of the best ways is to contact a Catholic parish near you to let them know that you are interested in finding out more about the Catholic Faith. You will be invited to inquire into what “being Catholic” is all about: who we are, what we believe, how we live our lives, how we pray, and more.
Read about The Faith
You can explore an overview of Catholic teaching.
You can purchase a copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the official summary of our Faith, available at most major bookstores, or you can view it online in full or as a Compendium from the Vatican Resource Library.
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We believe that God calls individuals to live the Good News Jesus proclaimed and to become his disciples as members of the Catholic Church. If you want to become Catholic, you will participate in a process called the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (sometimes called RCIA or simply Christian initiation). In RCIA, you will learn about the teachings of Jesus as the Catholic Church has handed them on and put these teachings into practice by living as part of the Catholic community, serving others and praying.
If you have not been baptized, the Christian initiation process prepares you to become a Catholic Christian by celebrating what we call the sacraments of Christian initiation: Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist or Holy Communion.
If you have been baptized in another Christian tradition, the initiation process prepares you to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church by celebrating the sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist or Holy Communion.
If you have been baptized as an infant, but have not received further formal instruction in the Catholic Faith nor the sacraments of Confirmation or the Eucharist, RCIA is indeed for you.
If you are a fully initiated Catholic who wishes to deepen your faith, speak to your local parish about the possibility of participating.
Becoming Catholic is a life-long commitment. However, the Christian initiation process typically lasts for several months or longer in order to prepare to take this step.
Participants in the initiation process generally meet once or twice each week, including part of the Mass on Sunday, but each parish initiation schedule varies.
The initiation of individuals who are ready to make the commitment to become new members of the Catholic Church may take place at Easter (in March or April) or at other times throughout the year.
You do not make any commitment or obligation by inquiring about Catholicism or beginning the Christian initiation process. We want you to take the time you need as you think about becoming Catholic and we respect your decision to stop or to say, “not right now” at any time.
While we love being Catholic and hope that others will want to become Catholic also, we do not exert pressure on anyone to do so. Our hope would be that at the very least, you would come to a greater appreciation of Catholic beliefs and practices.
Find a Catholic church near your home or work with our Parish Finder.