RCIA

RCIA Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults
 
 RCIA is a nine-month study of the Catholic Faith in anticipation of becoming Catholic. The first 8 classes (September 9th through October 28th) are called The Inquiry and are open to anyone wanting to learn more. There is no commitment. After that initial period, the remaining classes (November 4th- Easter) are called The Study of the Catechumenate. 
 
 There is no cost for RCIA classes, and the instruction will be given by Father Eddie Godefroid, Deacon Mark and Deacon Ray as well as members of RCIA team. The classes will be held in the School Library, which you will be able to find with signage on Holy Rosary's campus we offer classes in English and Spanish. For more information, call the Parish Office at (636) 456-3698. To sign up please fill out the form on this page. For information on Regularizing Marriages, see the link below.
 
 Marriage and Divorce Information
 
 
 
 
 
 What is Marriage?
 The theology of the Roman Catholic Church as well as Canon Law describe marriage as a "covenant by which a man and woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life which, by its very nature is ordered toward the good of the spouses and toward the procreation and education of offspring, and which, between the baptized, has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament" (canon 1055, Gaudiam et Spes, 48).
 
 Why are Catholics required to be married in a Catholic Church?
 Being that marriage was given by God to our first parents, Adam and Eve, to be a sacred bond of love that mirrors the love He has for us, it necessarily follows that the Sacrament of Marriage should be celebrated within a solemn context in the presence of God.  All Catholics (either baptized Catholics or people who convert to Catholicism) are required by church law to be married in a Catholic Church unless they had permission from the Catholic Church to do otherwise.  If a Catholic does not have the necessary permissions and enters into a marriage bond, the Catholic Church does not recognize the marriage as a valid union.  The Catholic is also unable to receive the Sacraments of the Church, including Holy Communion unless and until the marriage is proclaimed valid by the Catholic Church.
 
 If I am Catholic but was married outside of the Catholic Church without the necessary permissions, how do I get back into communion with the Church?
 The first step is to meet with a priest or deacon and explain the situation to him.  As long as there are no previous marriages (or those previous marriages have ended with the death of the former spouse or some sort of declaration of nullity by the Catholic Church), the priest or deacon may witness vows within the Church after a period of preparation.  Once these vows are spoken before a priest or deacon and two witnesses, the couple is considered validly married in the eyes of the Church and each Catholic may once again receive the Sacraments of the Church, including Holy Communion.
 
 
 Why is the Catholic Church against Divorce?
 The Catholic Church views the reality of divorce with great seriousness and considers it only to be a last resort taken at times to safeguard the rights or well-being of a spouse or children under secular law. As such, the Catholic Church recognizes civil divorce only as indication of the discontinuance of the lived experienceof a couple’s marital relationship. Civil divorce has no power to sever the marital bond itself, the bond which is created between the two parties on the day of their wedding through their mutual exchange of consent. Rather, the Catholic Church presumes that once consent is exchanged every marriage is valid and binding until the contrary is proven.
 
 What is an Annulment?
 A Tribunal Process in pursuit of a decree of marital nullity (annulment) has the sole purpose of determining whether or not a valid and binding bond was created when the parties exchanged consent. It does not seek to attribute blame to one or the other party for the breakdown of the relationship. A decree of nullity, therefore, is a judgment by an ecclesiastical tribunal which states that on the basis of evidentiary proof a given relationship was not a binding marriage in the way the Catholic Church understands marriage to have been created by Almighty God. Here it has been proven either that one of the essential elements of marriage or the necessary personal capacity for competent consent was lacking at the time the parties wed. The decree of nullity does not deny that a wedding ceremony took place, nor does it imply that the husband and wife never had a relationship (c. 1061 §3). Moreover, any children born of a relationship which was presumed by at least one of the parents to be a valid and binding marriage at the time are considered to be legitimate, even if at a later time the marital bond is proven to have been invalid and null (cc. 1137 & 1138).