About

Our story

Doing the RCIA is a big responsibility, and no one likes to feel unsure and isolated. In 2007 we saw how business leaders were using the Internet to share and connect, not just with their customers but also with each other. We thought parish ministers and volunteers could certainly do the same. That’s why we started TeamRCIA.

Because once we’re connected with each other, we can do amazing things:

• Convert hearts to Jesus Christ
• Build thriving parishes
• Break free of “the way we’ve always done it”
• Go way beyond our own limits
• Be inspired and inspiring

We began with a blog—a web journal—to create an online community of people who are passionate about sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ through parish initiation ministry. Today TeamRCIA is a community of over 10,000 parish ministers and volunteers throughout North America and beyond. We provide accessible and effective RCIA resources that help parish teams initiate and form disciples for Christ’s mission.

Our mission is to help you be the minister your parish needs and that God has called you to be. We believe in you. You can do amazing things.

What we do

TeamRCIA.com is a FREE online resource for Catholic parishes that want to form Christians for life.

• We provide accessible and relevant resources through articles and conversations initiated by five national leaders in the United States church, who have been serving in RCIA ministry for more than two decades. We invite you to join the conversation by clicking on the comments link on any blog post.
• We offer a variety of online training for church ministers and volunteers, through webinars, e-mail courses, downloads, and discussion forums, led by experts in the field of parish ministry.
• We make the best printed resources available to RCIA ministers and pastoral leaders and publish original material that helps ministers serve the mission of the church.

Team members

Nick Wagner is the director and founder of TeamRCIA.com. He has more than 25 years experience as a leader and trainer in liturgical and catechetical ministries. He has a gift for translating theological principles into simple and clear language that inspires joy, commitment and passion for faith. He is the author of numerous articles and several books and on parish ministry including Whole Community Liturgy and The Way of Faith: A Field Guide for the RCIA Process (Twenty-Third Publications). He is an active team member with the North American Forum on the Catechumenate. He has worked in campus, parish and diocesan positions, and he holds a master’s degree from Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota.

Diana Macalintal is the Director of Worship for the Diocese of San José and holds a Master of Arts in Theology with honors from Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota. She has served as a liturgist and music director in campus, parish, and diocesan ministries for over 20 years and has authored articles on liturgy and music in Modern Liturgy, Ministry & Liturgy, Pastoral Music, Eucharistic Ministries, Parish Life, AIM, and Today’s Parish Minister. In 2003, she received the Tabat Scholarship from the Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions. She is a team member of the North American Forum on the Catechumenate, a keynote speaker, workshop presenter, and liturgy director for national conferences, and a cantor and liturgical composer. She maintains a blog for the Diocese of San José called Work of the People.

Rita Ferrone is an author and speaker. Her many years of experience in parish and diocesan ministry have made her a sought-after workshop leader on issues of Christian initiation and liturgy throughout the United States. Rita has written several books, including the monograph On the Rite of Election, and she is co-author of the Foundations in Faith series for RCIA teams. Her most recent book, Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium, is part of the Paulist series Rediscovering Vatican II: The Liturgy. She is currently writing a new book on the Easter Vigil. Rita is an active team member with the North American Forum on the Catechumenate and serves on the advisory board of the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. She is married, and lives in Mount Vernon, New York.

Rita Burns Senseman is a catechist who specializes in the Christian initiation of children. She is a freelance writer who has written numerous articles and books on various aspects of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, including A Child’s Journey: The Christian Initiation of Children (St. Anthony Messenger Press). She is a team member for the North American Forum on the Catechumenate and former associate director of the Office of Catechetics/Religious Education in the Archdiocese of Detroit. She has also held various parish religious education positions. She holds an MA in theology from the University of Notre Dame and is a wife and mother of three adolescent daughters.