In the first weeks after Easter it is important to help the newly initiated to reflect on their sacramental experience, hopefully leading them into a deeper understanding of the mystery of salvation. Our approach can be both inductive and deductive (GDC, #151-153). That is, it can lead neophytes from the experience to the teaching, or it can take the teaching and ask them to see how it compares to their experience. Make sure to ask them how they felt as well as what they thought. (Ritual, particularly Catholic ritual, helps us to process reality through an intuitive as well as a sensate perception.)

Consider asking them also to process the experience of the last few months preparing for the sacraments. Again, ask for feelings as well as thoughts. As you listen to their experiences, sacramental and catechetical, jot down notes as a reminder of what to touch on later when you can offer the Church's words and teachings that shed light on the feelings and thoughts they articulated.

William H. Shannon's book, Exploring the Catechism of the Catholic Church, is an excellent resource for the catechetical leader and RCIA team during mystagogia. For example, take Shannon's chapter on the Eucharist. He offers the various names for the sacrament and explains the nuances of each expression. He gives a brief history of the sacrament as well as a short but excellent explanation for the structure of the Eucharistic celebration.

The book makes a great gift for the newly initiated. It would also be a great RCIA resource for mystagogy when you are ready for a more inductive catechetical approach. The book could be studied together, using the questions at the end of each chapter for discussion. The reflection questions, titled "Growing in Knowledge" and "Growing in Faith," touch both the head and heart of mystagogy catechesis.

Spring is a great time to take up this theme. Seeds get planted and flowers start blooming. In some parts of the country it seems as though the whole earth is celebrating God's gift of creation and new life. With a little planning, family groups can help the parish focus on that new life and learn a little about sharing God's gift for creation.

Some elements you might want to include are:

An afternoon of mystery-solving can become an annual event at your parish, with a different theme each spring. By inviting those who were newly baptized or received into the Church, along with their families, you can provide another occasion for interaction between the parish and its newest members.

While the Sunday Masses of the Easter season are the main setting for mystagogy, most parishes will continue meeting with the neophytes and their godparents at least through Pentecost. Since the major topics of our faith would have been covered during the Period of the Catechumenate, this is a time for delving more deeply into the mysteries of faith, particularly the Paschal Mystery, drawing on both the Gospel readings and the neophytes' experience of the Easter sacraments (RCIA, #245).

The word mystery is frequently used when talking about matters of faith—and some pretty significant ones at that: the Mystery of the Trinity, Paschal Mystery, etc. The video series Foundations of Christianity with Father Michael Himes can be a helpful resource in explaining mystagogy to the neophytes and inviting them to enter more deeply into the mystery of our faith.

This series offers five topics: Mystery, Conversion, Faith, Hope and Love. Click here to see a video clip from Foundations of Christianity: Mystery (RealMedia | Windows Media). These subjects fit in quite well with the Sunday Gospels of the Easter Season. While it's likely that these themes were covered in some way during the Periods of Evangelization and Catechumenate, the Period of Mystagogy is a wonderful time to revisit them—from new vantage points in both the liturgical year and the faith lives of these new members.

Author and journalist Paul Wilkes has been a Catholic all his life. While researching and writing his book, Excellent Catholic Parishes: The Guide to Best Places and Practices, he became acutely aware of the difference that a good understanding of discipleship made in the daily life of active, involved Catholics. From that awareness emerged New Beginnings: A New Way of Living as a Catholic, a three-part, three-session course that takes Catholics on a life-changing journey from Church membership to discipleship. After spending one session exploring what it means to be parish, New Beginnings leads participants through a session exploring how they can deepen and enrich their personal spirituality. Finally, in the third session, participants discover their own unique value and talents and how best to put those to use in the parish and community.

If you're looking for a thoughtful and concise program to help newly initiated or newly involved parishioners come to a better understanding of what discipleship means for Catholics, New Beginnings is worth a look.