Catechumenate

• Who we are

The Diocese of Prizren-Pristina, or as we have come to know it in popular usage, the Diocese of Kosovo, has a special Office that takes care of catechumenal pastoral work. By the term catechumen, the Catholic Church means those persons who are seeking the truth, who have begun the path of Christian life, or who are in the phase of intensive preparation for Baptism. Hence this office is also called the Office for Catechumens. The Office is led by one of the priests of the Diocese, whom the Bishop appoints to that role. He is assisted by a considerable group of collaborators from all our parishes.

• What is the purpose

The responsibility of this ecclesial body is not direct pastoral activity, but rather to coordinate the pastoral work of the entire diocese.

The primary duties of this Office:

• Prepares the texts necessary for the biblical knowledge and faith formation of catechumens.
• Receives requests from individuals and guides them on where they can make the necessary preparations.
• Coordinates pastoral work across our parishes.
• Provides answers to questions raised by pastoral workers or candidates for baptism.
• Oversees the pastoral work of catechists, ensures the application of ecclesial rules, impartiality, and other established norms.

• Who can be baptized

This Office also looks after the spiritual progress of Neophytes (the newly baptized). If someone believes that they were created by God who is Love, then they are free, they accept no imposition, they are not deceived nor subjected. They need only open their heart so that love may embrace them and so that their heart may melt into love and become a source of this love for all people. Every individual has the right to present themselves at any parish or church in Kosovo to express their desire to Return to the faith of their ancestors and to make a request for baptism. In the freedom of God who is Love, every person is free to follow the feeling of their own heart toward faith, accepting no one's imposition, undeceived by enticements, and not subjected to pressure. They need only open their heart, that the love of God may embrace them. In this context, the life of every person is a personal relationship between the Creator and the created (the human being). Conversion, in turn, is the individual decision of a free person embraced by love, who seeks to enter into a new relationship with their Creator. Therefore, the decision to convert must be made with conviction, without coercion, and with full freedom of spirit.