RCIA Session 4 – Who He Is and What He Claims

Jesus Christ — Who He Is and What He Claims

RCIA – Week 4 (60 minutes)
This session forms part of a structured introduction to the Catholic Faith used in parish RCIA. It is intended to be read slowly and prayerfully, alongside participation in the life of the Church. This material is offered for formation and reflection. Reception into the Catholic Church always involves personal discernment and parish accompaniment.

Aim of this session

By the end of this session, participants should understand that:

  • the person of Jesus Christ stands at the centre of the Catholic Faith
  • His importance depends on who He claimed to be
  • His claims are historical and public, not symbolic
  • neutrality about Jesus is not logically possible
  • the Church’s faith rests on His identity, not merely His teaching

This session moves from revelation in history to the person through whom God reveals Himself.

1. Why Everything Now Focuses on Jesus Christ

In the previous weeks we established that:

  • belief in God is reasonable
  • revelation is reasonable
  • revelation must be public and historical

The Catholic Faith now makes a specific claim:

God has revealed Himself definitively in the person of Jesus Christ.

This means:

  • Jesus is not simply one teacher among many
  • His words cannot be separated from His identity
  • everything depends on who He is

The Church does not begin by asking:

“Do you like His teaching?”

She asks:

Who is He?

2. Jesus Christ Is a Historical Person

Jesus Christ is not:

  • a myth
  • a symbol
  • a later invention of the Church

He lived at a particular time and place.
He taught publicly.
He gathered followers.
He was executed.

These facts are accepted even by those who reject the Catholic Faith.

The question is not whether He existed.
The question is what He claimed.

3. What Jesus Claimed About Himself

Jesus did not present Himself merely as:

  • a moral reformer
  • a philosopher
  • a prophet pointing to someone else

He spoke and acted with an authority that belonged to God alone.

He claimed:

  • authority over the Law
  • authority to forgive sins
  • authority to judge humanity
  • authority over life and death

He did not say:

“God says…”

He said:

“I say to you…”

This is not the language of a mere teacher.

4. The Question Jesus Forces Upon Us

Because of His claims, Jesus cannot be treated as:

  • simply a good man
  • merely an inspiring figure
  • one option among many

If His claims are false, He is not good.
If His claims are true, He is Lord.

There is no middle position that does justice to what He said and did.

The Catholic Faith insists on intellectual honesty here.

5. The Authority with Which Jesus Acted

Jesus did not only teach.
He acted.

He:

  • called God His Father in a unique sense
  • accepted worship
  • demanded loyalty above all else
  • spoke of a kingdom centred on Himself

He gathered disciples not merely to learn, but to follow.

This kind of authority demands explanation.

6. Why the Church Takes Jesus at His Word

The Church believes Jesus because:

  • His claims were public
  • His life matched His words
  • His authority was consistent
  • His teaching did not flatter human weakness

The Church does not soften His claims.
She does not reduce them.

She receives them as they are.

7. Faith in Jesus Christ

Faith in Jesus Christ is not:

  • admiration
  • agreement with values
  • emotional attachment

Faith means:

Assenting to who He is, because God has revealed Him to be so.

Penny Catechism

Q. Who is Jesus Christ?
A. Jesus Christ is the Son of God, made man for us.

This answer is not sentiment.
It is a claim about reality.

8. Modern Objections Addressed

“Didn’t the Church later exaggerate His claims?”

The earliest testimony already presents Him as speaking and acting with divine authority.

“Can’t I just take His moral teaching?”

His moral teaching is inseparable from His identity and authority.

“Isn’t this exclusive?”

Truth is not exclusive by choice.
It is exclusive by nature.

9. What Is Being Asked of You Now

At this stage, you are not asked to:

understand everything

make a final commitment

You are asked to consider this:

If Jesus Christ is who He claimed to be, what does that demand of me?

That question cannot be avoided forever.

10. Questions for the Week

Reflect quietly during the week:

Who do I say Jesus Christ is?

Am I comfortable keeping Him at a distance?

What would it mean if His claims were true?

11. Closing Summary

The Catholic Faith does not rest on ideas.
It rests on a person.

Everything now turns on the question:

Who is Jesus Christ?

Next week we will ask:

Did Jesus Christ prove His claims — and how?

Optional Closing Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ,
if You are who You claim to be,
give us honesty to face the truth
and courage to follow where it leads.
Amen.