Often there are questions regarding valid or invalid baptisms.  The following list is provided to assist parish initiation leaders in identifying those denominations whose baptisms are recognized by the Catholic Church as being “valid,” “doubtful” or “invalid.”   This list is not complete and is subject to change as new information is received.

Baptism Guide (English)  (rev. February 22, 2016) 

Baptism Guide (Spanish)  (rev. February 22, 2016)

There also are many churches within the Diocese of St. Petersburg that have “Catholic” in their title, but that are “not affiliated with” or “in union with” Rome.  This list is not complete and is subject to change as new information is received.

Churches Not in Union with Rome  (rev. August 2021)

RCIA Resources

The Right of Christian Initiation of Adults calls for suitable catechesis during the Catechumenate Period that is “accommodated to the liturgical year” (R.C.I.A. #75a, 81). Using the Lectionary & Catechism Alignment Tool (LCAT) explained below, the parish R.C.I.A. team can discern catechetical topics for the entire catechumenate and liturgical year.

The Lectionary & Catechism Alignment Tool (LCAT)

The Lectionary & Catechism Alignment Tool makes use of:

  • a) the church year
  • b) the gospel for each Sunday and each liturgical cycle of readings
  • c) relevant citations from the Catechism of the Catholic Church
  • d) suggested catechetical content or focus

The LCAT was developed in 1999 and revised in 2007 by Mrs. Rita Thiron, Diocese of Lansing, MI, and presented as a resource at the 2007 national meeting of the Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions.  The “catechetical content” column was added in 2009 by Mrs. Carmen Cayon, for the Office of Evangelization and Lifelong Faith Formation, Diocese of St. Petersburg.

Team RCIA
TeamRCIA is a free resource available to those who are involved in parish catechumenate ministry – both novice and experienced. They provide insightful and helpful resource materials that you may use with your R.C.I.A. team and participants as well as podcasts and webinars.