What is your next step?

5 min

Awaiting theological review

What you will understand today

How to keep going after Start from Zero: prayer, Scripture, the Eucharist, community — and, if you wish, Baptism or coming back.

In simple words

Faith is not an idea to finish learning but a relationship to live. Jesus' last words in Matthew are a promise: I am with you all days. Whatever your next step is, you do not take it alone.

Some steps are for everyone: a few minutes of prayer each day, reading a Gospel slowly — Mark is short — going to Mass on Sunday, and finding people to walk with.

If you are not baptised and want to be, speak with a priest or a parish: adults prepare through a journey called the catechumenate. If you were baptised but have drifted away, the door is open: confession is a good way to come home.

Key Bible passage

The last words of Jesus in Matthew's Gospel: a mission and a promise.

²⁰Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world.
Matthew 28:20 · Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition

Five next steps

PrayFive minutes a day
ReadOne Gospel, slowly
GatherSunday Mass
AskA priest or a friend
ServeSomeone in need

Go deeper

The first disciples were invited with a simple phrase: Come and see. You do not have to understand everything; you have to keep company with Jesus, and he will lead.

Community matters. Look for a parish, a prayer group, a Bible study or a Christian friend. Faith shared is easier to keep alive, and questions are easier to carry together.

Keep going with cento53 if it helps: the parables, the Bible people, What are you going through? and the Bible reader are all there to help you understand — and every page has a next question.

Questions people ask

I am not baptised. What do I do?

Contact a Catholic parish near you and ask about preparation for adult Baptism (often called RCIA or the catechumenate). It is a gradual journey with others, and you can ask every question along the way.

I was baptised but stopped practising. Can I come back?

Yes, always. Go to Mass, and when you feel ready, go to confession; many priests are glad to talk first. The father in the parable runs to meet his son.

What if I still have doubts?

Doubts are part of many believers' journeys. Bring them to prayer, keep reading and asking; faith does not mean having no questions, but trusting God while you seek.

Did you know?

Historical context

The early Church prepared adults for Baptism over a long period called the catechumenate. The Second Vatican Council restored it, and the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults was published in 1972.

CCC 1232

A common misconception

You need to have everything figured out before taking a step.

In fact

Faith grows on the way. The Catechism says that becoming a Christian has always been a journey in stages, covered quickly or slowly — what matters is to walk.

A question to take with you

Looking back over these thirty steps, what has struck you most? What is one question you still carry?

One small thing for today

Choose one next step from the diagram and put it in your calendar for this week.