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Catechetical Saints: Saintly Priests

As you have read in the last issue of The Sower, because this is the Year of the Priest, the articles this year will be devoted to priests. In all the years that we have studied the lives of catechetical saints, we have seen many, many priests who devoted their lives to handing on the faith. The General Directory for Catechesis notes that,

‘The function proper to the presbyterate in the catechetical task arises from the sacrament of Holy Orders which they have received. “Through that sacrament priests, by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are signed with a special character and so are configured to Christ the priest, in such a way that they are able to act in the person of Christ the head.”…

‘In catechesis the sacrament of Holy Orders constitutes priests as “educators of the faith.” They work, therefore, to see that the faithful are properly formed and reach true Christian maturity (224).

In this issue, I want to focus on the priest and the Eucharist. We need the Eucharist in order to undertake our work as catechists. The priest, as well as being only our catechetical leader, is also the one who makes it possible for us to receive the Eucharist.

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Sr. M. Johanna Paruch, FSGM, Ph.D, a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Martyr St. George, holds a BA in Theology and Elementary Education from St. Louis University, a Pontifical Catechetical Diploma, an MA in Religious Education from the Angelicum, and a PhD in Theology from Maryvale Institute, Birmingham, England. Sister has been involved in Religious Education for over twenty-five years. She currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Theology at the Franciscan University of Steubenville, specializing in Catechetics, and offers catechetical workshops in both the US and her native Canada. In 2013 she published her first book Mentors for the New Evangelization: Catechetical Saints of North America.

This article is from The Sower and may be copied for catechetical purposes only. It may not be reprinted in another published work without the permission of Maryvale Institute. Contact [email protected]

Categorized Under

Categorized Under:

Saints and Holy Men & Women

Issue:

31.1

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About Franciscan Catechetics

The Catechetics Degree Programs and the Catechetical Institute (CI) at Franciscan University of Steubenville work in concert to prepare clergy, religious and laity to join the “army of catechists” called for by St. John Paul II, eager to help the Church in her mission of making all nations joyful disciples of Jesus Christ. We combine a thorough formation in Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, and Magisterial documents with training in effective pedagogical techniques to help those we serve to grasp the truth, goodness, and beauty of the Father’s plan, and to bear witness to others faithfully of the wonderful life of grace in the Holy Spirit.

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