Franciscan at Home

Sam Robson shares practical examples of St Augustine’s model for catechesis.
St Augustine suggests a model for catechesis in which, “loving his neighbour as himself, a man turns the whole current of his love both for himself and his neighbour into the channel of love of God.”[i] Catechesis aims to “promote communion and intimacy” with Christ,[ii] who is true God and true man.[iii] Where this is prompted by a loving impulse of God’s grace, the catechist may be like a party host who is at ease introducing guests, recalling the genuine affection with which each friend is held.

Learning to love God and man more may be both an essential starting point and a lesson to which the catechist should repeatedly return. How might this love of both God and man manifest itself in catechetical practice? Here are a few examples.

“So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, ‘Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?’“ (Acts 8:30-31)

Most parishes have a religious education program for their children. Most parishes have a RCIA process for adults. Most are staffed by volunteer “catechists”—parishioners who are generous with their time, love the Church and who want the next generation to flourish and grow in their Catholic faith. Most have little training. Most parishes don’t require training, because after all, these volunteers are already giving so much. And honestly, if a person is living and breathing and will show up, the DRE is glad to have him. I wish these latter statements were not true; and they are not true for all, but are for many.

As the person who stands at the Confirmation of young people and at the initiation of adults, and testifies in the context of Sacred Liturgy that the people being initiated have been prepared and that the Gospel has been proclaimed, the deposit of faith delivered and conversion begun, I am a little nervous. I would suggest that all of us should be.

I have no lofty solutions, just a few very simple suggestions to help your catechists be just that—catechists who echo the truth: a message that is not theirs, but entrusted to them as the birthright of the sons and daughters of God, who they are catechizing.

On the Spot aims to highlight some fo the complex positions, questions and comments experienced by catechist, teachers and parents. It tries to outline the knowledge necessary to be fatithful to Chruch teaching and which will best help those we teach who call us to account for the hope that is in us (cf. 1 Peter 3:15). This time we consider the challenges of using the Catechism of the Catholic Church and make suggestions on how to use the first part of the Catechism with greater confidence.

“The whole concern of doctrine and its teaching must be directed to the love that never ends… the love of our Lord must always be made accessible so that anyone can see that all the works of perfect Christian virtue spring from love and have not other objective than to arrive at love.” CCC 25

Using the Catechism (all 2865 paragraphs!!) to teach can seem so daunting a task as to be impossible. To a busy teacher, catechist or parent, becoming familiar with the content, layout and organization of the Catechism may appear such a huge and time-consuming task that it is never even attempted. Teaching thus becomes, or remains, reliant on published schemes of work or personal knowledge and understanding, either of which may vary in quality.

This article suggests some points of entry to using the first part of the Catechism which may be of help in moving towards a greater confidence on the part of the one teaching and a greater accessibility to ‘the love that never ends’ on the part of the learner.

“The person who becomes a disciple of Christ has the right to receive the word of faith not in mutilated, falsified or diminished form but whole and entire in all its rigour and vigour.” (CT 30) Therefore to ensure that the person being catechised does receive the whole and entire word of faith, the formation of the catechist must equally be as complete. A well formed catechist will pass on the faith with confidence, knowing that what he or she is handing on is the pearl of great price, the Lord Jesus Himself.

This article sets out the eight key areas in which catechists need formation.

All catechists, parents and adults in a parish are called to teach the faith in various times and circumstances. They all need formation. Adults are called by God to be lay apostles, bringing Christ to the secular realm. Parents are called by God to form their own children. Catechists are called by God to catechize others, especially children, and support parents in their role as “first catechists” to their children. Adults in a parish need continual, ongoing, lifelong formation in order to better perform their mission and be confident to meet their responsibilities as apostles to the world, both as parents and as catechists.

In this article Martha Drennan gives practical answers to the following questions: Who needs formation? What does this formation look like? (11 aspects) Where does this formation take place? When does this formation happen? Why do we need formation? How do you go about this?

In this article we want to explore how effective storytelling can assist in the work of catechesis and also examine the roots of storytelling within the Franciscan tradition.

Let us begin with St. Francis. About those who minister the Word of God, St. Francis said: “The preacher must first secretly draw in by prayer what he later pours out in sacred preaching; he must first of all grow warm on the inside or he will speak frozen words on the outside.”[1] Tis is enlightened advice, as well, for catechists, religious education teachers and others who have the opportunity to minister the Word of God. That is, before speaking, teaching or preaching, one needs to set aside adequate time for prayer to draw in deeply God’s inspiration and listen to the Word.

Pope Francis incenses the altar at Mass in St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican on Catechists’ Day. Catechists from all over the world convened in Rome for their pilgrimage on the occasion of the Year of the Faith and the International Conference on Catechesis. Here for our readers is the Vatican’s English translation of the Holy Father’s homily.

1. “Woe to the complacent in Zion, to those who feel secure … lying upon beds of ivory!” (Am 6:1,4). They eat, they drink, they sing, they play and they care nothing about other people’s troubles.

While this article was true of The Sower while it was in print, it is now true of The Catechetical Review and Catechetics.com, which has replaced The Sower.

Patty Norris discusses getting back to the Spirit of Vactican II.

“Every realm, circumstance and activity in which it is to be hoped that the unity between faith and life can shine, is entrusted to the responsibility of the lay faithful, moved by a desire to communicate the gift of encountering Christ and the certainty of the dignity of the human person.[i]

I came upon this statement from Pope Benedict XVI, while preparing a session on Apostolicism Actuositatem and Ad Gentes, as part of a Year of Faith study on the documents of the Second Vatican Council. In one sentence he has expressed the crucial roll all of us play in the mission of the Chruch. He has expressed the vision and mission of the Apostolate, still struggling to be born in the hearts of many and precariously lived by lay Catholics who move between a hostile secular world and an often confused or vapid Church culture.