Franciscan at Home

“The truth will set you free” (Jn 8:32). A large, prominently displayed banner with this proclamation greeted my high school students every semester that I taught Morality class. I spent many of the ensuing months unpacking this verse and its implications. What is truth? Or better, who is truth? What does it mean to be free? Crucial to this inquiry was a thorough study of the Church’s teaching regarding conscience. Any catechist would agree that we do not want to train our students to blindly follow a set of rules; instead, we want to be the conduits for them to develop a dynamic freedom to choose the ultimate good. This is the importance of properly teaching about conscience, which is “present at the heart of the person” and “enjoins him at the appropriate moment to do good and to avoid evil.”[i] If we merely memorize a list of laws and then try by our own power to live by them, we will always fail. New, unique moral challenges arise every day. However, if we have a well-formed conscience, then we have the ability to choose the good in every situation.

If we wish to assist learners in forming a Catholic conscience, it is important for us to understand how individuals typically grow and change over the lifespan with regard to moral thinking and reasoning. The way we approach moral catechesis and conscience formation will vary somewhat depending upon the developmental level of the individual. One characteristic that is common to all learners, especially during the childhood years, is their need to access the material in multisensory ways. Some individuals are visual learners. Some are most engaged when material is presented verbally. Still others need to move and interact with what they are learning. The following is a brief discussion of conscience formation at various ages, with recommendations for multisensory activities to aid in teaching at each developmental level.

In this issue, we specifically look at catechesis for children from four to thirteen years old. In the next issue of The Catechetical Review we will include high school age students with adults. Children In all our discussions regarding persons with disabilities, we continuously repeat that our attitude must be that of Christ. In essence that means that we must love. Jesus loved children: “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these” (Mt 19:14). He also tells us, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven”(Mt 18:3). We can anticipate having children with many different disabilities in our catechetical programs. The most common disability will be some sort of cognitive difficulty or challenges in reading comprehension. Many of us will see a child who is somewhere on the autism spectrum. Volunteer catechists who have received little training in addressing these special needs may balk at having such a child in their class because they feel ill prepared for such a challenge. This is understandable. Yet Jesus tells us to let the children come. He included no limits or qualifications. Consequently, we should make sure all catechists receive basic training in catechesis for children with special needs. Fundamentally, however, catechists must possess great love for the Lord and great love for the children.

Autism has captured the attention of many people through the media, and yet there remains a great deal of ignorance about it. The organization, Autism Speaks, states: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and autism are both general terms for a group of complex disorders of brain development. These disorders are characterized, in varying degrees, by difficulties in social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication and repetitive behaviors. For some, their knowledge of autism comes from movies and television. In 1988, Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise starred in Rain Man, about the relationship between two brothers. The Hoffman character, Raymond Babbit, is an autistic savant, a term which “refers to individuals with autism who have extraordinary skills not exhibited by most persons.” He has the ability to remember everything he sees and hears, although he isn't able to hold a meaningful conversation. In the mind of many people, this is the face of autism, when in fact it is a rare occurrence.

Most importantly, St. John Paul draws our attention to the action of the Trinity in catechesis. The “living Sources” are the Persons of the Trinity. The sources we seek, and from which our catechesis is perpetually renewed, are not in the past but in the living present. Christ comes to reveal the face and love of the Father. Christ himself is the teacher, speaking through his Church, today. Our catechesis is to echo this divine voice, allowing those we teach to hear Christ and his words through our lips. Our catechesis also directs people to the Holy Spirit, who is the “interior Master,” forming us in order to attune us to the voice of Christ: “to be in touch with Christ, we must first have been touched by the Holy Spirit. He comes to meet us and kindles faith in us.”

Vayan, pues, y enseñen a todas las naciones: el mandato evangélico de catequizar a todas las personas

Como lo dice San Pablo, nuestra actitud tiene que ser la de Cristo. La Segunda persona de la Santísima Trinidad se hizo hombre para salvarnos de nuestros pecados. "Se despojó de sí mismo, tomando condición de servidor," y murió en una cruz (Filipenses 2: 7-8, Biblia de Jerusalén. Ed. Desclée de Brouwer, 2009). Durante su breve estancia en la Tierra, Jesús sanó a los leprosos, y también a los ciegos, los sordos, cojos y paralíticos. En los Evangelios, encontramos historias específicas de milagros, y podemos decir con seguridad que Jesús sanó a muchas otras personas cuyas historias nunca se hicieron públicas. Sin embargó, no curó a todos. Nos enseñó que ni los pecados de las mismas personas con discapacidad, ni los pecados de sus padres son la causa de sus discapacidades (cf. Juan 9: 1-41). Y con más importancia aún, nos enseñó a amarnos los unos a los otros. La catequesis siempre debe de ser un acto amoroso: no estamos enseñando simplemente sobre Jesús, sino que estamos conduciendo a nuestros estudiantes hacia una relación con Jesucristo, quien nos ama a todos.

The Catechism is an outstanding teaching tool that can provide excellent guidance for our lesson and session planning.

In part one, using the topic of heaven as our example, we looked at how the Catechism offers us a Christ-centered framework for our lesson and session planning. We saw that the Catechism helps us to articulate the heart of every topic in a Christocentric way. The Catechism also assists us in securing learning objectives in each of the four parts of the Catechism— the faith professed, celebrated, lived and prayed—by using the cross-references and subject index to identify key content areas.

This article describes the next steps in our lesson and session planning: gathering the content we need for teaching to the various learning objectives, structuring this material, and building in key sources for teaching. It will be useful, as before, to have the Catechism open while reading through this article.

For Understanding and Conversion: Serving Those with Cognitive Disabilities

In this column, we have been discussing catechesis for persons with disabilities; and up to this point, we have focused particularly on those persons with physical disabilities. While the next article in this series will consider autism spectrum disorders, we turn here to learning disabilities and developmental disabilities.

Here is a point that we must emphasize: even if some people have disabilities that can impair their ability to understand the teachings of the Catholic Church, they can still have a profound love for Jesus Christ. In fact, the National Directory for Catechesis says, “Children with cognitive disabilities often have an unusual intuitive understanding of the sacred.”[i]

The National Directory also states, “Catechetical goals and objectives should be set for special students included in parish catechesis. They should not be segregated for specialized catechesis unless the disabilities make it impossible for them to participate in the basic catechetical program.”[ii]

Sometimes we can feel uncomfortable around persons with severe cognitive disabilities; one reason for discomfort may be the lack of personal boundaries on the part of many individuals with these disabilities. Mother Teresa and Jean Vanier can help us to overcome our discomfort. Vanier, the son of Canada’s Governor General, was the founder of L’Arche,[iii] an international ministry focused on living with, praying with, and loving with persons with intellectual disabilities. The Catholic television show called Man Alive (1972) featured an interview with Jean Vanier and Mother Teresa together. Neither one had achieved the international acclaim and admiration that they would later receive; nevertheless, they both were adamant that having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ implies that you must serve him in the distressing disguise of the poor, as Mother Teresa always taught. If we wish to overcome our fear, this personal relationship of service must become one of perfect love because as St. John says, “perfect love casts out fear” (1 Jn 4:8).

Throughout these articles, we have stressed that our attitude must be that of Christ. Unless we love, we can achieve no success in anything we undertake, and certainly not with people who have such disabilities. Vanier knew this well:

At the heart of Vanier’s theology is the human desire to belong. Human beings are made for deep relationships; they are made for community. As he puts it: “The longer we journey on the road to inner healing and wholeness, the more the sense of belonging grows and deepens…” Vanier’s theology of community and belonging requires that those whom we have chosen to name "disabled," should have a place of belonging within the community of the friends of Jesus. If they are not missed they do not belong; if they do not belong there is no community.[iv]

As a time of immense grace, this Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy proclaimed by Pope Francis is an opportunity for the Catholic Church and for each one of us to reflect ever more completely the merciful love of the Father (Lk 6:36). Holy doors are open in every diocese throughout the world; these open doors are symbols of hope, healing, and love, and they announce the mercy of God, who is “the beating heart of the Gospel, which in its own way must penetrate the heart and mind of every person.”[1] Each of us in ministry or service to the Church must, during this time, undertake a review of our attitudes, practices, and habits so that we might be a more efficacious sign of the Father’s mercy in our own lives and the lives of others. This applies in a particular way to all those who are involved in the ministry of catechesis and have such an influential role for present generations of children and youth, in particular. I am grateful to all catechists who minister in our Catholic schools and parish religious education programs, and I would like to reflect with you on this new opportunity for the Church, especially in our mutually shared role of teaching and passing down the faith. Each of us in ministry or service to the Church must, during this time, undertake a review of our attitudes, practices, and habits so that we might be a more efficacious sign of the Father’s mercy in our own lives and the lives of others. This applies in a particular way to all those who are involved in the ministry of catechesis and have such an influential role for present generations of children and youth, in particular. I am grateful to all catechists who minister in our Catholic schools and parish religious education programs, and I would like to reflect with you on this new opportunity for the Church, especially in our mutually shared role of teaching and passing down the faith.