They’re Here! The “New Generation” of Catechetical Leaders

One of the many benefits of my frequent travels around the country is the opportunity to meet so many diocesan catechetical leaders. I am especially excited to meet young leaders – forty-ish and younger – who make up what I call the “new generation” of catechetical leaders (not the “next” generation, because they are already HERE and making their presence felt!). The Church, and the catechetical ministry per se, is blessed to be energized by […]

The Liturgical Catechist

Be sure to take a look at The Liturgical Catechist, a new Web site put together by my friend, Joyce Donahue, Catechetical Associate in the Religious Education Office in the Diocese of Joliet, IL. Joyce is one of the most talented people I know in the fields of catechesis and liturgy and she does such a wonderful job of bringing these 2 aspects of Catholic life together (where they belong!). She’s a great resource and now […]

Getting Ready for the Feast of St. Ignatius

July 31 is the Feast of St. Ignatius! This date has personal significance for me since I attended St. Ignatius College Prep and Loyola University of Chicago (undergrad and graduate degrees) and work for Loyola Press! That’s a lot of Ignatian influence! Of course, we are all blessed to have been influenced in some way, shape, or form by this great man. With that in mind, I’d like to share a couple of ways to […]

It’s Great to Be Home!

Now that I’m back from my trips to Dallas and Hawaii, I’d like to take a bit of time to catch my breath and catch up with you on a few things. With that in mind, we’re going to take a week’s break from Stories on the Journey which has been such a wonderful experience! Thanks so much for sharing your stories and I look forward to many more during the month of July. For starters, […]

Aloha from Oahu!

I had the experience of a lifetime today, doing the keynote presentation at the Faith Formation Conference in Honolulu! It was a wonderful experience! It was the culmination of an incredible week. My wife and I have spent the past week here and have been so blessed to experience this island paradise. Tomorrow is  a full day of travel back to Chicago. When I get home, I’ll have an opportunity to fill you in on […]

Learning the Hard Way – Stories on the Journey

Wonderful story from Christian! A long time ago my wife & I were put in charge of teaching RCIA. We’d run the adult class for a couple of years, had a lot of informed, motivated Catholics. Anyway, I would teach the first RCIA class, and figured we’d start with some basics: Faith & Reason/ Fides et Ratio by JP2. We’d studied it in the adult class, no sweat. But with the RCIAers, what a disaster! […]

Stories on the Journey, Week Four: “Oopsies! I Goofed”

Welcome to Week Four of Stories on the Journey! Thanks for all of the great stories you’ve shared so far! Betty from Arizona sums it up pretty well: Thanks for sharing these inspiring stories that keep me motivated to continue facilitating adult religious education at my parish! In case you missed the stories, here they are: Week One: How Did I Get Into This? Week Two: Kids Say/Do the Darndest Things  Week Three: Touching the […]

A Delightful Day in Dallas!

Thanks to all the wonderful catechists in Dallas, TX, who spent the day with me on Saturday, exploring an introduction to the ministry of catechesis. We had a great time, got lots of work done, and even celebrated the Dallas Mavericks’ championship! The crowd ranged from a number of brand new catechists to a woman who was in her 50th year of being a catechist! Amazing! Thanks again to everyone for such a wonderful day! Here’s […]

A Weekend Full of Stories on the Journey – Touching the Sacred

As we enter into this weekend, I invite you to spend some time enjoying Stories on the Journey, our summer experience of catechists sharing their stories of the ups and downs, joys and challenges of being a catechist. This week’s topic is Touching the Sacred. What’s your story? Take a moment to describe a time when you really and truly felt the presence of God (the power of the Holy Spirit) in your work as a […]

Touched by the Sacred – Let’s Hear Your Story

Beautiful story from Karen: I teach RCIA for kids (2nd – 6th grades). During Lent, right before they will be baptized, we do the Stations of the Cross. We have some posters that I put up around the room and down the hallway. At the last minute, I decided to add a candle for each one since they had really enjoyed lighting the one we used for our opening prayer each week. We went through […]

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