The Six Tasks of Catechesis: A Series of Articles to HELP ME

The National Directory for Catechesis (#19B) tells us that, “The definitive aim of catechesis is to put people not only in touch but in communion, in intimacy, with Jesus Christ” and goes on in #20 to state that the fundamental task is the “formation of disciples of Jesus Christ.” The bishops then go on to outline six key elements that need to be incorporated to form disciples seeking this intimacy—the six tasks of catechesis. In […]

Ignatian Spirituality: An Introduction—Free Poster and Booklet

St. Ignatius of Loyola founded a school of spirituality that is continued today by his community, the Jesuits, along with many others. Ignatian spirituality focuses on creating a deep bond with Jesus, as well as working to promote God’s plan and action in the world. Most important, Ignatian spirituality concentrates on “finding God in all things,” which integrates prayer and service, meditation and action, emotion and reason. Let our free poster and booklet introduce you […]

The 1% Prayer Challenge

What would happen if you gave 15 minutes of your day completely to God? That’s what Mike Lorenzo is asking the community at St. John the Evangelist Parish in St. John, Indiana. Mike is the Pastoral Associate for Evangelization at the parish. He works closely with the pastor and his colleagues to instill a desire to be closer to God and strengthen their prayer lives. Over the Lenten and Easter seasons they launched an initiative […]

A Different Kind of Small Faith Group

Last summer, I posted about some ideas for adult faith formation that were less “churchy” sounding but still unabashedly spiritual. I’m working from the premise that we too often approach adult faith formation as attempting to get adults to come to our turf (the parish grounds) to join groups we are forming to study some aspect of the Catholic faith. Instead, I’m proposing that we identify where and around what activities adults are congregating and invite […]

My Top Ten Favorite Lessons: #4

As I look back on my favorite lessons, this one really stands out because I love the idea of magic. I think, deep down, I always wanted to be a magician, but I was never any good at it! In this lesson for sixth graders, we were looking at the story of Creation, in which God creates all of creation out of nothing. The first thing I thought of was how magicians try to convince […]

Why Become a Liturgical Catechist?

This is the first article in a series about liturgical catechesis. I have a confession: I have an alter-ego. “The Liturgical Catechist” moniker was born when I realized that being both a catechist and a liturgist means I have something to offer the Church that doesn’t always come naturally to either liturgists or catechists. Too often, these ministries occupy separate “silos” in the average parish. However, the General Directory for Catechesis reminds us that “catechesis […]

Chance Encounter Leads to St. Ignatius of Loyola

Ten years ago, I really didn’t know anything about St. Ignatius of Loyola, nor of the Jesuit order, which he founded. A chance encounter with a Jesuit priest changed that for me, and since that dinner conversation, I’ve incorporated Ignatian spirituality into my daily life. I met Fr. George Lane, SJ, who was then the president of Loyola Press, during my first training as a ministry consultant. By chance, Fr. Lane sat next to me […]

Parent-Teen Date Night

Editor’s note: This summer, we will be highlighting success stories from the field. Let’s share our stories of what works to inspire each other to great things in faith formation ministries! Today, Megan Arteaga tells us about Parent-Teen Date Night in youth ministry. As youth ministers, we want more parental involvement. We want more parents as adult leaders; we want more parents driving carpools; we want more parents as chaperones; heck, we’d be happy with […]

Adult Faith Formation Does Not Take Off for the Summer

Summer provides us with the perfect time to forge ahead with plans for more robust adult faith formation in the year ahead. At Christ the King Parish, my home parish, we are taking advantage of the summer to lay the foundations for our best year ever in adult faith formation. Building on the success of our small faith groups during Lent, we are now inviting a number of parishioners to consider/discern serving on an adult […]

My Top Ten Favorite Lessons: #3

I hope you’re enjoying this little excursion down memory lane as I recall some of my favorite lessons that I’ve taught and posted about here on Catechist’s Journey. Today, we go back to my days of teaching eighth grade/Confirmation prep and a lesson—actually a series of lessons—on getting to know who Jesus is. We presume, too often, that kids know the story of Jesus. We forget that we have absorbed the story of Jesus over […]

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