Whether you consider yourself an artist or not, we are all drawn to beauty. In fact, “Seeking Beauty” is Key 6 in my 7 Keys to Spiritual Wellness. We can encounter and express beauty through painting, sculpture, music, drama, dance, and so on. To celebrate the arts, Loyola Press launches a new online series called Arts and Faith. It’s a celebration of the many creative ways people use art to express their faith.

Stories in the series include profiles of artists and—helpful for those of us catechists who aren’t as artistically inclined—articles about using art in catechesis. Using art can help those who are visual or auditory learners, so I hope you’ll visit the series for inspiration as we move into the downtime of summer. And share your own stories of how you use the arts in your catechetical sessions!

I’m just a regular Martha Stewart!

The statue belonged to my late Mother-in-Law, Sophie, who had a great devotion to our Blessed Mother and now is with her in eternity.

It occurs to me that it might be helpful to invite young people to identify and articulate goals at the beginning of the catechetical year. My inclination would be to provide a list of “habits” for living as a disciple of Christ – habits that would be age-appropriate and measurable – and invite young people to select or prioritize them with the option of adding some of their own. Then, young people can be invited to keep a journal in which they track their progress through the year and write thoughts about their experiences.

Here are a few “habits” that I might include for intermediate age kids. What other habits would you suggest?

With God’s grace, I hope to achieve the following goal(s) this year in religious education:

• begin and end my day with prayer
• recall from memory the Ten Commandments
• practice an act of kindness each day
• regularly attend Sunday Mass
• become involved in an ongoing service activity at my school or parish
• go out of my way at least once per week to reach out to someone who’s hurting
• participate in a liturgical ministry such as altar server or reader
• regularly read the Bible
• recall from memory the Act of Contrition (or another prayer _______ )
• learn to pray the Rosary
• begin recycling at home

Add your suggestions in the Leave a Reply feature below!

 [photo courtesy of Andrea R via Compfight]

Keystone habits are those that, when changed, “dislodge and remake other patterns.” For example, when people add exercise to their daily schedule, it triggers widespread change in their lives. In essence, one good habit somehow makes other good habits easier. Duhigg says that developing keystone habits helps “other habits to flourish by creating new structures, and they establish cultures where change becomes contagious.”

I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this. The Church, we are told, exists in order to evangelize: to bring about conversion of hearts and minds. We do this by introducing keystone habits of the Catholic faith into every environment in which we live and, in doing so, help other habits to flourish thus “creating a culture where change becomes contagious” and “new values become ingrained.”

I firmly believe this is why the General Directory for Catechesis tells us that the most effective catechesis takes place when that catechesis is “permeated by a climate of prayer.” (#85) Prayer is a keystone habit in the life of a Catholic. When we establish a climate of prayer in our catechetical settings, we establish a habit that helps other habits to flourish: reverence, respect, compassion, selflessness, and so on. This is precisely the point I’m making in my book Beyond the Catechist’s Toolbox: when we establish a habit of prayer in our catechetical setting, a domino effect takes place and other good habits are capable of flourishing. As a result, we are “creating a culture where change becomes contagious” and that, my friends, is the goal of the New Evangelization!

P.S. One thing I’m contemplating trying next year to establish a climate of prayer at the very beginning of my classes is to invite the young people to take a few minutes of solitude to quietly”walk” (using their finger) a labyrinth that I’ll print out on heavy card stock (I’ll probably paste a picture of Jesus in the center of the labyrinth and will also play some instrumental music in the background). By developing this “keystone habit,” I hope to establish a climate of prayer from the get-go that can be built upon as the session progresses.

Our discussion got me thinking about the notion of readiness and the fact that all of our catechesis takes its cue from the process of Initiation which is an apprenticeship into a way of life. Assessment of knowledge of the faith is just one part of ascertaining readiness. What we really need to learn how to assess (and, more importantly, how to imbue) are habits: habits of prayer, Sunday worship, stewardship, and Works of Mercy just to name a few.

It’s important to keep in mind that habits – especially good habits – take time to develop. Forget the myth that it takes 21 days to change a habit. Research now reveals that the length of time varies depending on the complexity of the habit (as few as 18 days for simple habits and as long as 254 days for complex habits) but that the average is 66 days.

Suffice it to say that we need time to develop the habits mentioned above that come with a life of discipleship. That, of course, has ramifications.

• The first is the realization that a process of initiation – in particular, initiation into the Sacraments of the Church – cannot and should not be locked into an academic calendar. The RCIA, whether for adults or children, needs to be fluid and open-ended with opportunities along the way to assess the develop of habits. The various stages of the RCIA are provided precisely for that reason…to signify readiness to move on to another stage. Thus, when someone is not yet ready to move on, they are not “held back” but simply extend the period they are in until they are ready to move on.
• The 2nd ramification is the fact that we need to utilize interviewing techniques when assessing sacramental readiness in order to focus on the development of habits (thanks to those folks who suggested interview questions in our discussion on sacramental readiness).
• The third ramification is that we need to better utilize sponsors – mentors – to help those preparing for the Sacraments to incorporate the habits of discipleship into their lives.
• Finally, the fourth ramification that I can think of is that we need to address these habits upfront and ask inquirers – in an initial interview – not only if they desire to receive a sacrament, but also how interested they are in developing the habits of discipleship: prayer, Sunday worship, stewardship, Works of Mercy, and so on. This can be used to establish expectations for the initiation process as well as criteria for ongoing assessment of readiness. It’s not enough to ask them if they desire to receive a sacrament because they may “desire” it because to do otherwise will upset someone in the family. We need to ask if they desire to develop new habits and are willing to invest the time to do so.

Your thoughts about all this?

[photo courtesy of  massimo ankor via Compfight]

Hi Joe — One of our RCIC students, 13 year old, missed lots of classes, has not done any home make up work (his Mom says they have been too busy with ‘work’); and the boy is rather glum, sullen, disinterested.  Polite enough, but lethargic, etc. He missed receiving First Communion and Confirmation with the rest of the students (about 5 others, younger) on Easter Vigil and has an opportunity to receive the Sacraments at Pentecost – our Bishop will be here for that. We have asked our youth minister/head of catechism program for guidance, but wondered if we should “Ask Paprocki”. How do we decide and how do we express our concerns to the mother. Thanks.  We have two more Saturday classes before Pentecost.  Tomorrow and May 18. 

-Monica

• Appeal to young people since youth is a time of idealism.
• Make demands on people and you will get a heroic response.
• Convince people that change is necessary and that they can contribute toward changing the world.
• Attract people not only by words but by action.
• Make sure your message relates to everyday life.
• Deliberately and immediately “send” people into action that they view as “heroic.”
• Offer instruction that inspires and changes lives.
• Make sure instruction is linked with action and equip people for action.
• Present your message in such a way as to require lives to be transformed.
• Emphasize that you have a vested interest in alleviating human suffering.
• Convince people that you are inviting them to fight against forces that are monstrously evil.
• Pass on ideas in the simplest language possible for them to understand.
• Make effective use of small groups to bring people a sense of belonging and unity.
• Do not “bash” people (instead of trying to prove others wrong, seek to find a point of contact with them and then try to build on the area of sympathetic interest and agreement).
• Bring people to the conclusion that you and those above you in the organization truly care.
• You must be seen as authentic.
• Discover the needs of the people and then come before them as their “champion.”
• Develop leaders. It’s no use trying to develop techniques and strategies if you’re not developing leaders.
• Use simple ideas to motivate people to action.
• To teach others, you just have to know a little bit more than them. You can always tell them you will get the answer next time if you don’t know.
• Identify with those to whom you “preach.”
• Use every technique and medium available to you.
• Each generation must be evangelized anew.

So where do these effective strategies come from? The Paulists? The Knights of Columbus? The New Evangelization?

Would you believe the Communist Party? 

Now, don’t panic, I’m not going Communist on you! I’m summarizing the strategies shared by Douglas Hyde in his book Dedication and Leadership which I mentioned in a previous post. In his book, Hyde, who, in 1948, renounced Communism (after serving in the Party for 20 years) and embraced Catholicism, asserts: “I do not believe the strength of Communism lies in the strength of its ideas. I believe, as any Christian must, that Christianity has something infinitely better to offer than has Communism. Yet, it is they who have been able to influence our generation much more profoundly than we have. In my experience, the strength of Communism lies in its people and the way in which they are used. It is at this level that Communists have the most to teach us. They use well the human material at their disposal. Most often non-Communists do not.”

For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. (Luke 16:8)

First, I’m going to show them some images of Chinese artist Liu Bolin who is known for his “Invisible Man” images in which he literally paints himself so as to completely blend in with his surroundings.  [Image by TED Conference under CC license]

I will use these images to illustrate the point that, in many ways, we all try to conform and, while it is good to conform to  positive things, we sometimes conform to things that are not good for us. As Catholics – as followers of Jesus – we are called to stand out!

With that in mind, I’m going to share 5 ways that we Catholics are called to stand out – 5 characteristics of Catholic identity – that they can practice in their day to day lives. And where do we find this Catholic identity? It’s in the W.A.T.E.R.

When we are baptized in the waters of Baptism, we Catholics are equipped with the following.

We have a(n)…

• W - Way about ourselves. We treat all human persons with respect and perform works of mercy because we recognize that ll people have inherent dignity.
• A - Attitude of gratitude. Our belief in the Resurrection removes all fear and fills us with hope and gratitude to share with others, especially those in despair.
• T – Team that we belong to. We are never alone. We have the Church and the Communion of Saints with us at all times and in all places.
• E - form of Expression that is unique. We express our understanding of the mystery of God using more than words – we use sign, symbol, and ritual.
• R – Resources that support our faith. We have Scripture and Tradition which equip us to understand, explain, and share our faith.

(by the way, these 5 characteristics of Catholic identity are drawn from my book, Practice Makes Catholic! The W.A.T.E.R. acronym does not appear in that book…I just thought it up for my 6th graders!)

To help them remember this, I am going to present them each with a bottle of holy water on the backs of which I will paste a small piece of paper (laminated)with the W.A.T.E.R. acronym identified and described as above.

I should have just enough time to go over each of the 5 characteristics and offer examples for each before we say our tearful goodbyes!

As I mentioned last week, I conducted a final assessment of my 6th graders and was pleased with the results except for 3 students who did miserably. Last night, I offered these students redemption – another chance (Hey, the parish is named Most Holy Redeemer!!!) and they responded quite well (at least 2 of the 3…one was absent).

First, as soon as these 2 arrived, I took them without fanfare to the room across the hall, showed them their assessment results, and told them that I was sure they were not happy with their scores, neither was I, and neither would their parents be. I explained that they were getting another chance to show what they know. With my aide supervising them, they first  had a 20-minute prep period to locate, in their Finding God textbook, the answers to all of the test questions using this copy of the assessment with page numbers indicated.

Meanwhile, I went back across the hall and worked with the remaining students to create farewell posters for our DRE, Arlene, who is retiring. The posters expressed thanks for teaching us about the sacraments, the Mass, morality, and prayer, and the kids cut out pictures from their Finding God textbooks to illustrate the posters…the posters turned out very nicely.

Meanwhile, I periodically checked on the 2 young men working on their assignment. When they were finished with the 30 minute prep period, I collected their books and sheets, provided them a clean copy of the assessment, and gave them 30 more minutes to complete it as I went back across the hall. I am happy to report that both responded quite well: one went from a 49% to a 98% and the other from a 36% to an 89%! In fairness to those who took the assessment only once, I then lowered their assessment score one grade so they ended up with a B+ and a C+ respectively (that letter grade is not used anywhere else…it is simply a way to report their progress on the assessment in a manner that is familiar to them). I explain to all the kids that anyone who earns a C or higher on the assessment is showing that they are progressing in a satisfactory manner in their faith formation as far as knowledge of the faith is concerned.

I explained briefly to the 2 boys that retaking the assessment in this manner was not punishment but a chance for them to redeem themselves because our goal is make sure that every child comes away knowing that they have deepened their knowledge of their faith and grown closer to God. They both responded very positively and rejoined the rest of the class for the closing prayer in good spirits.

Thoughts and comments about how you might handle such situations differently?

P.S. The DRE is arranging for the one fella who was absent to have an opportunity to re-take the assessment in the same fashion under his parents’ supervision since we have no more class time available for that.

I am convinced, more than ever, that we need to shift our focus to equipping Catholics with the techniques needed to spread the faith. Our content is solid! But that content does us little good if it remains a well-kept secret to the rest of the world! The New Evangelization calls us to, not only deepen our faith, but to SHARE it with others. Many Catholics do not know how to do that.

Which brings me to the latest book I’m reading, recommended by one of my readers: Dedication and Leadership by Douglas Hyde (University of Notre Dame Press, 1966), who, in 1948, renounced Communism (after serving in the Party for 20 years) and embraced Catholicism. In his book, “he advances the theory that although the goals and aims of Communism are antithetical to human dignity and the rights of the individual, there is much to be learned from communist methods.” (book’s back cover)

In particular, I was struck by what Mr. Hyde said about why and how most people joined the Communist Party:

The majority of people who join the Communist Party do so knowing very little about Communism. The potential recruit sees the Party in action…and he admires what it is doing. He goes on to be more conscious of its…campaigns and increasingly to feel that these correspond to real needs. They are relevant where so much that is being done by other bodies seems to be quite irrelevant to the titanic needs and ills of our time.

He goes on to say…

In other words, it is the Party in action, an active, campaigning body, and the people who make up the Party, who normally provide the spur to the recruit’s first approach to Communism. To spell it out: recruits to Communism are usually attracted by the dedicated people who are Communists and by the Party in action, and this action is appealing because it appears to be concerned with real problems. The Party operates at a level which is meaningful to the potential recruit. It comes to him, as it were; he does not have to seek out the Party.

The “actions” that Catholics need to be “caught” doing (and that we need to invite young Catholics to participate in) are well-organized campaigns involving the Works of Mercy that reveal God’s goodness, compassion, and justice to the world.  Orthodoxy of content is important but unless our young Catholics see (and are invited to join) dedicated Catholics in action, addressing “the titanic needs and ills of our time,” that orthodoxy will remain in a book.