Welcome to the final installment of Catechists in Action, a feature that has enabled us to be a “fly on the wall” of a number of catechists in this past year. In this final installment, we meet Marge Garbacz, Director of Religious Education at St. Symphorosa Parish in Chicago, IL. Among the many hats that Marge wears (including “parish carnival coordinator”!) is the coordinator of the parish RCIA process. Marge has assembled an impressive team of catechists and sponsors to accompany the catechumens and candidates on their journey. In these upcoming segments, we will have an opportunity to see how Marge, as a catechist of adults, implements sound and effective techniques for catechizing adults. In this segment, Marge gives us an overview of what we are about to witness in her RCIA process.
Catechists in Action
Catechists in Action – RCIA Participants Take Ownership of Discussion
In this segment of Catechists in Action, Marge Garbacz continues facilitating a discussion with her RCIA about Catholic Social Teaching. Watch for the following: Marge summarizes the discussion so far and poses a question for discussion. Participants begin talking about examples and strategies for practicing the principles of Catholic Social Teaching. Marge takes a back seat to the discussion and allows it to progress, enabling the participants to take ownership of the discussion and converse […]
Approaches/Techniques
Attracting Adults By Telling Them They Are Needed
A popular idea for engaging adults in faith formation is to invite parents of children in RE to some type of enrichment at the same time that their children are in class – another way to combat the “drop-off” mentality. These efforts are often met with mixed results. Some parishes have had success with this approach while others get only a handful of parents to stay. Part of the problem is that we are often […]
Catechist Recruitment
Think Young! Intentionality in Planning and Recruiting
One of my favorite lines from the movie La La Land comes from the lips of the character Keith, played by John Legend, as he tells the character Sebastian, played by Ryan Gosling: Jazz is dying because of people like you. You’re playing to 90-year-olds at the Lighthouse. Where are the kids? Where are the young people? You’re so obsessed with Kenny Clarke and Thelonious Monk. These guys were revolutionaries. How are you going to […]
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