Being a Catechist Archives - Page 56 of 142

Expect the Unexpected

This week in third-grade faith formation class, we were to introduce the students to the seven Sacraments, focusing on two of the Sacraments of Initiation—Baptism and Confirmation. Excited to share this lesson, I brought pictures of my own Baptism and Confirmation to show the children. We had barely started with class prayer and introducing the material when our Director of Faith Formation stepped into the classroom and told me that my daughter, who is in […]

A Magnificent Banquet

Lisa Brown

During the “Christmas honeymoon”—those few weeks of Ordinary Time between Christmas and Lent—I found that I had been lulled into a sense of complacency. My second-grade class had covered a lot of material during the fall, and I felt good about their grasp of the material. But then reality hit me—their First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion were only weeks away! I started to panic, and I wondered if my students were really prepared for […]

How Do You Approach Lesson Planning?

Denise Gorss

How do you plan your lessons for faith formation sessions? The majority of us catechists don’t hold education degrees, so we likely don’t have much, if any, formal training in lesson planning. A good catechetical textbook with a teacher’s manual may outline ways to approach each lesson. This can be a great starting point, especially for new catechists. But with some experience, we can approach lesson planning in ways personalized to the group we have […]

Kicking Off Small Faith Groups at Christ the King Parish

Joe Paprocki

This year, I have been dedicating my efforts to building up adult faith formation at Christ the King Parish in Chicago. Our first foray into this area is forming small faith groups for the season of Lent, and I am happy to say that they are getting off the ground as I write this! Over the past five months or so, I have been meeting with the pastor, Fr. Larry Sullivan, and his staff to […]

Lenten AWE: Reaching Out to Young Adults

Julianne Stanz

Research indicates that young adults are highly likely to be present at Ash Wednesday services and to engage in Lenten practices such as abstaining from meat on Fridays and fasting. When I worked in parish young adult ministry we were especially attentive to those young adults who would come to Ash Wednesday services but were rarely seen at other times of the year. To reach out to this group, we started a Lenten initiative called […]

Facilitating Small Faith Groups for Lent

Reflecting on the Lenten Scriptures Cycle C Video Options

Joe Paprocki

Last year I offered handouts for Reflecting on the Lenten Scriptures, to be used in parish small faith groups. Year C materials for 2016 are now available. This year, I selected some options for online videos for further reflection on each week’s theme. Always remember to preview videos before showing to your group, to determine appropriateness for your setting and be sure things work as expected. First Sunday of Lent, Cycle C Temptation: What Is […]

Bibles at Home

Lisa Jones

Every year part of our third-grade curriculum includes teaching children how to look up a verse in the Bible. In the past I’ve used fortune cookies with a verse from Scripture as the “fortune” to make the learning fun. We started out this class by handing out a Bible to each child and showing them the list of books of the Bible in the table of contents and finding where the Old Testament ends and […]

With You I Am Well-Pleased: The Art of Blessing

Joe Paprocki

This Sunday we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord. In Luke’s Gospel, we are told that the heavens opened and a voice was heard saying, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:22) In these words of blessing, we are being told beyond a shadow of a doubt that God our Father looks favorably upon his Son. What a blessing for a child to hear these words from a parent! Author […]

Four Reasons Movement Is Important for Catechists

Denise Gorss

I wear a pedometer to track the number of steps I take daily. It’s a fitness reminder, but I was surprised to notice that in one recent class period I had added almost 2,000 steps to my count! I knew I moved around a lot during class, but this was near one mile, which was more than I would have guessed. Movement is important for catechists, not only for our own physical well-being, but for […]

Using a Blog as a Catechetical Tool

Chris Sullivan

You shall put these words of mine in your heart and soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and fix them as an emblem on your forehead. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. —Deuteronomy 11:18–20 In 2015, Moses […]