Here are some quality resources for catechetical leaders from my friend Tom Quinlan designed to help explore important aspects of catechetical ministry through the lens of evangelization. Equipping Catechetical Leaders to Deliver Evangelizing Faith Formation
I received an e-mail from a friend who is a DRE, and he asked if I had ever posted about what catechists look for in a Director of Religious Education. I told him that I had not but what a wonderful idea for a post! So… Catechists: please share a few thoughts about what you look for in a Director of Religious Education! Just type in your comments in the box below. Thanks!
It is with deep sadness that the catechetical community mourns the passing of Leland Nagel, the Executive Director of the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership. Just one week ago, hundreds of members of the catechetical community gathered with Lee in St. Louis for the NCCL Conference. This weekend, Lee was visiting his brother’s family and was with them when he entered into eternal life, passing away in his sleep Sunday night/Monday morning. Here is a […]
From time to time, I am asked about opportunities for pursuing a degree in religious education via online study. Recently, I became aware of just such an opportunity through Felician College. Felician Colleage Master of Arts in Religious Education – ONLINE
One of the greatest challenges that catechetical leaders face is reaching out to parents and families. Loyola Press to the rescue! Here are a number of FREE resources to help you strengthen ties with the parents and families in your parish program. One of the huge benefits of using a program such as Finding God is that you have so many of these FREE resources at your fingertips! (Downloads require Adobe Reader. Click here to […]
This week is Parish Religious Education Week! Under the auspices of the Religious Education Department, the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) is inaugurating a Parish Religious Education Week to highlight the important role played by parish-based religious education and faith-formation programs across the country. According to Lori Dahlhoff, director of the Religious Education Department, Parish Religious Education Week will honor all those serving in parish religious education and help strengthen interconnections between Catholic parish and school […]
I received this email from a self-described “newbie-DRE” who is looking for some advice. Let’s help her out! Does anyone have practical suggestions for saying “no” to a potential catechist who responds to your “call”? My assistant and I feel that he wouldn’t be able to control a classroom, and he has no filter when speaking so he tends to over-share about his personal life. Something about his personality is just giving us a bad […]
In his book, Growing An Engaged Church (Gallup Press), Albert L. Winseman explains that, without true engagement, volunteers burn out quickly. He identifies 3 ways to make an immediate impact on the level of engagement of church members: clarify the expectations of membership help your members discover what they do best create small groups I think these can (and should) be easily applied to catechists, who, without engagement, do indeed burnout quickly. Those catechists who […]
Back in the day, when I was a “baby” DRE (Director of Religious Education), I turned to a nifty book for help. It was written by Gail McKenna and it was titled Through the Year with the DRE: A Seasonal Guide for Christian Educators (Paulist Press). The book is long out of print, however, the idea stayed with me and inspired me to create a chart a few years ago outlining the “typical” responsibilities that […]
This year, the Church will celebrate Catechetical Sunday on September 15, 2013, and will focus on the theme “Open the Door of Faith.” As always, and appropriately so, catechists will be called forth in their parishes to be commissioned for their ministry. Catechetical Sunday is a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the role that each person plays, by virtue of Baptism, in handing on the faith and being a witness to the Gospel. Catechetical Sunday […]
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