Catechetical Issues & Topics Archives - Page 13 of 70

Pop-Up Catechesis: The Marks of the Church

When advertising, businesses will often boast about specific qualities that they possess as a way of distinguishing themselves from their competition. Thus, it is common to see words such as the following splashed all over their ads: bold, innovative, trustworthy, original, authentic, cutting-edge, high-quality, and user-friendly. In a similar way, the Catholic Church uses four words to describe its distinguishing features: one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. In this episode of Pop-Up Catechesis, we explore these […]

crying child - Fertnig/iStock/Getty Images

The Three Rs of Our Salvation Narrative: #3 Reassurance

Joe Paprocki

The New Evangelization seeks to simplify—without making simplistic—the central message of the Gospel so that it is accessible to all. With that in mind, I have summarized the gist of our salvation narrative in three words: rescue, restoration, and reassurance. This is the heart of the kerygma—the primary proclamation of the Gospel. Through the life, teachings, miracles, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ, we are rescued, restored, and reassured. Let’s visit the last of the Three Rs, reassurance. […]

Pop-Up Catechesis: The Tenth Commandment and Avoiding Comparisons

Joe Paprocki

From the time we are toddlers right up to the present day, it is common for us to compare ourselves to others. I know that this past Christmas, my wife and I were happy to have our grandchildren open their Christmas presents on separate days so that they wouldn’t compare their gifts to their cousins’. We may think that this is only a problem that children have; however, there is a reason we have the […]

young man working on restoration of windows

The Three Rs of Our Salvation Narrative: #2 Restoration

Joe Paprocki

In an effort to make the central message of the Gospel (the kerygma) more accessible to all, I have summarized the gist of our salvation narrative in three words: rescue, restoration, and reassurance. This is the heart of the kerygma—the primary proclamation of the Gospel. Through the life, teachings, miracles, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ, we are rescued, restored, and reassured. Let’s visit the second of the Three Rs, restoration. I like to say […]

Pop-Up Catechesis: The Ninth Commandment and Misplaced Desires

Joe Paprocki

Something does not need to be lost in order to be classified as “misplaced.” We typically think of those two words as synonymous; however, there is a difference. If something is lost, it means that we are having trouble locating it. If something is misplaced, it simply means it is in the wrong place such as a, misplaced comma in a sentence (such as the one I inserted in this sentence). It is with this […]

The Three Rs of Our Salvation Narrative: #1 Rescue

Joe Paprocki

One of the goals of the New Evangelization is to simplify—without making simplistic—the central message of the Gospel so that it is accessible to all. A person shouldn’t have to be a theologian to understand the Good News! With that in mind, I have summarized the gist of our salvation narrative in three words: rescue, restoration, and reassurance. This is the heart of the kerygma—the primary proclamation of the Gospel. Through the life, teachings, miracles, […]

Pop-Up Catechesis: The Eighth Commandment and Honoring Truth

Joe Paprocki

One of the most profound statements that Jesus Christ made about himself is the following: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) In this statement, Jesus is not just describing himself as a truthful person. He is identifying himself as truth itself. This should make us think twice about how we do or don’t honor truth in our everyday lives and interactions with others. While humankind has always struggled with telling […]

Pop-Up Catechesis: The Seventh Commandment and Sharing God’s Abundance

Joe Paprocki

The Seventh Commandment teaches us that we need to share the abundance of God’s creation. We are called to respect what belongs to others and to be satisfied with what we have for ourselves, knowing that most of us have more than we will ever really need in this life. The Seventh Commandment, “You shall not steal,” reminds us to thank God for what we have, to share what we have with others, and to respect what belongs to others. […]

St. Lorenzo Ruiz - photo by Judgefloro, used under CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The Saints as Missionary Disciples: St. Lorenzo Ruiz

Julianne Stanz

This is part four of a series exploring saints who lived as missionary disciples. Jesus called ordinary people to become his disciples, and through the gift of faith, they accomplished many extraordinary feats. He transformed simple fishermen and merchants into men and women who utterly altered the society in which they lived. We might not think we are capable of the same kinds of miraculous deeds, but we are. If the thought of carrying out […]

Pop-Up Catechesis: The Sixth Commandment and Relationships

Joe Paprocki

Take a moment to complete the following simple word analogies. Hot is to cold as up is to ___________. North is to south as east is to ___________. Good is to bad as small is to ___________. Those were easy! (The answers, of course, are down, west, and large.) Analogies are all about relationships between words. The Sixth Commandment, “You shall not commit adultery,” teaches us about relationships, not between words, but between people. Just […]