Albert Einstein once offered the following as a definition for insanity: “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Too often, in catechesis, we fall into this trap. I was recently speaking with a junior high catechist who was lamenting the fact that last year, her kids were so quiet (not shy but recalcitrant) that it was painful to teach them. They refused to speak, save for one student. I was talking to […]
Here is an email from a DRE in the northern suburbs of Chicago, writing about how he uses Batman Begins to teach Catholic Social Teaching! Joe: I appreciated your post on the Dark Knight (although I did not read it in detail, since I have not yet seen the movie, and I’m trying to avoid spoilers!) I use the previous movie (Batman Begins) as a way of pointing out themes in Catholic social teaching. For […]
The other day, I offered some quotes and reflective questions on the Church’s catechetical documents. I thought it might be good to follow-up with a little annotated bibliography of sorts, describing just what these various documents are about. In the weeks before many religious education prorgrams begin, you may want to read one or several of these documents (the shorter ones of course…if you wanted to read the Catechism, the General Directory for Catechesis or […]
Whether you are a beginning catechist or a returning catechist, it is good to be familiar with the Church’s documentary tradition when it comes to catechesis. Over the years, the Church has provided us with numerous resources to guide and inspire the ministry of catechesis. Here are just a few of what I consider to be some of the most inspiring lines from these documents (this list is not intended to be definitive…if there are […]
One of the biggest frustrations that catechists have is the fact that so many of our students are not attending Mass (because their parents are not attending). Here is a helpful resource I recently came across titled, “8 Reasons to Bring Your Child Regularly to Mass.” It is in a parent “magazine” called “Together: Preparing at Home for First Eucharist” ((written by Tom McGrath) that is a part of the God’s Gift: Eucharist program (Loyola […]
To be a catechist is to have a vocation – a call from God. This means that if you are contemplating becoming a catechist, you need to involved God in the decision-making. We call this discernment. Here are a few tips I’ve written on the practice of discernment: Many choices we face in life are very complex. How do we know what God wants us to do? What is God’s will for us? This is […]
Have you marked your calendar for Catechetical Sunday? It officially takes place September 21, 2008. Of course, check with your parish DRE…some parishes celebrate on a different date because of conflicts in their local calendar (it’s not a liturgical feast, so parishes can celebrate it whenever they want). Be sure to check out http://www.usccbpublishing.org/client/client_pages/catsun.cfm
Does anyone remember courtship? Back in the day, the process of a young man and a young woman entering into an ever-deepening relationship followed a pattern. For some, this pattern still exists, however, with society’s casual attitudes about sex, for many the process is “out the window.” Anyway, courtship follows a definite pattern: the couple meet and introduce themselves the couple spends time getting to know one another as a relationship develops, the couple learns […]
Here is an excerpt from my new book, A Well-Built Faith: A Catholic’s Guide to Knowing and Sharing What We Believe: Shortly after the events of September 11, 2001, there was a great deal of tension between Muslims and non-Muslims in many parts of the United States. In an effort to respond to the situation with Gospel values, I invited the Imam of a local Muslim community in the Chicago suburbs to meet with a […]
Lots of stories in the sports pages today about Brett Favre getting the “itch” to return to football after announcing originally that he planned to retire. Around this time of the summer, I get the “itch” for the religious education year to begin! Being off (from teaching) for May and June and having a wonderful vacation in Marco Island, Florida, works wonders for restoring one’s energy. Don’t get me wrong…I still look forward to having […]
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