featured content Archives - Catechist's Journey

Pop-Up Catechesis: Responding to God’s Call

It’s nice to be invited to take the lead on an exciting project or to accept a new job offer that has come our way unexpectedly. It can also be very frightening! Such invitations always come with a fair amount of unknowns that cause us to hesitate and perhaps even doubt ourselves and our capabilities. This often happens when we sense that God is calling us to move in a new direction in our life. […]

Catechists as Mystagogues - text over watercolor background by Sergey Ryumin/Moment/Getty Images

Catechists as Mystagogues: Touching People’s Hearts

Joe Paprocki

In his research about why some things go viral on social media, author Jonah Berger discovered that one of the main reasons is that the item provokes emotion, whether good or bad. Emotions play a key role in decisions that people make in all areas of their lives. Aware of this reality, marketers often tap into emotions in their advertising. One of the reasons that our faith formation efforts are struggling is because they too […]

calendar planning - image by Olga Oginskaya from Pixabay

How a Yearly Calendar Helps Me as a Catechist

Cindy Coleman

When I start seeing back-to-school sales I know it’s time to put together my yearly calendar for planning my upcoming year as a catechist. When I first became a catechist, I just flowed through the year with no overall plan. I would read over the next lesson in my teacher guide several days before an upcoming class and then present it from the book. That was not my best effort, and I remember scrambling at […]

illustration of name tent with Maria as name and flowers and butterfly - illustration by Philomena O'Neill for Loyola Press

Calling Children by Name

Kathleen Butler

“I have called you by name, you are mine,” says the Lord. (Isaiah 43:1) This intimate connection we have with God is a gift to be celebrated. Being named Kathleen, I’ve gone through life with people automatically assuming I want to be called “Kathy” or “Kate.” I don’t want to be called something else; my name is Kathleen. When I meet my religious education students, the first thing I do is ask them their names […]