Mass Archives - Page 9 of 9 - Catechist's Journey

Q & A from Yesterday’s Webinar

A number of people sent in some excellent questions during our Webinar last night. Here’s a sampling along with my responses. You’re most welcome to chime in on the discussion. _______________________________________________________________ ‑Steven Q: What are the biggest differences between teaching religion in a five day school and as a catechist once a week. For the first time in almost 30 years I am doing both at the same time. A: Steven, the most obvious of […]

We Have Our Work Cut Out for Us

Joe Paprocki

This is nothing that we didn’t already know, but a new 2010 survey (8000 respondents) compiled for the strategic planning process of the Archdiocese of Chicago identifies some key challenges that we face in the areas of evangelization and catechesis. Here are just a few findings (a complete summary is forthcoming)… Most Catholics who leave the faith do so by age 24. Further, in our survey, the one factor that correlated by far the most […]

This is the Day the Lord Has Made…

Joe Paprocki

You may recall from some of my previous posts, that this year, I began each religious education class by inviting the 8th graders to stand and respond “Let us rejoice and be glad!” to my invocation of “This is the day the Lord has made.” This became a very joyful part of our class and the kids routinely responded with great enthusiasm and vigor. Lo and behold, at our end-of-the-year Mass on Monday evening, the […]

Helping Kids Write General Intercessions

Joe Paprocki

From time to time, we invite kids to compose General Intercessions for a Mass or prayer service. Here’s a little something that can help get the wheels turning so that their intercessions are coming from their deepest desires. We’ll be using this in our upcoming Confirmation Intensive this Monday evening to have the kids compose General Intercessions for the Confirmation Mass. The activity begins by asking the kids to imagine that they have been granted 3 wishes […]