spirituality Archives - Catechist's Journey

Pop-Up Catechesis: Spirituality Is Not a Slice of the Pie

If you were to create a pie chart showing how much time you devote to your home life (including sleeping), work, exercise, socializing, and hobbies, how big of a slice would you show for spirituality? For many of us, we might be tempted to add up the time we spend in spiritual practices such as going to church, praying, reading the Bible and other inspirational literature, and perhaps visiting a spiritual director or participating in […]

Pop-Up Catechesis: Spiritual Receptivity

Joe Paprocki

Being proactive and taking the initiative are good things. In fact, the late author Stephen Covey considered proactivity as one of his 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Unfortunately, this line of thinking often creeps into our spiritual lives, fooling us into thinking that we can take the initiative and be proactive in our relationship with God, when, in truth, spirituality is all about receiving. God takes the initiative to reach out to us, and […]

Jump Start Your Spiritual Life - words on blue setting

Spiritual but not Religious? Here’s What it Means to Be Spiritual

Joe Paprocki

Many of those we minister to these days will use the description, “I’m spiritual but not religious,” to describe themselves. This typically means that they seek a relationship with God but are wary, disillusioned, or just not attracted by institutional religion or denominations. One of the problems that folks in this situation encounter, however, is that being “spiritual” can be a very nebulous notion. We can help those interested in a deeper spiritual life by […]

Spirituality of the Catechist: Online Retreat for Catechists

The Spirituality of the Catechist: Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary (Online Retreat Week 7)

Joe Paprocki

Welcome once more to our online retreat, the Spirituality of the Catechist. This week, we focus on the sixth aspect of a catechist’s spirituality: Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. If you’re just joining us, you can go back and catch up on earlier weeks at any time. If you haven’t already, share some thoughts about the retreat in the comments of any post in the series that inspires you in your vocation as a […]

The Spirituality of the Catechist: A Coherence and Authenticity of Life (Online Retreat Week 5)

Joe Paprocki

Welcome again to our online retreat, the Spirituality of the Catechist. For this week, our topic will be: A Coherence and Authenticity of Life. Before we jump into today’s post, let’s recall the last few weeks, during which we’ve looked at the openness that we catechists are called to incorporate into our spirituality: an openness to God, to the Church, and to the world. If you haven’t already, share some thoughts about the retreat in […]

The Spirituality of the Catechist: An Openness to the World (Online Retreat Week 4)

Joe Paprocki

We come to Week Four of our online retreat, the Spirituality of the Catechist. In this week, we explore the third characteristic of a catechist’s spirituality: An Openness to the World. You can join this retreat at any time, starting with today’s post or going back to catch up on earlier weeks. You might also like to return to a previous week to share some thoughts in the comments section. Your sharing makes this retreat […]

The Spirituality of the Catechist: An Openness to the Church (Online Retreat Week 3)

Joe Paprocki

Welcome once again to the Spirituality of the Catechist, our online retreat. Remember that you can join in at any time, starting with today’s post or going back to catch up on earlier weeks. In this Week Three, we look at the second characteristic of a catechist’s spirituality: An Openness to the Church. Whether you are a long-time catechist or starting for the first time this fall, your stories are inspiring as we share with […]

The Spirituality of the Catechist: An Openness to God (Online Retreat Week 2)

Joe Paprocki

Welcome back to the Spirituality of the Catechist, our online retreat. This week we’ll look at the first characteristic of our spirituality: An Openness to God. Thank you for posting your introductions last week as we began our retreat. Your stories were very inspiring, and they helped to form a sense of community among us retreatants. If you’re just joining us, you can read the overview and introductions here (Feel free to add your own!) […]

The Six Characteristics of the Spirituality of the Catechist

Julianne Stanz

This reflection is part of the Spirituality of the Catechist Online Retreat. Read the overview post here. “Catechists must have a deep spirituality.” (Guide for Catechists 6) One of my favorite Disney movies is Big Hero 6. The story centers around a computer prodigy named Hiro who forms a team of superheroes to combat an evil villain. Along the way, these tiny superheroes realize that while each of them have their own special gifts, they […]

The Spirituality of the Catechist: Overview of Our Online Retreat and Introductions

Joe Paprocki

Welcome to the Spirituality of the Catechist, an online retreat for catechists. This retreat is an opportunity for those of us involved in all aspects of faith formation to be renewed in spirit and to deepen our bonds with the Lord and with one another. There’s no need to register. There’s no fee. Retreat posts will all be here on Catechist’s Journey on Tuesdays and Thursdays this summer. Let’s start with an overview of the […]