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January 9, 2006
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Greetings and welcome
to Faith Formation Update,
a free monthly e-newsletter for catechetical leaders with a focus
on parish catechesis beyond textbooks and classrooms. I'm Judith
Dunlap. In each issue I offer a brief starter
and my "Every Family" column.
My co-worker and fellow religious educator Joan
McKamey offers video resources and ideas in her "Seen
and Heard" column. Our co-worker Chuck Blankenship
suggests other faith formation resources for adults from St. Anthony Messenger Press in his column, "Sowing Sampler." Finally, we encourage YOU to share views and
program ideas about this month's topic on our online bulletin
board, "Faith Formation Forum."
Blessings on your work! —Judith
Dunlap p.s. You're receiving
this either because you signed up, or because you're a loyal customer
of St. Anthony Messenger Press. We will never send you unwanted
e-mail. There is an unsubscribe link at the bottom of this page.
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Today’s parish catechetical leaders respond to varied titles, and function in diverse roles. They know the importance of adult faith formation and take to heart the bishops’ document entitled Were Not Our Hearts Burning. Yet, many parish catechetical leaders are so busy running formal religious education and sacramental programs for children that they find little time (and energy) to spend on adults.
One way to help this situation is to appreciate the adult formation that is already happening in the parish. Sacramental preparation for parents and preparation sessions for liturgical ministers and catechists are opportunities for adult faith formation. Make sure that along with the practical information that is needed you (or a speaker you bring in) give some theological background on the topic.
Be respectful of the way adults learn and grow in their faith: Allow time for questions and discussion, provide a process that encourages fellowship, and send home materials to be used at home. Respect different learning styles and needs of participants. Treat adult like adults, respecting their experiences and actively involving them in the learning process.
Another possible faith-formation vehicle is the parish Web site. It is not only a great way to communicate with adults, but also an excellent tool for at-home catechesis. Your parish Web site can offer links to Catholic materials and information, including Minute Meditations and Saint of the Day.
In October, St. Anthony Messenger Press celebrated its 10th anniversary of providing online material to Catholics around the world. John Feister, the head of our Electronic Media department, made the following comments:
One of the features of Web Catholic, our e-newsletter for parish webmasters, is a “Parish Site of the Month.” Other links, which vary from month to month, include CatholicGreetings.org, PledgePeace.org, CatholicMovieReviews.org and OnceCatholic.org, a site for non-practicing Catholics
Your parish is invited to improve your Web ministry with this free monthly e-newsletter exploring how Catholics use the Internet. Webmasters and communications professionals can keep up with what’s new on the Web for Catholics and learn from their colleagues’ featured sites. (Click here to see the current issue of Web Catholic.)
If your parish does not already provide a parish Web site ministry, ask for volunteers willing to work on putting one together. Also, make sure you find volunteers willing to monitor it for the first year. Parish Web sites are a great ministry for the young adults in your parish.
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Family catechesis, when done correctly, is not just for children. It is different from homeschooling where parents teach their children about religion. In family catechesis, all family members, adults as well as children, work, learn and pray together. They share their faith with each other—and often with other families.
According to a paper presented to the Association for the Sociology of Religion (August 2002), family is the core focus of identity for Catholics. “We conclude that for most Catholics, Catholic identity is associated with family commitments and that probably family commitments have more impact on Catholic commitments than vice versa….”
Those of us in parish catechesis have known for a long time that parents will “do” for their kids what they won’t “do” for themselves. The good thing about this reality is that when family catechesis is done correctly, adults usually end up learning as much as, if not more than, their children.
With its primary focus on adult faith formation, St. Anthony Messenger Press realizes that family catechesis is also about adult learning and growth in faith. We are always looking for practical materials for family faith formation. Recognizing that young and old learn about their faith through both experience and instruction, I would like to suggest two resources.
We recently published Mary Cronk Farrell’s book Celebrating Faith: Year-Round Activities for Catholic Families. The book offers ideas to help families experience their Catholic faith. (Click here for a look at the Table of Contents.) Soon to be published (March 2006) is a book by Jim Merhaut, Your Catholic Family: Simple Ways to Share the Faith at Home, which offers families dozens of ways to learn more about their faith. (Click here for a look at the topics covered in Merhaut’s book.)
It’s a new year, so when you have a minute, check out these resources as well as the God Is Calling series published by SAMP and family resources available from other publishers. Find something new to introduce to your parish families this year.
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I don’t know who coined the term “lifelong learner,” but I loved it as soon as I heard it years ago. It’s what I expect myself to always be—growing. It fits with what I believe God dreams for each of us as well.
My 11-year-old daughter ensures my lifelong learning. She frequently asks me, “Did you know…?” questions—sometimes about things I actually do know, more often of late about things I didn’t know. She loves to learn and then share what she has learned. She picks up information from the news, public television shows and, of course, her school lessons. She clearly realizes that I don’t know it all and that I am continually learning—from her, for my work and about my faith. I hope she’ll keep this love of learning in all areas of her life. I especially hope that she will always seek out ways to grow in her knowledge and love of our Lord.
In my article last month, one of the resources I recommended is available on AmericanCatholic.org, the Web site for St. Anthony Messenger Press. As I set out to address the topic of Catholic faith formation in this month’s article, AmericanCatholic.org immediately comes to mind. Now in its 10th year, this award-winning Web site is so much more than an online catalog. It was conceived as an evangelization tool and continues to offer an amazing abundance of reliable resources about Catholicism for Catholics, all Christians and seekers.
From Catholic news to a daily Catholic question (with answer), from Saint of the Day to Minute Meditations, from prayer requests to Catholic movie reviews, the AmericanCatholic.org homepage will help you get there. Employ the help of St. Anthony, patron of the search engine, to find articles from our magazine St. Anthony Messenger or our newsletters Catholic Update, Every Day Catholic, Eucharist: Jesus With Us, Scripture From Scratch, Vatican 2 Today and Youth Update. Send an e-greeting. Learn about a saint. Sign up for a free e-newsletter. Make a pledge for peace. Or finally, search for a product on our online catalog.
I have to confess that I don’t visit this Web site often enough myself. With all the great reading and listening material that is generated by St. Anthony Messenger Press, it’s difficult to regularly keep up with everything that our company produces. But when I encounter a question of my own or someone stumps me with a question at RCIA on a Thursday evening, you can bet that AmericanCatholic.org is one of the first, if not the first, places I’ll look for an answer or resource. I recommend this site regularly as a treasure trove of reliable material about the Catholic faith. I encourage you to use it as a resource in your own ministry and to share this address with fellow ministers, catechists and your parishioners. Keep on learning!
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During the month of January we’re given an opportunity to reflect on the gift of Catholic education in the life of our parish. The key thing that we become aware of is that Catholic education is all about “handing on the faith” that we have received. Two little books by our own Judith Dunlap provide encouragement for those who minister in our parishes to help in the task of handing on the faith: our catechists and our Catholic school teachers.
When You Are a Catechist talks about the catechist’s call to serve the community of faith with his or her gift of prayer and ritual, gift of community and gift of self. She offers an excellent discussion of just what it means to be forming children, teens and adults in the faith, with valuable references to the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the General Directory for Catechesis.
When You Teach in a Catholic School offers inspiration and practical tips to help teachers become more aware of how they participate in the important sharing of their faith as they work in the classroom environment. “As a teacher in a Catholic school,” Dunlap writes, “you are asked to help young people deepen their faith by helping them live and experience the gospel message.” More than just teaching math or science or language arts, the Catholic school teacher exemplifies how we live out our faith in our day-to-day dealings with one another, handing on the faith through our example.
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Share your ideas on adult faith formation at our online bulletin board. Our editors will screen and post your thoughts, and you can learn from others' ideas. Submit your ideas by clicking here. |
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