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May 7, 2004
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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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At the end of this month we celebrate Pentecost, the unofficial feast day of the Holy
Spirit. Remember what
happened on that first Pentecost in that upper room?
The people who knew Jesus best—his disciples—were gathered together. They had been meeting
daily since his death, praying together and supporting each other. After the Spirit came
they were on fire with love. The faith they had shared only with each other could no
longer be contained in that upper room. Through the shared gift of the Spirit the disciples
were empowered to claim their faith in profound new ways that took
them beyond their small circle.
Claiming ownership can be empowering. By saying "This is mine," a person expresses a sense of
right and entitlement. Ownership adds to our understanding of ourselves and of
our sphere of influence. But with ownership comes responsibility. We are
responsible for taking care of what is ours.
So, who owns the catechetical programs in your parish? I know that for years I thought the
programs I organized were mine. I always seemed to be asking parents and other
adults to help me with one or another of my programs. Then one day I stepped
back and realized this was not a healthy situation. I had things backwards. The
programs I initiated were not mine; they were the parish's. And the adults in
the parish weren't there to help me; I was there to help them.
For years, Catholics expected Father or Sister to do it all. After Vatican II, we took
great care to empower the laity. Laymen and laywomen took up various positions
on parish staffs, but in many parishes the old mentality remained. Catholics in
the pew still wanted to be taken care of. Along with Sister and Father they
sometimes expected the lay people on staff to provide for them and take care of
them. We did and some times still do, but ownership should be shared.
As the parish catechetical leader I am educated in theology and catechetical
process. I have studied various approaches to religious education and faith formation. Because
of my expertise I can put together effective faith formation programs for all
age groups. I can make sure the right resources and best personnel are
available. But the programs I put together belong to the people in the parish,
and if I do not allow them to claim them and own them I am doing them a
disservice. (Click
here to read a section of Practical Catechesis
about determining ownership.)
Just as a doctor cannot force a patient to follow his/her advice, take prescribed
medicine or follow suggested therapy, catechetical professionals cannot push, shove
or drag people into a deeper faith. What we can do is provide the best we have to offer
in evangelization and catechesis and help the people in our parishes own the
process. Hopefully (with the help of the Holy Spirit) that ownership will lead
to a sense of empowerment, and they will begin to tell us what they want and
need. They may even begin to evangelize and catechize.
I believe that is the way it is meant to be. When adults begin to take responsibility for the
programs and processes that help faith grow, they begin to experience their own
faith in a new way. Their faith grows and, like the early disciples, they are
empowered to share that faith even outside their own circles.
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Plan a Family Spirit Day this month. Talk about the different
ways we can describe the Holy Spirit: wind, fire, breath. Have each family make a collage using
the symbols (cut from magazines or drawn) or choose an activity to go along with
the symbols: construct and fly kites; make or personalize candles to take home;
read the Scripture account in Genesis where God breathes life into Adam (2-7).
Finally, use the activity from the God Is Calling family
series to have
family members talk about how the Holy Spirit works in their own lives.
The God Is Calling family catechetical series has three sets of storybooks: Yahweh
Calls, Jesus Lives and Spirit Alive. The Spirit stories are
taken from the Acts of the Apostles and the epistles as well as accounts of
saints and modern day heroes and heroines. In the last set of books we talk
about the Spirit of belonging that calls us to prayer and action and empowers
us to forgive. The opening pages of the Spirit With Us: Together Time activity book offer grown-ups and children a chance to look at how the Holy
Spirit has worked in their own lives. (Click
here to view activity pages.)
Make enough copies of the activity so each person can complete it. After
family members have shared with each other ask them to partner with another
family to show them their family work page. Before you leave, use the
"Petitions to the Spirit" in a closing ritual.
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It's always interesting to find out whose feet our pastor
will wash at the Mass of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday. This year it was high school
youth who have been involved in service activities as they prepare to be confirmed. One
year it was members of our parish leadership. Most touching was the time he called forward
those who serve as caregivers for family members.
Much of our effort as catechetical leaders involves the sharing of
what one needs to know as a Catholic. I will not dispute the importance of this. But
I am certain you will agree that living that faith, putting that faith into action, is
also vital. Jesus demonstrated that so well in the way he ministered to others, giving
us a striking example of service as he washed the feet of his apostles at the Last Supper.
As the school year nears its close, many of you can anticipate a
slowing of the hectic pace of children's programming. The summer months ahead are a great
time to prepare the fall schedule. It's also an important time to consider ways your
programming—for children through adults—is helping them apply their faith to the
situations and challenges they encounter in life.
I remember when our daughter was five. Amid all the demands of work,
parenting, homemaking, etc., I would have welcomed a compelling opportunity to fit in
something for my personal growth. I recall commenting to a friend that if my parish offered
an adult faith formation opportunity on parenting or, more specifically, parenting a
spirited five-year-old, I would make the time to participate. Instead, I believe the
topic was the apparitions of Mary.
Our faith formation offerings need to be relevant to the lived experience
of people. The U.S. Bishops' pastoral plan for adult faith formation, “Our Hearts
Were Burning Within Us,” tells us: “Effective adult faith formation efforts
join faith and life. They help people in practical ways to live their daily lives by
the light and power of the Gospel (#76).” Later it says that we must “start
by listening to adults and let the stories of their lives and the hungers of their hearts
inspire pastoral care and inform catechetical programming (#80).”
There are many people in our communities whose life stories include
the challenges of chronic illness, aging, terminal disease, death and grief. These situations
raise questions of faith for them, their loved ones and those who minister to them. And
they clearly can be empowered by the caring support and acknowledgment of the faith community.
Consider adding some adult faith formation offerings for these populations. A great four-segment
video resource (story, witness, teaching, music video) for caregiver support, sharing
and enrichment is Caring
With Faith: Suffering With a Loved One. Click here to see a
video clip from the witness segment of this program (RealMedia
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Media). Click
here to see a video clip from its teaching segment (RealMedia
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Media).
Other videos about Empowering Others (click on the video title link for more information): • Caring With Faith series (four segments: story, witness,
teaching, music video; adults).
• Training Bereavement Ministers series (four segments: story, witness,
teaching, music video; adults).
• Pastoral
Care hosted by Gaynell Bordes Cronin (six-video set;
individual tapes also available).
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Helping people in your parish become more aware of the
impact their particular ministry has on the parish community can be the first
step toward helping them be more effective in that ministry. The
Ministry and Mission of Sung Prayer
by David Haas, Ministers
of the Lord's Presence by Carol Luebering and Called
to Preside by Theresa Cotter are three
helpful books especially for those who serve the parish in liturgical
ministries. Each book is aimed at opening volunteer liturgical ministers to the purpose
and spirituality of their particular ministry, helping them see that they're not just fulfilling
a function in the liturgy but rather modeling a particular value that the
gathered assembly holds dear: embodying the values of prayerfulness, hospitality and the
expression of praise by means of the embodied art of music. Every once in a while it is good
for those involved in liturgical ministry from week-to-week to spend a little time remembering
not just
"how" to minister but "why" to minister. Haas, Luebering, Cotter and can help them become more aware
of the impact
—and mission—of what can sometimes feel like a routine ministry.
The "Handing on the Faith" series of booklets
from St. Anthony Messenger Press also offers encouragement and challenge for
those who impact the lives of other believers in their roles as catechist,
sponsor, godparent or parent. Your
Child's Baptism and When
You Are a Godparent
help parents and godparents be more aware of
their role in the faith life of their children. Your
Child's First Communion, Your
Child's First Penance and Your
Child's Confirmation further help parents
be aware of their child's growth in the sacramental life. For Confirmation sponsors, When
You Are a Confirmation Sponsor shows how to be more than just a
ceremonial figure in the young person's life. And for those serving as RCIA sponsors, When
You Are an RCIA Sponsor
is an invaluable guide. Each of these booklets is small enough not
to be intimidating, but each is full of practical and useful advice for those
who want to take seriously the mandate to hand on their faith to the next
generation of believers.
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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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