Catechesis - What Is It?
Many parents come into my office and want to sign their children up for Catechism classes. Normally, what they're really asking for is 'Sacramental Preparation' not Catechesis. Is there a difference? Actually there is a very big difference.
Sacramental Preparation is the one or two-year course that teaches the basics of our faith and the Sacraments. It prepares the children to receive the Sacraments of Reconciliation, Communion, and Confirmation. Typically that is the end of their religious education, which is really a serious mistake that is repeated generation after generation. Sometimes when I speak to parents, they say that they know very little about their faith, the Bible, even their Church. They say something like, "I haven't taken any classes since I was a child preparing for the Sacraments." This is where Catechesis comes in. Catechesis is not just for children but should be a lifelong, on-going process for every baptized teen and adult Catholic. As the General Directory for Catechesis words it, "The definitive aim of catechesis is to put people not only in touch, but also in communion and intimacy, with Jesus Christ. Starting with the initial conversion of a person to the Lord, catechesis seeks to solidify and mature this first adherence. It proposes to help [one] to know better this Jesus to whom [they] has entrusted [them] self: to know his mystery, the Kingdom of God proclaimed by him, the requirements and commitments contained in his Gospel message, and the paths that he has laid down for anyone who wishes to follow him."
Some examples of the tasks of catechesis are:
Your fellow servant in the Lord,
Deacon Jim Mickens
Director of Faith Formation
Sacramental Preparation is the one or two-year course that teaches the basics of our faith and the Sacraments. It prepares the children to receive the Sacraments of Reconciliation, Communion, and Confirmation. Typically that is the end of their religious education, which is really a serious mistake that is repeated generation after generation. Sometimes when I speak to parents, they say that they know very little about their faith, the Bible, even their Church. They say something like, "I haven't taken any classes since I was a child preparing for the Sacraments." This is where Catechesis comes in. Catechesis is not just for children but should be a lifelong, on-going process for every baptized teen and adult Catholic. As the General Directory for Catechesis words it, "The definitive aim of catechesis is to put people not only in touch, but also in communion and intimacy, with Jesus Christ. Starting with the initial conversion of a person to the Lord, catechesis seeks to solidify and mature this first adherence. It proposes to help [one] to know better this Jesus to whom [they] has entrusted [them] self: to know his mystery, the Kingdom of God proclaimed by him, the requirements and commitments contained in his Gospel message, and the paths that he has laid down for anyone who wishes to follow him."
Some examples of the tasks of catechesis are:
- To promoting a deeper, personal knowledge of the faith;
- A deeper, more mature, liturgical education.
- A deeper understanding of Jesus' moral teachings which brings about interior transformation.
- A better understanding of prayer and its vital place in a Christian?s life.
- To prepare the Christian to live more fully in community and to actively participate in the life and mission of the Church.
Your fellow servant in the Lord,
Deacon Jim Mickens
Director of Faith Formation