Teaching and learning the faith together
“Let’s make this the summer of falling in love with Jesus, again!”
In this presentation, videotaped at St. Elizabeth of Hungary Parish in Melville, NY, I give a short lesson on grace and sacramental confession (comedy alert!), and then I go over some fun, practical tips and tools for teaching well. Lots to ponder over the summer.
My workshop is featured in four “sequences” of approximately 15 minutes each.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Have a blessed summer!
Each year I send out evaluations to both my catechists and parents to get their feedback about the catechetical year. I praise God for the many blessings from the year: how God worked in families, the creativity of catechists and their desire to share Christ with their students are just a few blessings. Christ desires to draw us closer to Himself and I am grateful for the opportunity to reflect on the many gifts and blessings (seen and unseen) that occurred this year.
Reflecting and evaluating upon what can be improved in the future is also important. The landscape of Religious Education is rapidly changing in many respects and if we don’t consider what we need to do to continually help our families and students grow in a way where they will come to know the Gospel more fully in order that their lives can be transformed. Reaching out to parents and children who are over-scheduled, consumed with noise and distractions can contribute to their ability to seek and find God in their daily lives.
1) How can catechists be trained so that they can seize the opportunities they have to draw students out of their busy world and give them the one thing that satisfies – Jesus Christ? What things are we doing that contribute to children and parents encountering Jesus?
2) Are the resources we are providing catechists (and parents) helping them to pass on the faith and engage kids?
3) What tools and resources can be provided so as to help engage children more fully.
4) How can we involve parents more and help them be the primary educators of their children’s faith? We don’t want to be a program where parents essentially “outsource” faith formation to us (the parish). We want to be a bridge and collaborate with them in order that they may be more empowered to pass on the faith to their children.
What have you been reflecting at the end of your religious education year?
Volunteer catechists are amazing people.
I love them. In fact, I often refer to them affectionately as “my people” because they understand the importance of the challenging work they do, even when it’s hard to see the fruits of their efforts. They’re gutsy, generous people.
When speaking to this particular population, it’s critical for catechetical trainers to communicate–not just thou-shalts and shalt-nots–but a life-changing message they can grasp and envision for themselves in a personal way, a message that impacts not just their teaching but their whole lives.
If it is your happy task to train your parish or dioceses’ catechists, there are five components I consider essential to ensuring that your sessions will be both engaging and motivational.
1. Personal Witness
People like to know a little about you as a person when you stand up in front of them. They tend to open their hearts 
to you if you are willing to risk it yourself and honor them with some personal testimony. Ask yourself a few questions as you prepare: Why is the Catholic faith the center of my life? Am I a convert? A revert? A contented “cradle Catholic” whose life is proof of the richness of our faith? Has my faith helped me withstand great suffering, given meaning to my life, healed the wounds of my past? Share very briefly about the importance of your faith in making your life holy, happy, and purposeful.
2. Lay a Spiritual and Intellectual Foundation
Emphasize the supernatural partnership that is essential to fruitful catechesis. We need a well-informed, prayerful approach if we want our ministry to bear fruit for eternity. Inspire your listeners to seek a greater knowledge of God and a more intimate relationship with the Blessed Trinity by sharing excerpts from Scripture, the Catechism, and the lives of the saints, challenging your team to work with God the way he works with them: via baby steps. Since God draws us closer to him over time, incrementally calling us to deeper conversion in various areas of our lives, we can manage our commitment to growing in faith and love of God by taking a gentle, gradual approach. Any effort we make to move in God’s direction will produce substantial rewards. A bit of prayer time each morning (especially if it involves the Rosary or Sacred Scripture), prayerful CDs in the car, a short reading each evening from a good Catholic book, and a faithful commitment to Mass on Sunday and monthly confessions will add up over time and bring an abundance of graces.
3. Catechizing Attendees
In small, memorable doses, it’s possible to slip in quite a bit of catechesis while you’re sharing the how-to’s of teaching. For example, if I’m sharing tips or lesson plan ideas around the topic of Reconciliation, what better time to address the power of this intimate encounter with the Divine Physician to refresh and strengthen our souls, as it compliments and completes the healing power of the Holy Eucharist. As examples of great classroom content, stirring stories of the martyrs and video clips about Eucharistic miracles or Marian apparitions can inspire a thirst for more knowledge and elicit stimulating questions and comments. While you are encouraging volunteers to share exciting examples of the transformational power of our Catholic faith, you are immersing them in beautiful and intriguing material that thrills their souls and imaginations, inspiring them to take a bolder approach with their students.
4. Provide Practical Tips and Resources
Catechists get precious little training because of time and financial limitations within the parish and in their own lives, so make sure you pack your workshops with tips on areas of particular interest to your volunteer staff: suggestions for improving classroom discipline, understanding developmental issues and learning styles, ways to use music and movement to vary the lessons and bring joy to the learning process, free resources for downloading beautiful works of religious art or inspiring video lessons (see callout). Ideas for explaining tough concepts like the Trinity or Redemption, activities designed to embody abstract ideas like contrition or absolution, memory games, assessment techniques, and encouraging stories of lives changed through the work of dedicated catechists can all motivate your team to bring more passion to their teaching efforts.
5. Finally…
Make sure you close your time together with a few words of encouragement from scripture. For example, the Second Letter to Timothy is packed with rousing calls to faithful witness.
And when your workshop is finished, place it all in God’s hands. Take joy in your mistakes and omissions; they are reminders that, through our humility, God’s power conquers all.
Callout:
My catechetical booklets and other great reads for catechists and DREs
Free audio resources including Bible studies
Free “open access” images of fine art
(This article was originally published in the November 2014 issue of RTJs Creative Catechist magazine)
No matter what my job title or career choice, I have always considered myself an educator. In all things I strive to reach out and teach by word or deed. The material or topic is almost irrelevant as is the age of the person.
This book of meditations, 99 Way to Teach like the Master by T.J. Burdick lends itself to all of us who teach. And by all of us who teach, I literally mean all of us! Whether you are a preschool teacher or a college professor, just starting out or an old hand, one child at your kitchen table or enough to fill a bus, there is something to be gleaned from reading the scripture and reflections T.J. has put together.
Used with permission, from T.J.Burdick
There are five chapters with reflections in them, each beginning with a brief introduction. I don’t think it is necessary to read the book from front to back, you could pick and choose which reflection to read based on the title which you find intriguing, such as “Humility”, “Mercy” “Knowing it All” or “Keeping Healthy”. My favorite reflection is “Understanding God’s Report Card”.
Each reflection begins with a scripture quote, then an explanation as to how the passage relates to a facet of education, and closes with how to apply the teaching in a practical way, either with an action or prayer. The reflection takes just a few minutes to read and then you can think about it as you go through your day, helping to form the minds you are teaching
The book is available as an E-book and paperback. Both are available from En Route Books and Media. The E-book is on sale for $3.99 until February 9, 2015.