Thursday, October 28, 2010

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A NEO CATECHIST



Friday, 22 October 2010 marks the sixth Catechism Class since I have become a trainee Catechist. A typical Friday begins with personal prayer early in the morning followed by breakfast as I will be home only by 11.30 am. The children's' Mass begins at 8.30 so I leave by 8.10 in order to be present while the children arrive. I wear a badge with a red satin ribbon that has my name on it, this gives me the authority to tell the adults that the main church is reserved strictly for kids and they have to please use the side rooms. They cannot get annoyed with me as long as I wear the badge that states that I am a PEP Volunteer. (To the layman this means that I am a Personality Enhancement Volunteer.) We are called PEP Volunteers for reasons that I shall not go into here.
Parents and children start pouring into the church and I stand where I can direct the kids to their seats and gently tell the grown ups, "I am sorry, but the whole church is reserved for the children." The grown ups are pretty grown up about this.

As the children come in I recognize a familiar face of a little boy or girl in my class who is preparing to receive Holy Communion and a glad smile of recognition lights both faces, the child's and mine.

During the Mass I keep a stern eye out in case the kids are distracted or fidgeting, or I have to find place for a latecomer. I have noticed one particular brother and sister who are always quarreling. He is such a little bully and she is such a little doll. I had to change her place the last time because he was being really mean to her. Another little girl came in with her small sibling. There was no place for the two of them together, so the older one sat in front while I found place for the little one somewhere in the middle. At regular intervals the big sister came to check with me if the little sister was ok. I assured her every time that she was. I found that most touching and amusing.

After Mass I have to go to the the school premises where the Catechism classes are held. I have to sign the register confirming my presence, I then pick up the folder with the kids names as we have to mark their attendance as well. The children play in the corridors most boisterously until the bell rings and then they go to their respective classrooms. This noisy pastime will end hopefully, as an announcement was made that running up and down the hall was not permitted. Some of the more friendly kids who come early have a chat with me and tell me what they have been up to.  I get them to help me distribute whatever study material has to be given. We do all this before class actually starts in order to save time. I hang a large sign outside the class room which indicates that the room we are in is 4C, this makes it easy for the children to know where they have to go. This is my responsibilty - I put the sign up and I take it down after class and keep it with me until the next class on Friday.

Once the bell rings all the kids settle down in their places - there is a lot of giggling and pushing and shoving ofcourse, but soon there is relative silence and the child assigned to say the prayer begins. The class commences in earnest with a review of the previous lesson. A lot of ground has to be covered considering that the class is only once a week. I walk up and down the rows of desks making sure that my 40 young charges are paying attention to the teacher and writing down the notes that are given. It is quite a job to make sure the girls are not whispering and the boys are not kicking each other or calling each other naughty names or scribbiling in their books.

The teacher who actually teaches the class is pretty good. I listen and learn. I too am required to prepare for the lesson that is being taught in class so that I know what is going on.  Another reason is that in the event the  teacher does not show up, I should be able to take the class and do a  credible job.  (I hope this does not happen anytime soon.  I still have to find my sea legs.)  Right now my children are being taught how to prepare for the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  Once we are well into the class and the kids are busy with writing I take the attendance. This too is my area of responsibility. Which is good, I hope to soon start placing names to faces.

The hour and a quarter seems to speed by and it is time for the children to leave. A closing prayer is said by the same child who prepared the opening prayer and the kids disperse. The teacher and I take a quick look around to see that nothing is left behind, we turn off the lights, wipe the board of any evidence that we were there, I remove the sign and we leave.

I thank God for His inspiration to serve Him in this way. It is a joy to be among His little ones. God has blessed me abundantly and my intention in becoming a Catechist was to gratefully give  back in some small measure for all I have received. But to my wonder and delight I have found that I continue to receive from the open hands of a generous God.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Gospel of Mark

Father F. was very disappointed with all of us because we knew what the subject of the next lecture would be, yet none of us read the Gospel of Mark. All were honest though, because when father asked if any one had read this Gospel in preparation for the lecture, all confessed to not having done so.
I was under the impression that we ought to read the commentary on the Evangelist and so went dutifully on the net and read what I could about him some hours before the lecture. As father would say, I was being clever rather than intelligent.

Mark was a disciple of St. Peter. His is the shortest of the four Gospels. He gives many details in his rendering of various incidents with regard to St. Peter as well as Jesus which indicates that St. Peter gave him this information.

According to the New Advent, Catholic Encyclopedia,

"Special attention is paid throughout to the human feelings and emotions of Christ, and to the effect produced by His miracles upon the crowd. The weaknesses of the Apostles are far more apparent than in the parallel narratives of Matt. and Luke, this being, probably due to the graphic and candid discourses of Peter, upon which tradition represents Mark as relying."

As we all know, there are 4 Evangelists, each gives his view of the Person of Jesus.

I must always remember that I make up the 5th Gospel. My life must witness to the Good News of Jesus Christ.

This Gospel was written somewhere between 60 - 70 AD. Mark wishes to reveal through his narratives that Jesus came from the Father to reveal the Kingdom of God.

There are two ways of reading the Bible, we can read it as history or as conveying a message. We must go beyond the history to the message that the Word contains. I know that father would not have been at all impressed with my reading of the commentary, as it deals with history and although that has its place, what is of paramount importance is that I discover the message. I must understand the relevance of the message for me today because the Word of God is active and alive and is relevant for me in the here and now of my daily life.

History is information whereas a message is formation.

History has terms a message contains words. We have to go beyond terms to the message.

History is a description - a message is prescription it tells us what to do.

A message is a shared experience that is expressed in words.

Above all reading the Gospels must move from meaning to meaningful. As I read the Bible a change must take place in my life.

In catechesis I must move from history to message.

Christians were being terribly persecuted in Rome during the time of Emperor Nero and Mark wanted to encourage the suffering Church. He wants not only to reveal to us the identity of Jesus - He wants us to know for a fact that Jesus was truly the Son of God. He also wants us to know what is involved in true discipleship. Despite persecution a true disciple never gives up.

The dominant themes in the Gospel of Mark are Christology and Discipleship.

Christology - Reveals Jesus as the healer, the Messiah and as the Son of God.

Chapter 8:27 gives us Peter's declaration about Jesus as the Son of God. It comes right in the centre of the Gospel of Mark.


Chapter 1:16-29 and Chapter 16:7 Jesus' call to discipleship.

Mk 1:16-20 16 As Jesus was walking along the shore of Lake Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net in the lake, for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” 18 At once, they abandoned their nets and followed him. 19 Jesus went a little farther on and saw James and John, the sons of Ze­be­dee; they were in their boat mending their nets. 20 Immediately, Jesus called them and they followed him, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men.

Mk 16:7 "Now go and tell his disciples and Peter: Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see him there just as he told you.”

How does Jesus call us - He passes by, He sees us, He calls us and then most important is our response to His call.

Discipleship is a gift. All the initiatives come from Jesus. The essence of of discipleship is following Him. It is a calling that takes precedence over everything else in our life. It is the privilege of the disciple to serve Jesus.

According to the Gospel of Mark we learn that Jesus waited until the arrest of John the Baptist to reveal His identity to the Jews and to begin His ministry. Mark 1:14 tells us that after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee and began preaching the Good News of God.

Part I of the Gospel i.e. from Chapter 1 to 8:26 deals with Jesus' Ministry of healing and preaching in Galilee. Mark 1:16-45 gives us a snapshot of typical day in the life of Jesus and shows us that He is involved in a dynamic mission. After Jesus chooses His disciples He plunges into His ministry of healing the sick and seeking and saving the sinner., healing the sick and saving.

Chapter 1:29-34
29 On leaving the synagogue, Jesus went to the home of Simon and Andrew with James and John. 30 As Si­mon’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with fever, they immediately told him about her. 31 Jesus went to her and taking her by the hand, raised her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them. 32 That eve­ning at sundown, people brought to Jesus all the sick and those who had evil spirits: 33 the whole town was pressing around the door. 34 Jesus healed many who had various diseases, and drove out many demons; but he did not let them speak, for they knew who he was.

Jesus went to where the people were (1) in the synagogue, (2) to the familes, (3) the whole town. He revealed His identity through His activity and His healing ministry.

We are called to active discipleship not to be passive followers. We must catechise everyday and everywhere.

In the Gospel of Mark we are told of two miracles with regard to the multiplication of bread.

The first miracle is mentioned in Mark 6:30-43 and takes place in Galilee which is Jewish territory where He reveals His identity to His own people. Here were are told that Jesus multiplied five loaves and two fish.

The second miracle mentioned in Mark 8:1-10 tales place in Gentile territory where the pagans have not yet experienced Jesus but are beginning to know Christ. It is a reminder that Jesus came to save peope of all nations. In this miracle we are told that Jesus multiplied 7 loaves. Seven represents a whole number in Scripture.

Throughout his Gospel Mark emphasises the identity of Jesus as Son of God beginning with the opening statement of the Evangelist himself.

Following are verses in different chapters of the Gospel revealing that Jesus is the Son of God.

Chapter 1:1
1This is the beginning of the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. - Mark

Chapter 1:11
11 And these words were heard from heaven, “You are my Son, the Be­­loved, the One I have chosen.” - God the Father

Chapter 1:24
24 and he shouted, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are: You are the Holy One of God.” - Satan

Chapter 5: 7
7 and cried with a loud voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, son of the Most High God? For God’s sake I beg you, do not torment me.” - Satan and the evil spirits

Chapter 9:7
7 But a cloud formed, covering them in a sha­dow, and from the cloud came this word, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him.” - God the Father

Chapter 12:6
6 One was still left, his beloved son. And so, last of all, he sent him to the tenants, for he said: ‘They will respect my son.’ - Parable told by Jesus

Chapter 14:61-62
61But Jesus was silent and made no reply. The High Priest put a second question to him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” 62 Then Jesus answered, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Most Powerful and coming with the clouds of heaven around him.” - Jesus before the Sanhedrin

Chapter 15:39
39 The captain who was standing in front of him saw how Jesus died and heard the cry he gave; and he said, “Truly, this man was the Son of God.”

Son of God is the theological dimension of who Jesus is.


Verse 15 contains both description and prescription.

The description is “The time has come; the kingdom of God is at hand.
And the prescription is - Repent and believe the Good News.”


Part II begins with Peter's declaration that Jesus is the Son of God in Chapter 8:27.

Mk 8:27 to 10:52 tells us of Jesus' journey from Galilee to Jerusalem followed by Chapters

The Gospel ends with the empty tomb Chapter 16:1-8 (9-20).

The elements of the message in this chapter are:

Jesus' victory over death.

Reconciliation with the disciples who  had denied and deserted him. 

The disciples return to Galilee the place of their call to continue the mission of Jesus to teach and heal.




Discipleship - Jesus calls His disciples to follow Him and He trains and instructs them by example.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Person of A Catechist

Most Saturdays we will be attending the Intermediate Catechist Course which commenced on 09 October 2010 and will end on 19th February 2011.


Father Franco is the Spiritual Director for Catechists and will be taking most of the classes. He is a young, dynamic Salesian and an inspiration to us all. He has a good-natured, bonhomie style but can still manage to make us feel like 6 year olds when, as he puts it, we have been merely clever rather than intelligent. Clever is not what we should aspire to be, in case you were wondering, rather we must aim to be intelligent.


He does not make heavy weather of the material he has to teach but is still able to give us a wealth of information. Speaking of a wealth of information here is the recommended for serious catechists.

The sheer amount of material that is available to the serious student can be overwhelming. However as we all know every journey begins with the taking the first step.

Just to give you an idea of what I am talking about here is some of the recommended reading all of which is available online. I am sure it will take several life times to read it all but we can make a start.


1) GENERAL DIRECTORY FOR CATECHESIS


2) GUIDE FOR CATECHISTS


3) CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

4) CATECHESIS IN OUR TIME

5) Lumen Gentium - Chapter IV on the Laity

6) TO THE EPISCOPATE, TO THE CLERGY AND TO ALL THE FAITHFUL OF THE ENTIRE WORLD Evangelii Nuntiandi

7) REDEMPTORI MISSIO - On the permanent validity of the Church's missionary Mandate John Paul II

8) CODE OF CANON LAW

Synopsis of father's instruction so far.

Who are catechists?
Through Baptism all are catechists.

- Bishops are the heralds of the faith and are the primary catechists.
- Priests through Holy Orders are catechists and educators in the faith.
- Religious sisters : Christian education of the faithful is their primary duty.
- Laity:
a) Parents are the most important catechists.           
b) Catechists fall under further categories:

    i) Religion teachers - Those who work in Catholic  
                                      schools and teach religion.
   ii) Sunday Catechists - They teach once a week  on a 
                                       voluntary basis. 
                                      (Training is given once a year.)
        &                    
       Lay Catechists: Paid by the Church. 

  iii) Missionaries who go to mission lands.

Catechesis is the process of handing over the faith. We re-echo the faith.  Faith is the Person of Jesus Christ, the Word of God is God Himself.  It is a sharing of our own faith experience.  We are called to be witnesses. We start with human experience - an illustration. Move to the Word of God and explain it and finally we explain how the Word can be applied to daily living.

The Catechist has six tasks:

1) Knowledge of the faith
2) Liturgical
3) Moral formation (Moral life)
4) Teaching to pray
5) Education for community life
6) Missionary Dimension

Things to remember. Catechesis is not a job and so the catechist must cultivate the following daily habits. Personal prayer, personal reflection on Scripture, Spiritual reading. A catechist must be like like Jesus - Jesus used His Heart (internal) and He used His head, hands and habits (external).

For the catechist the heart is the most important.


A catechist must have good Catholic habits.
We must remember that we are Christ and the class is holy ground.
We must develop an intimacy with Christ.
A Catechist must also remember that he is always under the umbrella of the Church - Pope, Bishop and Priests.
A Catechist must be familiar with Church documents. Faithful to the Church's teachings, Sacraments and Mary.


We had an interesting work shop where we were divided into groups and had to make a list of requirements for catechetical ministry.  Each group had to come up with four words only with regard to:


a) Material objects
b) Places
c) Moments
d) Activities
e) Persons
f) Institutions
h) Abstract terms.


We had to then check it out with the other groups and add to our list what was  not mentioned in it. 

Last but not least we had a break in between for refreshments.  Snacks were served from Ceasar's along with tea or coffee.






For Home work we were given a sheet of paper titled, 'YOUR PLAN TO BRING OTHERS TO CHRIST'.  It had points to remember and points to complete which are mentioned below:


1) BE HOLY - Constantly seek to think, judge, act and hope like Jesus in Your own life.  (Excellent advice).


2)  LOOK AROUND YOU - Who needs to know about Jesus?  Is there anyone in your family?  Anyone in your neighbourhood? Anyone who is your friend?  Anyone at work?  Write their names on the lines below.


3)  PRAYING FOR PEOPLE - Pray for those you have listed.  pray that the Holy Spirit will help  you talk about Jesus.  Pray that the Holy Spirit will help the people on the list.  Write your prayer.


4)  BE A FRIEND - Be a friend to the people on your list.  Be nice to them.


5)  INVITATION - When the time right time comes, ask the person if you can tell them about Jesus and how He forgives our sins so we can be children of God.  Invite them to follow Jesus.  invite them to pray with you.  Invite them to go to Mass with you.  Invite them to help someone else.  Invite them to read the Bible or other books about God.  invite them to your religion class.  What other ways could you invite them to know more about Jesus?


6)  KEEP BEING A FRIEND - Keep being a friend.  Always pray for them.
 The second class will be on 16th October 2010 and taken by father F. again and the lecture will be on the Gospel of Mark.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

My Mission Statement as a Catechist

My mission as a catechist is to make Christ known and loved, not as a historical figure or someone we just speak of with reverential awe, but as a personal Lord and Savor.  A God who walks among us and makes His home in us today.

I want Jesus to come alive as we meet Him in the Gospels as we speak of all that He said and did, to understand that He continues to meet and speak to us in our daily lives.

This knowledge must impact our lives in such a way that it stirs in us a response to be like Him and thus fulfil His desire that we strive to be holy and perfect as the Father is holy and perfect.

My mission is that those I catechise will in turn go out into the world and preach the Good News by the witness of their daily lives according to their vocation.

All in perfect harmony with the teachings of Holy Mother Church.