Awana

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Resurrecting a dead thread, but I thought I would chime in…

My girlfriend who is non-denominational helps out at Awana every week with the K-3 and I have gone a couple of times to see what is up and help out a bit. It is a very enjoyable experience. I did feel uncomfortable when one leader was asking if any 5 or 6 year-olds want to be “saved” tonight…

In the times that I went, I never picked up a sola scriptura message. The main message is that Jesus loves you…

One of my girlfriend’s gripes with the Catholic Church is each parishes’ large size and the lack of community outside of Sunday Mass, and I have to agree with her 100%. Her church has about a 100 or so people and I have felt more welcomed in their church than I have ever felt in any Catholic Church.

There is absolutely no reason why their isn’t a Catholic version of Awana all over the country. It’s absurd. I’m not going to condemn Awana because they are at least reaching out to neighborhood children and spreading the message of God in a very enjoyable and accessible way, which is more than I could say of any Catholic Church that I know of in the city that I live.

The Catholic Church can theologically run circles around Protestant beliefs, but in my experience, the Protestants make the Catholic Church look like we are still using a horse and buggy while they are driving a Porsche, in terms of “marketing” and spreading the Word…
 
stogs said:
Resurrecting a dead thread, but I thought I would chime in…

My girlfriend who is non-denominational helps out at Awana every week with the K-3 and I have gone a couple of times to see what is up and help out a bit. It is a very enjoyable experience. I did feel uncomfortable when one leader was asking if any 5 or 6 year-olds want to be “saved” tonight…

In the times that I went, I never picked up a sola scriptura message. The main message is that Jesus loves you…

One of my girlfriend’s gripes with the Catholic Church is each parishes’ large size and the lack of community outside of Sunday Mass, and I have to agree with her 100%. Her church has about a 100 or so people and I have felt more welcomed in their church than I have ever felt in any Catholic Church.

There is absolutely no reason why their isn’t a Catholic version of Awana all over the country. It’s absurd. I’m not going to condemn Awana because they are at least reaching out to neighborhood children and spreading the message of God in a very enjoyable and accessible way, which is more than I could say of any Catholic Church that I know of in the city that I live.

The Catholic Church can theologically run circles around Protestant beliefs, but in my experience, the Protestants make the Catholic Church look like we are still using a horse and buggy while they are driving a Porsche, in terms of “marketing” and spreading the Word…
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You need to go back and check out this link left by Just5Kids.awana.org/international/default.aspx?id=672
But you are right there should be no reason why Catholics don’t have many of the same tyoe programs but Catholic in nature that Protistant churchs have. Being raised a Baptist, and now trying to be a Parish Religious Education Coordinator in a struggling Parish, I share the idea of different programs all the time. The hurdle I come across most often is getting people to volunteer. So many and this is not just a “Catholic” problem, but an “American” problem. It seems so many of us have our lives too busy with other things then Church related activities. If we want these things we have to keep pushing the ideas, pray alot, give our own time.
 
Awana is a great help to families and Children. It gets the kids into the Bible to learn what God says. It will be one of the best things that you could ever do for your children. Let them keep attending it. It will only help. Maybe you could learn what the Bible has to say as well. It couldn’t hurt. 👍
 
DLC said:
Awana is a great help to families and Children. It gets the kids into the Bible to learn what God says. It will be one of the best things that you could ever do for your children. Let them keep attending it. It will only help. Maybe you could learn what the Bible has to say as well. It couldn’t hurt. 👍
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Now I may just be a poor, milead Catholic but I happen to know what the Bible says probably more than most. We hear the Bible in Mass and my wife and I read it regularly, not to mention theology degrees that almost flooded us with Bible knowledge. A little education for yourself might not hurt either. I am so sick of protestants spreading thier lies about Catholics, Wanna go verse for verse. I dare ya.
 
DLC said:
Awana is a great help to families and Children. It gets the kids into the Bible to learn what God says. It will be one of the best things that you could ever do for your children. Let them keep attending it. It will only help. Maybe you could learn what the Bible has to say as well. It couldn’t hurt. 👍
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Welcome to the forum! You are finally with the ORIGINAL Bible Christians…without the Catholic Church, there would be NO BIBLE!

As for AWANAs I think you need to protect your family from heresies, false doctrines and other evils - especially at such a young age! Someone earlier mentioned starting a Catholic Group at your parish for young children…is that feasible?
 
Evangelicals and Protestants are all busy, but many of them make time for different programs. I think it starts with the people in charge ie bishops and parish priests. If they aren’t 100% behind something, it makes it that much more difficult for the laity.

If the bishops decided that there should be an Awana type programs for Catholic Churches all over the country, it would happen.
 
My suggestion would be to find a Catholic Homeschool group in your area, and see what type of things they get together and do with the Faith.
Also, perhaps start up a Pilgrims of the Holy Family group.
I went to AWANAs once, myself. It was fun, but my parents wouldn’t allow me to go back. I didn’t get it then, but I just shrugged and continued on. As I look back now, I know that it was so I wouldn’t be confused about what the Catholic Church taught.
Perhaps you should enroll your daughter in R.E? Or forming a fun group for other Catholic kids her age?
 
we go through this every year, Catholic children particpate in Awana VBS and summer programs with their friends, and when they come back to CCD in the fall they are completely confused and have absorbed some really wacky anti-Catholic and actually anti-biblical propaganda. The older they are the worse it is. I am not speaking about any other children’s program under Protestant auspices, but this particular program, Awana, is dangerous to the faith development of Catholic children. Unless the parents are very well versed in the faith, and have time and inclination to discuss every evening what the child has encountered, you risk setting your child up for a lot of confusion, and discomfort. It is pathetic for a child to come crying because he was told he is damned for sure because he is Catholic. (This was said to my faith by the director of a local Awana program at a regional meeting of Christian youth workers).

since I run the Catholic counterpart to Awana and othe r non-Catholic children’s programs for my parish–year round mind you–I resent the implication by the poster who resurrected this thread that Catholics do not “compete” in this sphere.
 
puzzleannie said:
since I run the Catholic counterpart to Awana and othe r non-Catholic children’s programs for my parish–year round mind you–I resent the implication by the poster who resurrected this thread that Catholics do not “compete” in this sphere.
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Could you tell us what this program is, so we can suggest such a thing to our Priests?
 
puzzleannie said:
since I run the Catholic counterpart to Awana and othe r non-Catholic children’s programs for my parish–year round mind you–I resent the implication by the poster who resurrected this thread that Catholics do not “compete” in this sphere.
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God bless you for what you do! That is awesome, but…

I don’t know of any nationally standardized youth program like Awana for the Catholic Church. There is nothing in my city that offers this or else it does a very poor job in marketing because I have never heard of a program like this in my area. We have about 1 million people in my metro area.

You could be a leader in Awana, in Alaska, move to Florida, and pick up from where you started. Does the Catholic Church have anything like this?
 
PatienceAndLove said:
Could you tell us what this program is, so we can suggest such a thing to our Priests?
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it is called various things in various dioceses, CCD, RE, PSR, it involves evangelization (initial proclamation of the gospel), faith formation, doctrinal instruction and encouraging developing spirituality. Not very exciting, but that is what we do. We teach scripture, OT and NT, try to assist children in relating it to their lives, and help them appreciate what is necessary for their salvation, and how the Church assists them in that end.
 
stogs said:
Is CCD an Awana equivilant?
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It could be.
What does CCD stand for, anyway? I forget…
I know RE is Religious Ed. I know when I was in RE, we did a Cathechism lesson, a bible lesson that related to the Catechism, and then some sort of art project. But that was a while ago…
 
Awana according to Baptist and other youth pastors with whom I work occassionally, is a program for children that both evangelizes and instructs in elements of Christian belief. It’s content, as I have come to know through experience, is fundamentalist and anti-Catholic.

CCD (Confraternity of Christian Doctrine) PSR (Parish School of Religion) RE Religious Education, whatever it is called in your Catholic parish is formal doctrinal instruction, scripture based study, and faith formation. It typically occurs in a school-year format, but can be extended by summer programs, camps etc. In that sense Awana is a type of RE for its denomination. It goes further in that it urges children to recruit their friends, and to proselytize. Catholic RE should include an evangelical component, and often does. The children’s program in Catholic dioceses and parishes is the formal religious instruction, including but not limited to sacramental preparation, with its allied activities such as camps, retreats etc. To say the Catholic Church does not “have anything for children” is ludicrous. We also have a parochial school system.
 
I am glad this thread poppoed up again so I could read what I previously wrote and follow my own advice.

My son is a public school kid and was invited to a Protestant summer camp. I was caught a bit off guard and unable to say politely no but thanks for thinking of him.

I called the DRE at my parish and she said she knew a Catholic who used to work at this camp and that she had never heard anything troubling about it.

My son detests VBS, CCD and the Wed Night program at my wife’s Presbyterian church. He has had minimal contact there in the last 3 and half years. I thought that if camp was more church than camp he would not want to go.

The youth pastor was friendly on the phone but eventualy asked where we went to church. Once he new I was RC he of course said that he was raised RC but CCD was so boring.
He talked about the camp being more exciting and still teaching about Jesus like AWANA.

I let him finish and said well if I wanted my son to be a Protestant I would send him to my wife’s church. I am a Catholic because I believe the claims the Church makes for herself are true. The Jesuits in high school drilled into me that religion is a truth game. One does not pick a religion like one picks a spaghetti sauce.

I really don’t want him to go and will have to be firm. Pray for me that I will stick to my guns. Pray for my son that he will not be angry with me. Pray for my wife that she will support this decision. His behavior of late leads her to believe that he is not ready to spend 5 nights away from home. My this continue enough so she agrees with me not to send him even if for different reasons.
 
Potato1 said:
Now I may just be a poor, milead Catholic but I happen to know what the Bible says probably more than most. We hear the Bible in Mass and my wife and I read it regularly, not to mention theology degrees that almost flooded us with Bible knowledge. A little education for yourself might not hurt either. I am so sick of protestants spreading thier lies about Catholics, Wanna go verse for verse. I dare ya.
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Hi Younnng Man
I will take you up on that dare. I have be studing the Bible ever since I was fifteen years old. I think that was around,(let me think a minute) OH ! 1945. Why, you are just a tenderfoot. Thats why I know

In heaven everyone is a Baptist
allischalmers
 
My sister went to Baptist camp with a friend and ended up…baptized.
Yep, they managed to convince her that her original Baptism wasn’t worth crud. So they rebaptized her.
 
allischalmers said:
Hi Younnng Man
I will take you up on that dare. I have be studing the Bible ever since I was fifteen years old. I think that was around,(let me think a minute) OH ! 1945. Why, you are just a tenderfoot. Thats why I know

In heaven everyone is a Baptist
allischalmers
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I dont beat up on old men or women but since you are niether… ok pops, lets dance. 😉
Feel free to PM me so we dont Hijack this thread. Ball is in your court.

In Heaven, everyoneone is Universal.

Potato
 
I have some fallen-away Catholic friends who I think are well on their way to becoming Baptists. They started sending their kids to Awana because “everyone” in their area does. From what I’ve seen, Awana is a bit like a scouting program. You have a vest and earn patches. It seems a lot different from CCD which, at least in our area, is more like religious ed lessons.
 
yes Awana begins like a summer scout day camp or VBS, with patches, beads, ribbons etc. The kids are then subjected to extremely aggressive recruiting efforts to attend Sunday school and religious instruction in the sponsoring church. Last summer they were invited to an end of summer program where there was an altar call and kids were urged to accept Jesus and be born again, and told that if they remained Catholic they were doomed to hell. Some of our kids who attended are now going to both Baptist Sunday and Wednesday bible programs, and Saturday CCD, with predictable results. In this area the anti-Catholic tone of the program is so offensive that we actively warn Catholic parents against participating.
 
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