Calling all Catechists!

[pkdsquared]

I am teaching an adult confirmation class (eeek!) and the coordinator of adult education as well as our pastor keep telling me I’m great for the position (I was asked) and that I’ll be fine. I feel totally overwhelmed by the amount of stuff I have to cover and how to go about doing it in a way that is beneficial and not turning people off of the faith altogether as well as instilling the faith in and love for God that I sometimes struggle with myself (I often say I’m an intellectual Catholic and I’m completely convinced of the claims of the Church, I just rarely have emotional responses to it.)

Any advice/resources would be so, so helpful. And prayers. Prayer are always helpful!!

Thanks in advance!

 

[puzzleannie]

I keep coming back to Making Disciples from Our Sunday Visitor as the best reliable catechist guide for adult confirmation and RCIA. It meshes with their various catechisms for special groups incluidng Essentials of the Faith.

when you say adult education, what does that cover? is it only sacramental, or is it all offerings for adults such as bible study, evangelization, apologetics etc?

don’t waste time and energy on anxiety, if you were called and have the faith the Holy Spirit will give you the rest

 

[pkdsquared]

It’s just adult confirmation, so it’s adults who have been baptized Catholic, and have received their first Communion. Many of them either lapsed shortly after that or in college. Some of them are there so they can be married in the Church. I’m not sure if it would be easier or harder than teaching RCIA (I team-teach RCIA as well.)

I will check out that resource, thank you for the help!

 

[Imperial_Guard]

I always felt that the best way to teach such a class (or at least a very good way) is to start be teaching the history of the Church and offer the proof that it is the one true church. If done right, all the other teachings should be easier to teach once the foundation of the Holy Church is understood and accepted.

When I was in RCIA, we used little pamphlets that were all over the place in regards to church teachings and beliefs. I didn’t think it was a very coheasive way to teach the faith. To put it a different way, if these students don’t have faith in the Church as a foundation, it will be easier for them to drift away again because “all the churches are pretty much the same.”

Good luck!

 

[pkdsquared]

That’s a good suggestion and I majored in history, so I definitely have a lot of stuff planned about the history. My schedule is set up similar to that, it gets into the Church history as well as basic doctrine and then sort of deepens from there.

Tomorrow’s class subject is: Catholic Vocabulary (since we seem to speak a language all of our own) and How to Participate In Mass in which I am going to go over a sort of Church tour and the structure of the Mass as well as the different “ministries” within the Mass (like lectern, cantor, etc.)

 

[quiet52]

What is the length of the preparation?
If you’re offering the condensed version, I suggest covering at least the following topics, not necessarily in this order:

1. Revelation / Sacred Tradition & Sacred Scripture
2. Structure of the Church / Authority of the Church
3. The Commandments, Beatitudes, and especially the moral teachings most vehemently rejected by modern society (such as the teachings concerning contraception, abortion, homosexual behaviors, cohabitation, pornography / masturbation, euthanasia and assisted suicide). (This will probably take 2-3 evenings)
4. Salvation / Grace and Justification / The End Times
5. The Seven Sacraments. (This should take at least 4 evenings)
6. The Mass / The Liturgical Year (1-2 evenings)
7. The Creed, including in depth discussion on the four marks of the Church. Some discussion on absolute truth vs. relativism.
8. Prayer
9. General Q&A

 

[puzzleannie]

the diocese may have a prescribed curriculum and even resources so be sure to find out. ours is still working on it, but in general what is prescribed for youth should be adapted to the needs of adults

also find out who in the class also needs first communion, who is engaged and needs marriage prep, who needs convalidation or has another marriage issue. This is really the job of the pastor and DRE or director, but for instance you may want to spend more time on the topic of matrimony, or even have the deacon cover one class to explain the Catholic law on marriage. (it goes without saying you don’t go into individual cases during class time, and you don’t need to know each candidates personal status, just what you need to cover in that regard).

If these are adults who have been attending Mass and generally living a Catholic life, but have not been in any RE since first communion you will start with the basics and teach essentially what RCIA would cover without the rites.

If they have been in RE all along, but simply did not get confirmed as teens and are still in good standing with the Church, they may need only immediate preparation for the sacrament itself.

Spend a couple of the first classes getting to know everyone and inviting them to ask questions

Quiet has the elements right, most classes cover the topics in roughly the order they are presented in the CCC

 

[fide]

I am teaching an adult confirmation class (eeek!) and the coordinator of adult education as well as our pastor keep telling me I’m great for the position (I was asked) and that I’ll be fine. I feel totally overwhelmed by the amount of stuff I have to cover and how to go about doing it in a way that is beneficial and not turning people off of the faith altogether as well as instilling the faith in and love for God that I sometimes struggle with myself (I often say I’m an intellectual Catholic and I’m completely convinced of the claims of the Church, I just rarely have emotional responses to it.)

Any advice/resources would be so, so helpful. And prayers. Prayer are always helpful!!

Thanks in advance!

I advise you to start at the foundation, and build from there. The foundation is Christ, entered by Baptism. Is the foundation there, still, in the soul? Is Christ within, in truth? To communicate that question in a believable way may require you to reach to “emotional responses” yourself. Empty emotion is deceptive, and has no life. But life has emotion.

It’s a risk, but guarding against empty formalism and ritualism - if you can help them to find and to see the life in the sacraments in general and in Confirmation in particular - that would be a good way to begin. If you can, your whole “program” will be built on a foundation that is firm.

 

[Cathryn]

I am teaching an adult confirmation class (eeek!) and the coordinator of adult education as well as our pastor keep telling me I’m great for the position (I was asked) and that I’ll be fine. I feel totally overwhelmed by the amount of stuff I have to cover and how to go about doing it in a way that is beneficial and not turning people off of the faith altogether as well as instilling the faith in and love for God that I sometimes struggle with myself (I often say I’m an intellectual Catholic and I’m completely convinced of the claims of the Church, I just rarely have emotional responses to it.)

Any advice/resources would be so, so helpful. And prayers. Prayer are always helpful!!

Thanks in advance!

A little advice. Don’t worry about turning people off to the Faith. The word “catechesis” comes from a Greek root meaning “to echo." To teach the Catholic faith properly is to echo it faithfully. Many catechists teach what they are comfortable with, yet what people have a right to have presented to them is the authentic truth of the Catholic faith taught in a coherent and complete form. Don’t hold back or teach only what you are comfortable with, or only what you agree with. Don’t teach personal oppinions. Teach what the Church teaches. If you do this faithfully, you can’t go wrong.