Questions for catechists

[PermanentMarker]

I want to become a catechist, but I have a few questions:

1. Is your ministry also your means of livelihood, or is it something you do on a volunteer basis aside from your job? If the latter, are you compensated in any way?
2. Can catechesis be someone’s full-time job? If so, how stable of a job is it?
3. Is catechesis really time-consuming, and does it conflict with your other responsibilities?
4. How often do your meetings occur? How often would you like them to occur? Do you think that’s possible?

Can you please comment on my situation:

I want to become a catechist, but I wonder if catechesis would get in the way of a full-time career and family responsibilities. With that in mind, I am considering becoming a priest, but that, too, has its share of responsibilities that require catechesis to be delegated to someone else.

 

[DavidFilmer]

1. Is your ministry also your means of livelihood, or is it something you do on a volunteer basis aside from your job? If the latter, are you compensated in any way?

I’ve never known of a catechist who was paid (I was RCIA director for my Parish for one year - it was 100% volunteer, including expenses such as vehicle mileage, etc). In some Parishes, a catechist might be a paid member of the Parish staff (or maybe a Religious sister or brother) whose duties include RCIA. But I doubt there are any paid positions that are strictly for a catechist.

1. Can catechesis be someone’s full-time job? If so, how stable of a job is it?

It is hard to imagine that the job would require full-time involvement.

1. Is catechesis really time-consuming, and does it conflict with your other responsibilities?

It depends on how you do it. Many Parishes purchase RCIA courses - usually with fully developed PowerPoint presentations, handouts, syllabus, supplementary website, etc. That makes it MUCH easier - you just teach the program. When I volunteered to be RCIA director, that’s what I thought I would do - but I was unable to find a program that I liked. I wound up developing my own program, based heavily on Peter Kreeft’s Catholic Christianity.

1. How often do your meetings occur? How often would you like them to occur? Do you think that’s possible?

Weekly - about 1.5 hours long - is typical. Some extra events as Easter draws near.

I would minimize the whole eating aspect - some programs have one of the participants “host” each week, and it gets into almost a competition. The eating disrupts from the program. We did simple store-bought cookies and coffee each week (which I purchased using Parish funds). It was much better that way.

I want to become a catechist, but I wonder if catechesis would get in the way of a full-time career and family responsibilities.

I have a family (wife + 3 kids) and a demanding professional career. I managed to run a successful RCIA program using a curriculum that I developed myself. I won’t say it was easy, but it is certainly possible to balance these commitments.

I relocated to another Parish after my stint as RCIA director - I am no longer involved, but I know that, had I stayed at the former Parish, the second year would have been MUCH easier than the first. This would be true even if I used a pre-packaged curriculum. The first year is always the hardest (by far).

With that in mind, I am considering becoming a priest

Wow, well that’s a whole nuther thing! Yeah, that’s a pretty serious commitment (but no worries about the wife and kids).

I pray that God will bless whatever form of ministry you undertake.

 

[Livelaughlove17]

It definitely depends on your parish and any diocese requirements. I became a catechist to teach Sunday Faith Formation classes for children and to get my certification I had to attend an all day conference and then do some follow up paperwork. There are no other meetings required for me. I do wish that we had some more meetings though to be more involved with it. Also, I am in school and working and do this so it is definitely manageable in my experiences.

God Bless and Good Luck on your discernment!

 

[PermanentMarker]

Thanks for the answers, David. I want to get involved in catechetics in big way, giving young adults the intellectual formation they need to meet the challenges they will inevitably encounter. For some reason, I imagined that involving a substantial time commitment, so I wondered if being a full-time catechist was a legitimate option.

David, you are knowledgeable guy. I am curious, how do you judge your impact? Perhaps I am a bit naive, but I think Catholicism is endlessly fascinating, and I have always thought that a good teacher could get others to see that as well. I imagined inspiring a lot of folks to become on fire for their faith. Do you think that kind of impact is realistic?

 

[DavidFilmer]

David, you are knowledgeable guy. I am curious, how do you judge your impact?

I suppose, for RCIA, how many people who were received are active in their Parish life. Everyone in my (small) class is still active, so that’s good.

People have different motivations. The “true believers” are a joy - people who have become convinced of the Catholic Faith before you ever meet them. They will require less attention than, say, someone who is in RCIA because s/he wants to marry a Catholic, but may be more committed to the marriage than the Church.

Perhaps I am a bit naive, but I think Catholicism is endlessly fascinating, and I have always thought that a good teacher could get others to see that as well. I imagined inspiring a lot of folks to become on fire for their faith. Do you think that kind of impact is realistic?

Yes, absolutely! For many years, I taught college-level engineering classes in the evenings. My students were mostly older professionals looking to upgrade their skills with additional education - a very different type of student than found in the typical day classes.

These people had already put in a full day of work. They came to class tired. And I’m teaching engineering? To a bunch of hungry, tired people who would much rather be at home?

Out of necessity, I developed a presentation style that is energetic and engaging. A little humor is fine, but it is EXTREMELY important to keep the presentation focused and on-track, and moving at a good pace. Otherwise, we waste the students’ time. They would rather be home with their families drinking a glass of wine and watching Netflix. It is essential that you be mindful of the sacrifice they are making to be with you instead of their families, and respect that sacrifice by offering a well-planned presentation that does not have a lot of “fluff” in it.

If you use PowerPoint slides, distribute a handout at the start of each class (three slides per page, with space for notes). This allows you to move the class at a faster pace, because those students who like to take lots of notes will not need to write down any content from your slides.

I’ve sponsored RCIA candidates in other Parishes, and I’ve seen some bad examples of “fluff.” The biggest mistake is when the instructor basically turns the class over to the students - going around the room and inviting everyone’s (name removed by moderator)ut on practically everything that is covered. This type of thing is better done one-on-one, maybe if someone arrives a bit early, or walking out to the parking lot with someone, or maybe a phone call some other time. It gives you (the catechist) an opportunity to gauge an individual student’s progress without taking time away from all the other students.

 

[1ke]

I want to become a catechist, but I have a few questions:

How old are you?

1. Is your ministry also your means of livelihood, or is it something you do on a volunteer basis aside from your job? If the latter, are you compensated in any way?

I am the coordinator of religious education, teach both primary and high school CCD classes, coordinate RCIA, and adult education.

It is a volunteer position, and no I am not compensated in any way.

1. Can catechesis be someone’s full-time job? If so, how stable of a job is it?

Certainly.

At the parish level, many directors and coordinators of religious education are paid positions as is RCIA and/or adult education.

At the diocesan level there are paid positions in Catechesis/RCIA, etc. The USCCB also has such positions in a paid capacity.

In Catholic schools there are paid positions, such as religious education teacher. And, certainly at the university level as well.

Is it well paid? Well, that depends upon your definition and also the individual parish/diocese. In a small parish, it may be paid a minimal amount – or like me not at all. In a large parish or at the diocesan level, perhaps a higher paying position can be found. As far as stability, it is as stable as any other job.

1. Is catechesis really time-consuming, and does it conflict with your other responsibilities?

Yes and yes, if you are doing it properly.

1. How often do your meetings occur? How often would you like them to occur? Do you think that’s possible?

CCD is every week during the school year. RCIA is basically September through April or May. Adult Ed is whenever I have time for it.

Can you please comment on my situation:

I want to become a catechist, but I wonder if catechesis would get in the way of a full-time career and family responsibilities.

Well, lots of people do that. A degree in theology or in parish ministry of some kind (preferrably a master’s degree) is the first step for a paid, professional position of this nature.

With that in mind, I am considering becoming a priest, but that, too, has its share of responsibilities that require catechesis to be delegated to someone else.

Well, I think first you need to figure out if you want to be a priest or not.

 

[EricFilmer]

I want to become a catechist, but I have a few questions:

I have been teaching RCIA for years so I have a good bit of experience in this field. Nevertheless, others in this thread have already given some very good (name removed by moderator)ut to your questions, so I will simply provide a little elaboration.

Are you interested in teaching CCD, RCIA, sacramental preparation, being a parish Director of Religious Education, or being a teacher in a Catholic school? There are differences between them, so it may be good for you to specify. Of course, if you are simply feeling a general call to teach Catholicism but are not yet sure in what capacity, we can address all the various ways of being a catechist.

In terms of material, my brother (in Post #2) recommended Dr. Peter Kreeft’s Catholic Christianity, which is a very good book for RCIA. But, because it is written for adult readers, I would not recommend it for CCD. Another good book to use for RCIA (especially if you happen to live in the U.S.) is the USCCB’s U.S. Catholic Catechism for Adults.

If I recall correctly, I was the one who recommended Kreeft’s book to David, but back then the USCCB’s catechism had not yet been published, or it would have been my first recommendation. Someone may ask, why not use the Church’s “universal” catechism, which is the Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd Edition? Although this should definitely be used as reference material, it has limitations as the primary textbook for an RCIA class. I say this because it is dense and covers everything (and there is not enough time to cover all the material within it). Using this as a textbook requires the catechist to filter out the fundamental topics and then present the information in a way that the average student would find easier to understand. Kreeft and the USCCB have already done that in terms of their respective catechisms.

1. How often do your meetings occur? How often would you like them to occur? Do you think that’s possible?

Once a week. CCD classes are usually an hour long or less (depending on the age). RCIA classes are usually from one to two hours long (I think one and a half hours is ideal for most places). RCIA classes go through a series of phases, concluding with the post-Easter Mystagogia. CCD classes usually correspond to the local school year.

CCD classes usually take place on Sunday before or after Mass. RCIA can as well, but many parishes have RCIA take place on a weekday evening. As a side note, the traditional way to do RCIA is to have a class on a weekday and then a second, smaller class which takes place on Sundays during Mass (i.e., the people attend the first part of the Mass, the Liturgy of the Word, and then are dismissed to a classroom during the Liturgy of the Eucharist). But this traditional method is not always a possibility (practically speaking) in many parishes.

I want to become a catechist, but I wonder if catechesis would get in the way of a full-time career and family responsibilities. With that in mind, I am considering becoming a priest, but that, too, has its share of responsibilities that require catechesis to be delegated to someone else.

In terms of CCD, usually a specific class is taught by a single catechist. RCIA, however, can be taught by an entire team of catechists, so the workload is evenly shared. This was the case when I first started teaching RCIA, but then I moved to a smaller parish where I am currently the only English RCIA teacher (we have a husband & wife team that teaches Spanish RCIA). Nevertheless, my plan is to train some catechists to assist me.