contents

Social Justice:Building the

Kingdom

Towards Getting the Catechetical

Method Right

Friends Among Faiths

One Baby Step Towards A

Year Round RCIA Process

Books

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Dear FriendsI know it’s unusual timing to be writing about Santa Claus in the middle of the year, but then again, the Holy Spirit of Pentecost blows where it wills, and I have learnt not to be too picky with inspiration.

Each child comes to a point in growing up when he or she discovers the truth about Santa Claus. It is a hard realisation for any kid that the benign figure who shimmies down chimneys and drops presents under the tree during Christmastime is actually a myth. Once we eventually find out for ourselves who he really is, the carol “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” is never heard the same way again.

Growing up in faith is a similar process. Children start off with magical images of God; the heavenly policeman or accountant with a ledger of our sins, or the old bearded guy in the sky. During adolescence the images change into more interpersonal understandings of God such as benevolent provider, lover, friend, or ‘my buddy.’ For some of us these images see us through our adult life.

Development of the mind may bring about in some of us a disaffection for anthropomorphised images – we become uncomfortable narrowing God according to our own human image. In those where this realisation occurs God’s visage changes again; this time into metaphysical abstractions such as ‘God is Justice,’ ‘God is Beauty’ or ‘God is the transcendent principle in Humanity.’ For such believers the meaning of God takes on more importance than the symbol of God.

Among all these believers are the few who grow disillusioned with trying to capture the infinite Divine into limited containers.

They recognise the futility of expressing God exclusively through language, concept, or ideology - for them art is the preferred medium and silence is the best language to communicate about God.

The wonderful thing about Catholic tradition is that it accommodates all these appreciations of God. The Church, like a mother, supports us through our struggling attempts to comprehend God and helps us to gradually become aware that it is not God that changes but us.

As our capacity for God develops with maturity, old images must be shed - sometimes painfully - to make way for the new, so that even as we pass through the springtime and enter into the winter of our lives we can sincerely say: “From the rising of the sun to its setting, praised be the name of the Lord.” (Psalm 113:3)

Don’t worry overmuch when you can’t feel close to the presentation of God that you received in your youth, it may simply be time for you to know God differently. Finding a spiritual guide may be helpful, to introduce you to ways that will enable you to re-accept God according to where you have grown in your life.

For me, Santa Claus may no longer exist in a way that I can prove by empirical means, (Singapore where got chimneys anyway?) but he remains very real because he has become the part of me that cherishes that which always matters: joy, tender care for God’s children, charity, generosity, and good humour. I’ll still recognise him anywhere, anytime, even without his red suit, sleigh, and reindeer.

Even in the month of June. Ho ho ho!

Arthur

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Concern for Social Justice

Social Justice

Daphne Leong

A YouTube video went viral recently showing a supervisor in an office hitting a young worker. Many cried foul after watching the video which resulted in a report being made with the police and the Ministry of Manpower. The employer and the company in question are being investigated. Although the matter has been put into the hands of the law, do we feel better knowing that the guilty party is made to face judgment and suffer ‘payback’ in return for the wrong done?

In Catholic teaching, the understanding of justice goes beyond the correct execution of justice in court. However, the Christian value of justice is often put aside or overlooked, because we confuse it with the value of charity. Justice and charity are two different values that go hand in hand. Both spring from Jesus’ commandment to love God and love neighbour. Charity is often given more limelight because it seems to be the easier of the two - charity is the giving of direct aid to persons in need as an expression of Christian love. So we

volunteer in homes for the aged, in soup kitchens, and build schools or houses for victims of natural disasters. While we make efforts to help out the elderly or provide assistance to troubled foreign workers, or dish out food for the poor, do we ask ourselves: Why are these people marginalised? What causes their problems?

These are justice oriented questions that may point to society-at-large and its systems and structures, but the reform of society must begin with ourselves.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines justice as “the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbour. Justice toward God is called the ‘virtue of religion’. Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good.” (CCC. 1807)

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Reform towards justice is a challenge for all modern Christians. It is indeed necessary to offer our help and kindness to those in need, but it is also necessary to help our institutions or structures to change in ways so that those who are in need will not be in need anymore. While we advocate for our nation’s leaders to consider these matters on the level of policies and structures, we ourselves have to participate as Christian citizens in making Singapore a fairer place where each person receives their due. We can start by becoming aware of our own selves: do I personally contribute to injustices that prevent equity and harmony? For example, do I myself discriminate against foreign workers or the elderly in things that I do or say? In what ways and towards what kind of people am I prejudiced?

To ask for change in society requires the conversion to begin within ourselves. What cost are we willing to pay to act justly and to resist existing attitudes? At this point we may even ask: are Christians supposed to be involved in the reform of society in the first place? What biblical evidence is there that striving for justice is relevant to our spiritual life as followers of Jesus?

While it is true that one will not find the words “Thou shall work for a just society” in scripture, we can certainly find in it a biblical vision of a just society. Before Jesus began his public ministry, he borrowed the words of the prophet Isaiah to describe what his mission was to be: “to preach good news to the poor...to proclaim release to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” (Luke 4:18-21)

Justice is a recurring theme in the biblical prophetic tradition. From the book of Zechariah we are given this text: “Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another; do not oppress the widow, the orphan, the alien, or the poor.” (Zech 7:9-10) The prophet Micah declares God’s desire for justice in a powerful rhetorical question: “He has showed you, O man, what is

good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Mic 6:8)

Jesus drew heavily from the prophetic tradition, trying to convey that in the Kingdom of God, the greatest are not those who exploit or lord over others with their power. In the Beatitudes Jesus outlined how to behave in the society of God: Blessed are those who know how to conduct themselves as people of God’s Kingdom. (see Matt

5:3-11) This striving towards a just society is foremostly a spiritual work, given to all the baptised by Christ, because all are called to take part in the Kingdom-building project of God the Father that ensures that the least are served by the greatest.

Pope Francis recently quoted St John Chrysostom to remind us us of our obligation to seek justice: “Not to share one’s goods with the poor is to rob them”.

It is impossible on our own efforts to perfectly achieve the will of God in creating on earth a heavenly society that is free from suffering and where the weak and vulnerable among us are looked after - we strive towards this vision with the help of God’s grace. All Christians are expected to actively participate in improving society towards justice and fairness, and we still continue to pray “your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

Maybe another way for us to begin is to affirm the value of justice by supporting those who are courageous enough to take the first step of naming injustices that occur. Without their truthfulness and fortitude, some injustices may never come to light. If you know the brave soul who revealed the injustice in his office by recording and uploading the video, give him a pat on the back for being among those who “hunger and thirst for uprightness.” (Matt 5:6)

What cost are we willing to pay to act justly and to resist existing attitudes?

Social Justice

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Catechesis

Caroline Farey

There have been two very ‘hot topics’ in the Church since the Second Vatican Council, that surpass all others if one takes as one’s measure the number of documents on the subject that have come from Rome in the last forty years. These are the liturgy and catechesis. Concern for the liturgy has been taken up by a large number of Catholics who read avidly what the Pope, Bishops and curia have to say, and conferences and courses on the renewal of liturgical practice are well subscribed. On the other hand, not catechesis itself, but the Church’s documents on catechesis, are taken up by very few indeed; the Church’s vision here is rather like an abandoned orphan. Few seem aware, let alone interested beyond a glance, of the nature and degree of renewal being urged upon us in successive documents on the subject.

For many it is a case of ‘know the faith and teach it - what else is there to say?’ The General Catechetical Directory, however, speaks of those with this attitude as “unable to appreciate how profound is the proposed renewal, as if it were merely a matter of eliminating ignorance of doctrine.”[1] The Church’s documents focus on catechesis as an “integral Christian formation”, that is, as holistic education in the faith based on the pedagogy of God, rather than instruction alone. This article is concerned with the Church’s understanding of catechetical pedagogy. This

pedagogy flows from doctrine, and good methods flow from this pedagogy.

Let us begin with a paragraph, in the midst of a wealth of advice and direction, from the General Directory for Catechesis:

The Church, in transmitting the faith, does not have a particular method nor any single method. Rather she discerns contemporary methods in the light of the pedagogy of God’.[2]

Here, the Church indicates that for catechesis, discerning and choosing the method of communication of the Faith of the Church needs careful consideration. This task, we are told, depends upon knowing what the Church means by the ‘pedagogy of God’ and then on specific and deliberate attention to discerning catechetical methods in its light.

Priests and catechists, then, need a double formation for effective catechesis in accordance with the mind and heart of the Church. They need a formation, firstly, in a knowledge and appreciation of the deposit of Faith itself. Priests, of course, receive this in the seminary and it is their responsibility to pass it on, and, especially, to ensure that parents and catechists receive this in due measure. Secondly, priests and catechists both need formation in the ‘pedagogy of God’ and then in how to examine methods and methodologies

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Catechesis

in its light, in order to discern those methods that are appropriate for communicating the Faith and those that are not.

Very often it is believed that parents, and especially teachers, know so much more than the priest does about methods to use for communicating the Faith (other than preaching, in which the priest is especially trained). Knowledge and skill in various ‘methods of communicating’ are seen to come, either directly from ‘experience with young people’, or from ‘teacher-training’, or from the frequent use of published resources that have methods of teaching written into them by ‘experienced’ people.

People may be called ‘experienced’ because of what they have been doing for many years. Yet this does not mean that they are experienced in the ‘pedagogy of God’ or in discerning appropriate methods of communication in accordance with it. For catechists to learn how to choose this or that activity or method they need considerable help in this type of assessment and awareness, discernment and judgement. The task can seem to be rather more demanding than most people are prepared for.

An especially helpful work to assist this discernment was published recently, called The Catechism of the Catholic Church and the Craft of Catechesis, San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2008.[3] The three authors have been involved in the formation of catechists for many years and have helped countless catechists precisely in how to discern and choose the most appropriate methods in the light of God’s own pedagogy as elucidated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

The Catechism is acknowledged generally as an outstanding contribution to making the content of the faith of the Church accessible. The book, The Catechism of the Catholic Church and the Craft of Catechesis, is unique in its study of the Catechism not only from the point of view of its content, but also for its catechetical pedagogy. Cardinals Joseph Ratzinger and Christoph Schonborn have provided considerable teaching on the Catechism from this pedagogical point of view which

these authors bring to our attention, providing pedagogical principles by which catechists can judge all the various methods and activities they use in their regular catechetical sessions.

The authors of the book on the craft of catechesis are each so soaked in both the Faith of the Church and the exercise of catechising that they are able to see, more profoundly than many, the extraordinary pedagogical guidance embedded in the Catechism. The pedagogy flows directly from the nature and content of the deposit of faith. The Catechism is not simply an account of the Faith, it is a carefully designed instrument to assist in passing on the Faith. To know God’s pedagogy is to follow God’s way of communicating Himself to man, in Christ through His Church; the Catechism reveals precisely this.

AN EXAMPLE OF THE PEDAGOGY OF GODThe book on The Craft of Catechesis has a concrete example of how the pedagogy of God can be used to discern good catechetical method:

‘Let us examine how the Catechism, in and through its very structure, calls for and enables a holistic formation in, and transmission of, the Faith. As we know, the Catechism is structured in four parts, relating to the areas of the Creed, the

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liturgy, life in Christ, and prayer. The Catechism is not arranged like this arbitrarily, but because these are the four dimensions of the Christian Faith, and therefore the four dimensions of a living faith in each one of us’ (p. 16, cf. CCC3, and Acts 2:42).

It is clear from this that catechesis is to be concerned with all four dimensions, is to be four-dimensional.

Just as the Catechism links each of the parts to each other, so catechetical sessions, together with the Christo-centric doctrine to be imparted,[4] can be linked to the liturgical life of the Church, to moral life ‘in Christ’ and to prayer.[5] This is a fundamental pedagogical principle for holistic catechesis, that is, catechesis that nourishes all four dimensions of the Christian life. This would mean ensuring not only a time for imparting some aspect of doctrine, but also a link to the consequences of the particular doctrine (of the session) for life ‘in Christ’, a time of prayer linked to the same doctrine and a liturgical element or link to the liturgy in some way. How many resources follow such a structure and how many priests or catechists realise the richness of following such a structure for their catechetical sessions?

The pedagogical principle of structuring one’s catechetical sessions holistically in the four-fold way described above, is one of twelve principles that the authors have drawn from the Catechism, concerning faithfulness and coherence, prayer, Scripture, liturgy, grace and beauty. Communication of the Faith or ‘the craft of catechesis’ can be more or less

according to the Faith of the Church just as the content can be more or less according to the Faith of the Church. Just because someone is teaching, doesn’t mean that anyone is learning. True communication means that learning is taking place. True catechesis means that Christ is being communicated. This is why the Church’s documents are insistent upon methods of catechetical communication following an appropriate pedagogy.

The twelve principles drawn from the Catechism are a totally different type of guide to those taken from typical developmental or educational theories. Some educational theories, largely developed in the second half of the twentieth century, were of value for helping teachers to recognise the specific characteristics of different age groups and different kinds of learning. The General Directory for Catechesis acknowledges that these theories can sometimes be useful in part but they are not sufficient. The pedagogy of God, which is ‘universally valid’, is also needed and by this all catechetical theories, skills and methods are to be judged.

AN EXAMPLE OF DISCERNMENT OF METHODLet us look at a typical contemporary method sometimes called the ‘pastoral cycle’ sometimes ‘shared praxis’. This tends to have between three and five steps or short periods of time, from ten to twenty minutes each. For example, one three-step programme of this kind divides its sessions into three periods: ‘life as we know it - God’s message - new life or message for my life’.[6] Secular stories and discussion questions are used to stimulate the sharing of experience either at step one or step three or both. The questions are focused on the participants’ lives and opinions. ‘God’s message’ tends to be the shortest moment. Let us analyse what typically happens.

Firstly, one loses control of the content of the session because many differing points of view can be expressed, often taken from the media or from

The Catechism is not simply an account of the Faith, it is a carefully designed instrument to assist in

passing on the Faith

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a typical human point of view; often disparate or far ranging; some opinions tangential; others wholly opposite to the faith. The Church, on the other hand, recognises a good catechetical method as one that ‘guarantees fidelity to content’.[7]

Secondly, the session quickly moves into the realm of psychology rather than catechesis if one asks about personal background, emotions, feelings, opinions and so on, all of which need great sensitivity. What does the catechist do with the range of feelings, ideas and opinions presented? Are they to be ignored, passed over with a smile, a murmur of thanks, accepted without comment, corrected? Not one of these possibilities seems appropriate in a time set aside for catechesis.

Thirdly, if one does try to speak of the Faith of the Church after this, it will likely be corrective of what someone has said, placing the catechist and that participant in a difficult situation. Not everything that has been said can be corrected and many of the false opinions will, then, be confirmed by the occasion, or the catechist ameliorates the Faith in order not to hurt the feelings of someone in public.

Fourthly, the Faith of the Church tends to need to be given in a defensive manner because of what has been said that is contrary to it - this puts the catechist in a position of needing conviction, clarity and argument as well as knowledge because stating the Faith now looks simplistic, contradictory, like another personal opinion, or, if objectively stated, dogmatic in the negative sense. A catechist is often not equipped for this and the Faith simply not given.

Finally, far from making it easier to enter into the Faith of the Church, participants have been led into spending their time and attention on typical human responses that they hear all week, and by this may have been led even further away than they were before. The short, precious opportunity

so desired by God as a moment for evangelization has been cut short and nothing of the principle of holistic catechesis is yet achieved.

It is not possible to speak here of all the principles or how to translate them into positive catechetical methods in a short article of this kind. This article is an attempt to awaken people to the need to seek out the kind of renewal of methodology to which the Church exhorts us so that the Faith is learnt again holistically, for life, for prayer and, ultimately, better to enable people to love to worship.

Endnotes:[1]GCD 9.

[2]GDC 148.

[3]Dr Petroc Willey, (Maryvale Institute, Birmingham, UK), Rev Dr Pierre de Cointet (Studium Notre Dame de Vie, France) and Mrs Barbara Morgan (Franciscan University, Steubenville, US), The Catechism of the Catholic Church and the Craft of Catechesis, with an introductory essay by Christoph Cardinal Schonborn, San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2008.

[4]Every mode of presentation must always be christocentric-trinitarian’ (GDC 100). See, for example, GDC 7: The Catechism of the Catholic Church is ‘a principal requirement for catechesis’.

[5] [6]Diana Klein, Preparing to be Confirmed, Great Wakering: McTimmons, 2002, p8.

[7]GDC 159.

Caroline Farey is Director of the BA in Applied Theology (Catechesis) at Maryvale Institute. This article appeared in the September-October 2009 issue of Faith Magazine.

Published with permission.

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Gerald Kong

While serving national service, classical piano and percussion were my greatest loves and I was blessed with invaluable opportunities to represent Singapore at ASEAN Youth music workshops. The timeless friendships that were forged via a common love for music have prevailed till the present.

Twenty years later and thankfully still considered a youth, I recently enjoyed the privilege not only of being a youth ambassador for Singapore but also for the Roman Catholic Church, to the great and noble land of the elusive dreams of Saint Francis Xavier, after the footsteps of the Jesuit luminary Matteo Ricci.

During this 12-day Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO) interfaith learning trip to Beijing and Hong Kong for youths, I had the grace of befriending four prominent IRO Council members along with twenty other enthusiastic youths representing six major religions in Singapore (Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity, Islam, and the Bahá’í Faith).

On the Beijing leg of the journey, we paid an official visit to the State Administration for

Religious Affairs of the People’s Republic of China and met the vice-minister and his team for a formal exchange. We also had cordial meetings with the religious leaders of the China Taoist Association, the China Buddhist Association, the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and the Bishops’ Conference of the Catholic Church in China, the Beijing Committee of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Church and the Beijing Christian Council, as well as the China Islamic Association. Overall, we were given a glimpse of the national state of religious affairs in relation to the five officially recognised religions (Taoism, Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, and Islam) in this vast and varied country and toured some of the places of worship.

On the Hong Kong leg of the journey, we visited the Hong Kong Taoist Association and the Hong Kong Christian Council, toured the famous Buddhist-Confucian-Taoist temple Sik Sik Yuen and the Taoist temple Fung Ying Seen Koon, and took part in a grand Vesak Day celebration at the Hong Kong Coliseum. All the parties we met were pleasantly surprised that we were such a young delegation. They were also impressed

Christian Unity & Inter-Religious Dialogue

A Report On An Inter-Faith Learning TripFriends Among Faiths

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Christian Unity & Inter-Religious Dialogue

by our united witness of interfaith diversity and harmony. Mr Tan Thiam Lye, Chairman of the Singapore Taoist Federation, IRO Council member and head of the delegation, proudly presented us as being the outstanding gems and the future of our respective faiths.

While these organised visits were a necessary part of our interfaith learning experiences, I believe much more mutual learning took place from our daily informal interactions and dialogues among us whether it be in our hotel rooms, on the coach journeys to meeting venues or historical-cultural sights or over relaxing meals. We also witnessed the religious values of our companions by observing how they lived out their faith during the trip. For example, the male Muslims were faithful to their Friday mosque prayers while a Buddhist monk of the Thai Buddhist tradition abstained totally from eating noon time onwards each day to condition the mind and the body to crave less for food as well as prevent drowsiness from digestion.

In the course of our mutual faith encounters, we discovered that in order to engage in fruitful inter-religious dialogue, it is necessary first of all to know our own faith-tradition well. A well-grounded believer is able to display an open and non-defensive attitude towards people of

other religious traditions. That person would also be very respectful of the beliefs of the “other” regardless of how foreign-sounding they may be. In addition, a religionist steeped in faith would be able to accurately present his or her religious tradition to others in order to clear up misunderstandings and help remove prejudices. In my own intimate dialogues with various youths, I learnt about how much we truly shared in common: a love for and desire to help the underprivileged in society, a thirst for the transcendent and encounter with the divine, a willingness to strive to understand the religious tenets of others, and passion for our own faiths. Our common earnest search for meaning and rootedness in life has forged friendships that are likely to be deeper than those that I share with my musician friends.

Back in Singapore, I see even more clearly now the importance of assisting our Catholic faithful, particularly the young, to have a good grasp of Catholic principles and begin practicing dialogue with our friends of other faiths. For a start, it would be good for all Catholics to familiarise ourselves with the Second Vatican Council’s Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions, Nostra aetate (28 October 1965). That way, we can confidently and graciously engage with our brothers and sisters of other faiths in an effort to better understand them, explain and clarify common misconceptions about us, as well as promote true harmony and concrete collaboration in areas that would benefit our society and humanity as a whole.

In sum, I am truly grateful for this trip that I was able to embark on with other youths. It has been an inner journey of discovering even more the beauty of the Catholic faith as I came to acquaint myself more deeply with the faiths of others. An inter-religious meeting of young Catholics, Jews and Muslims on 21 July before the official start of the World Youth Day celebrations in Rio de Janeiro is further confirmation that interreligious dialogue among the young is to be encouraged and supported.

Gerald with Taoist, Muslim, and Hindu representatives of the IRO delegation.

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Nick Wagner

In this article, I want to offer you a challenge. If you are currently running a time-limited RCIA, I want to challenge you to take one baby step toward an ongoing, year-round catechumenate process.

Why is a year-round process important?There are a lot of reasons why a year-round process is important, but I’m going to focus on just one. If catechumens do not experience the full liturgical year, they have not been immersed into the full mystery of Christ. It is through the celebration of the liturgical year that the church “unfolds the whole mystery of Christ, from the incarnation and birth until the ascension, the day of Pentecost, and the expectation of blessed hope and of the coming of the Lord” (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, 11).

The purpose of the catechumenate is to bring the catechumens into intimate communion with Christ. And the celebration of the liturgical year is the means by which we bring them to that intimacy. If we shortchange the catechumens by not giving them the experience of Christ throughout a full liturgical year, we have not done our jobs as catechists.

What do we mean by “year-round”?Some teams might resist moving to a year-round process because of some misunderstandings of what “year-round” means. To have a process that extends throughout a full liturgical year does not mean you are having catechetical sessions 52 weeks of the year. There are two significant implications of a year-round process that must be in place to truly say we are fulfilling the requirements of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.

1. We welcome inquirers whenever they come to us; we do not tell them they have to “wait until September”

2. Once someone becomes a catechumen, they are on a conversion journey of unknown duration. That journey must travel along the path of your parish’s celebration of a full liturgical cycle. But we cannot know ahead of time when the journey of the catechumenate will end. Only the Holy Spirit knows.

How do we implement a year-round process?The “how” has as many variations as we have parishes. At a minimum, however, you need two

Christian Initiation

One Baby Step TowardsA Year Round RCIA Process

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people (besides the pastor) to serve on your team.

1. Every team must have someone who is focused on the journey of the catechumens. The question on this person’s mind is always, “What are the individual needs of each catechumen to help them take the next step on the conversion journey?”

2. Every team must have someone who is focused on the inquirers. The question on this person’s mind is always, “What is each individual inquirer’s story?”

If you think of leading the catechumens like raising children, some things about the process become more clear. What do parents need to do to successfully raise their children? About a million different things that are often different for different children. For a two-parent household with two sets of grandparents living close by, who are raising two children, the burdens are shared, and the resources are greater. For a single mom with five children and no grandparents nearby, the questions and the strategies are the same, but the stress is greater.

In neither case, however, can the parents say, “We only raise children from September to Pentecost.” You do what you have to do with the resources you have.

For the team member who is focused on the inquirers, think of the process like dating. Dating is a getting-to-know you process. It’s possible to date a lot of people at the same time, as long as we aren’t getting too serious. When the inquirers want to get serious, that’s an indication it is time to move into the catechumenate. But until they get serious, we are dating. We are asking questions, telling a little about ourselves and the church, and discovering if we are a good fit. Some inquirers might date for a long time. They might never want to get serious. Some might get serious really fast.

But here’s what won’t work. It won’t work to say, “In our parish, all the inquirers have to get serious by November because that’s when we celebrate the Rite of Acceptance.” The Holy Spirit doesn’t work that way. People are different. They will be ready at different times.

There is a lot more we can say about how a year-round process works, but for now, let’s just focus on those two key elements: what do the catechumens need to grow in faith, and what are the stories of the inquirers?

What would happen if we did this?If you can make the shift to a process that is centered on those two questions, I promise you will be blown away. House-rattling, earth-shaking, Pentecost-like fiery Holy Spirit blown away.

More importantly, the inquirers will become true seekers of faith instead of jumpers of hoops. The catechumens will become other Christs instead of absent neophytes.

And your parish will be renewed. They will become infected and infused with the powerful faith of these new initiates into your community, and they will be transformed.

The baby stepSo here’s the baby step. If you currently have a precatechumenate that begins in September (or any other time of year), make this the last year that it “begins.” From now on, it never ends so it can never again “begin.”

Find a new team member or change the job description of one of your current team member to be an “ambassador of welcome.” The job of the ambassador of welcome is to constantly welcome inquirers and start the learn their stories. The ambassador of welcome is on call all year round, but she might delegate her role to others for a time while she goes on vacation or takes a break. In that way, you never again have to tell someone to come back when you are ready. With an ambassador of welcome on your team, your parish can be ready whenever the Holy Spirit is ready.

Christian Initiation

Nick Wagner is the director and founder of TeamRCIA.com. Published with permission.

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Mary Lim

Fr Benedict Groeschel, a priest and psychologist wrote “Tears of God” after he survived a car accident. This book is intended for people who have suffered catastrophes or horrors in their lives and for those close to them.

Catastrophes such as physical ills, natural disasters, evil purposely done; and personal and communal evil can severely try one’s faith.

St Augustine taught that God does not cause evil but that worst of evil comes to an end. This book is about faith. It is about faith in a God, who cares for us, especially, when we are in need.

One most significant sign of Divine Providence is how in faith, even the worst and most dreadful of catastrophes may, in the long run, lead to good or, at least, be replaced by another good.

Faith gives courage to endure hardships and continue to do good over a long period of time. The Holy Spirit’s gift of courage, fortitude, enables us to do what we would never be able to on our own, to endure the unendurable, and to face the incomprehensible.

Fr Groeschel describes the experiences one goes through when faced with a horrible situation. This book is a practical and detailed guide as to what should be done during and after a horror or catastrophe.

A belief in the immortality of the human soul, of the survival of the person beyond death, is one of the most important expressions of hope. We must recognize that hope is given to us, by Christ, especially in His Resurrection.

Praying is an important coping strategy recommended by Fr Groeschel.

There are prayers, meditation on the Cross of Christ, scripture readings and quotations included in the text.

This book is easy to read, particularly, for those who have experienced a catastrophe. It provides comfort and encouragement to move on in life, with courage, faith and hope. The prayers are beautiful and bring consolation. It is a good book to have, for support and to pray with.

Books

Title: Tears of God: Persevering in the Face of Great Sorrow or Adversity

Author: Benedict Groeschel, CFR

Publisher: Ignatius Press

Pages: 107

Call no.: 236GRO

The Pastoral Institute was established in 1978 to assist the Archbishop

in providing faith formation for the Catholic Archdiocese in Singapore.

Today, the Institute continues to carry out this responsibility in the

catechetical, biblical, and pastoral aspects of Christian ministry. In

addition, the Institute looks to the preparation of those who serve

the Church in various ministerial capacities, and identifies emerging

issues that have pastoral import on the life of the local Church.

This newsletter is published monthly for internal circulation within

the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore.

Staff:

Director: Arthur Goh

Director of Catechesis: Fr. Erbin Fernandez

Pastoral Research & NCCs: Daphne Leong

Ecumenism & Inter-Religious: Gerald Kong

Rite of Christian Initiation: Vacant

Pastoral Associate: Clement Leong

Coordinator of Parish Catechesis: Jane Lau

Asst Coord of Parish Catechesis: Isabel Ho

Catechetical Admin: Sylvia Stewart

Catechetical Admin Asst: Bernard Lim

Accounts: Teresa Hoe

Library: Angela Fernandez

Formation Courses: Janice Ng

Reception & Biblical Liaison: Melinda Reyes

Admin & Logistics: Randy Seow

Address: 2 Highland Road, #02-02,

Singapore 549102

Tel: +65 68583011

Fax: +65 68582011

Pastoral/Biblical: admin@catholicspi.org

Catechetical: catoffice@catholicspi.org

Web: www.catholicspi.org

backpage

bcc/L2 - church history

This is the Church history module for Level 2 of the Basic Catechist Course. Organised by the Catechetical Office. Conducted by Fr Tom Curran OCD.

5 Saturdays. June 22, 29, July 6, 13, 20. 9:30am-12:30pm. CAEC, 2 Highland Road. Contribution: $60. Contact Sylvia Stewart for registration.

What’s the Difference?Striving for Christian unity is an important work for all Catholics. But how are we different from the many other Christian churches? How can we know more about our brothers and sisters who are believers in Christ but who practice a different tradition? Deacon Sherman Kuek, director of Melaka-Johor Pastoral Institute, takes us through history to acquaint us with our non-Catholic Christian brethren.

Friday June 21, 8:00pm-10:00pm, Saturday June 22, 9:00am-4:30pm, and Sunday June 23, 9:00am-12:00pm. CAEC, 2 Highland Road. Contribution $60 (includes lunch on Saturday and study materials). Contact Melinda Reyes for registration.

pastoraL: bibLe-Mirror MethoD of gospeL sharing

Apart from studying the bible, Christians need to know how to encounter the Lord in praying with the scriptures. The Bible-Mirror method helps experienced Christian communities to hear and do God’s will in our fast paced society.

Friday, June 28, 7:30pm-9:30pm, Saturday, June 29, 10:00am-3:00pm. CAEC, 2 Highland Road. Voluntary Contribution. Contact Melinda Reyes for registration.

bcc/L2 - evangeLisation/Mission

Conducted by the Catechetical Office in collaboration with the NET Team.

Wednesdays. July 3, 10, 17. 7:00pm-10:00pm. Sunday, July 28, 2:00pm-6:00pm. CAEC, 2 Highland Road. Contribution: $60. Contact Sylvia Stewart for registration.