Fr. Robert Barron issued a call to arms in response to what he called “The Depressing Pew Forum Study.”
He wrote:
“We need a new army of priests, sisters, teachers and catechists who love this [Catholic] tradition enough to know it inside and out-and who have the passion to pass it on. As I have argued before, we have instructors in our Catholic high schools, who are willing and able to communicate “Hamlet” and Virgil’s “Aeneid” to young people. Why not some masters willing and able to pass on Aquinas and Dante?”
So how do we go about raising such an army?
Fr. Barron mentions two key factors that must be addressed to make this happen. The army needs to know the tradition inside out, and it needs to have a love and passion for it.
Knowing the tradition
Knowing the tradition is not really the problem.
It would be one thing if there were no way for people to learn. But many parishes offer adult faith formation classes. Most diocesan religious education offices hold catechist training programs. Every priest is capable of teaching the basics of the Faith.
And, even if parishes don’t have those opportunities, there’s lots of DVDs from incredible teachers, like Fr. Barron.
The problem of passion
The real problem is the second factor…passion!
I often talk to people that know they should understand the Faith better. However, they don’t do anything about it. Life drowns out the real, but distant, priority of the eternal.
We have a crisis of evangelization. This foundational step must be implemented before any real catechesis can take place.
It really is not happening on a consistent basis. If it was, passion wouldn’t be such a problem. All catechesis must be evangelizing or it won’t be effective.
Catechetical takeaway
How can we address this problem of passion?
- First, preach the Word of God from the pulpit in a way that is irresistible and instills a longing for deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. We complain that people are complacent and feel like they don’t need Jesus. It’s our job to motivate them and create a perceived need for Jesus.
- Second, communicate the richness of the Catholic Faith and how it enhances life. Get them to understand how they are missing something by not delving deeper! Create a sense of urgency to take advantage of this richness here and now.
- Third, believe all this yourself and live in a way that shows you do.
Until we do these things, nothing will change. We will have no army.
This is a call to arms! But the solution is not an easy fix. It requires a fundamental shift but it can be done!
Who is willing to take up and fight?
In yesterday’s gospel, Jesus tells his disciples, “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!” We catechists have to be on fire in order to ignite the hearts of those we teach. How do we become firebrands? By deeper personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The better our prayer lives, the closer we get to the source of all passion. As the disciples realized after Jesus left them near Emmaus, “Were not our hearts burning within us?” It is nothing less than the presence of Jesus himself who sets our lives on fire.nnWe cannot give what we do not have. We must have an active, consistent prayer life. If the fire of Christ truly burns within us, we can’t help but attract others to the Light.nnThanks for the thought-provoking post!
You are so right Nick. I’ve been thinking a lot about that lately after reading on Adam Mclane’s blog about how maybe the attitudes of catechists and teachers can be partially to blame for the Moral Therapeutic Deism in teens today. I went to an explanatory Mass last night that was awesome! The priest was so inspiring and energizing because of his huge enthusiasm and obvious love for the Lord. It just spilled out of him when he talked about the Mass. It really made a difference. And, that kind of fire only comes from us having a deep relationship with our Lord. Thanks for the comments.
I’m not really a catechist (unless blogging and friendly conversation counts), but I’ve found that it is easiest for me to talk about the faith when I am taking time for prayer. It’s not really surprising. After all, Jesus himself kept retiring to mountains and deserts in order to pray before ministering to the people again.nnYet at times I seem to forget this. Praying the Rosary only takes 15 minutes, but I’m a lot more effective when I do it. 🙂
I think that, in terms of this army Fr. Barron is talking about, blogging and conversation do count. Yes, I forget this too, but praying does make me much more effective. Thanks for the comment.
“All catechetical endeavors must be evangelistic or they wonu2019t be effective.” rnrnVery, very well put. I must say you have got at the core motivation in my catechesis to middle-schoolers. If I did not badly want them to know what I know about the One True Church, God, the Bible, etc., I don’t why I would bother to be in the classroom.rnrnI pray that enough of these kids will develop their own evangelistic fervor such that within my lifetime there may be a rebirth of robust, substantial catechesis.
That is a great prayer for all of us Christian. I pray that as well.
Hi MarcrnThanks for a great article. I would agree that passion is the key. The vast evangelizing work needed in the post-Christian secular milieu can be daunting for Catholic catechists. We can’t do it all, even tho’ we’d like to see the world ablaze. But we can do the work Christ has given us with passion, and let the Holy Spirit see to its efficacy – with results that often surpass what we thought possible.rn Tony CosentinornCanada
Thanks for the comments Tony. I think you’re right that the great work needed in evangelization can be daunting…especially for Catholics. I would love to see a time when training and programs in evangelization are widespread and how we do this well is not such a mystery. But it’s true, we can only do our little part that Christ has given us with passion and with love. And, the Holy Spirit is the one who sees to the effectiveness of the work. I hope we all see those results surpass what we think possible.
I couldn’t agree more! I believe teaching people to pray is the single most important thing we can do. I probably should have included it in that list.
Thanks for the comment.