Throughout the world, ordinary people carry out an important mission of the Church – catechises. I am no priest or doctor of theology, but I am a catechist for high school students. Often times, people will ask me why I would ever want to do such a thing, as if it were some kind of cruel and unusual punishment. Personally, I find it to be quite the opposite.We all remember the raging hormones, ADD-like attention span, and the all out awkwardness of growing up and trying to find yourself. These teens live in a world that is trying to confuse them and distract them from God.<\/p>\n
The thought of even more un-catechised generations is not very reassuring that we would be doing God\u2019s work. They need Jesus. Teenagers today are starving for Truth after being fed so much that has left them hungry for more. Sure, they don\u2019t always openly verbalize their desire for Jesus and Truth, but they do express it in more subtle ways.<\/p>\n
These days, most catechises designed for teens is referred to as youth ministry. It may seem to have a newer approach, but it really is as old as the Church. Catechist are not simply expected to sit and dictate the teachings of the Church. The best education and formation of Christians comes from walking the journey with students and leading by example.<\/p>\n
As important as priests are in the evangelization and formation of the Church, they cannot do all the work alone. The laity, as in many other ministries, must be a driving force in the spiritual, emotion, and intellectual formation of our youth.<\/p>\n
We are moving toward a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as definitive and has as its highest value one\u2019s own ego and one\u2019s own desires. The church needs to withstand the tides of trends and the latest novelties. We must become mature in this adult faith, we must guide the flock of Christ to this faith.<\/p>\n
– Pope Benedict XVI<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\nFor all children, the first and primary teacher of the faith, should always be the parents. Some parents often forget this and leave the education to the titled catechist. Other parents on the other hand, don\u2019t feel the need to involve their children in the parish religious education programs. Both of these ignore the important opportunities of a communal and deeper formation.<\/p>\n
All Catholics need to have an understanding of the sacraments, the mass, saints, church history, and all the other important facets of our faith. It\u2019s possible to learn these all on our own, but growing without community will lack some of the gifts the Church has to offer us in community beyond the domestic church.![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/412px-Hristos_s_Apostolami_Siyskoe_Evangelie.jpg?resize=247%2C360\" "\\"412px-Hristos_s_Apostolami_Siyskoe_Evangelie\\"")
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The beauty of the Church is that we are never working alone, we inherit the rich treasures of the faith. There\u2019s no need for anyone to try and reinvent teachings – the Catechism of the Catholic Church is the best friend of a catechist. The Truths are there ready for just a slight addition of personality and perspective to communicate it effectively.<\/p>\n
Catechist don\u2019t need to be theological experts or spiritual gurus. Catechists simply need a\u00a0willingness to love and serve the Lord faithfully through His Church. The Church throughout the world is in need of greater presence of authentic witnesses to guide children, teens, and adults. We need more people to serve the Church as catechist.<\/p>\n
In the end, we can teach them every doctrine of the Church, but if we don\u2019t lead them to Jesus, they will lack a true relationship with Him. As we build our relationships with them, all that we do must point to the ultimate goal – heaven.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Throughout the world, ordinary people carry out an important mission of the Church – catechises. I am no priest or doctor of theology, but I am a catechist for high school students. Often times, people will ask me why I would ever want to do such a thing, as if it were some kind of… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,90],"tags":[255,109,256,155],"class_list":["post-5143","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-blog","category-faith-blog","tag-catechisis","tag-church","tag-parish","tag-youth-ministry","entry","has-post-thumbnail"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":153108,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2015\/09\/7-lessons-i-have-learned-serving-in-youth-ministry\/","url_meta":{"origin":5143,"position":0},"title":"Lessons I Have Learned Serving in Youth Ministry","author":"Crist\u00f3bal Almanza Herrera","date":"September 23, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Fall is an active time around most of our parishes, and it\u2019s a time full of incredible hope for another year of catechetics. I\u2019ve been blessed with almost a decade of working in youth ministry and witnessing the incredible ways that the Lord can work in the lives of high\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Faith"","block_context":{"text":"Faith","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/faith-blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Lessons I have learned in youth ministry","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/LessonsLearnedinYouthMinistry-550x275.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/LessonsLearnedinYouthMinistry-550x275.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/LessonsLearnedinYouthMinistry-550x275.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":966959,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2018\/06\/blessed-isidore-bakanja-martyr-of-the-brown-scapular\/","url_meta":{"origin":5143,"position":1},"title":"Blessed Isidore Bakanja – Martyr of the Brown Scapular","author":"Deacon Guadalupe Rodriguez","date":"June 25, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Blessed Isidore Bakanja is the first martyr of the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel whose feast we celebrate on Monday, July 16th. \u00a0Isidore Bakanja was a young black teenage martyr from the Boangi tribe in Zaire, Africa with plenty of zeal, valor, and faith for the gospel\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Column"","block_context":{"text":"Column","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/column\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/atxcatholic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/image1-116x190.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4756,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2011\/09\/how-stuff-works-cat-e-what-catechesis\/","url_meta":{"origin":5143,"position":2},"title":"How Stuff Works: Cat-e-what? (Catechesis)","author":"Rita Suva","date":"September 16, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"\u201cGo, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. \u2013Matthew 28:19-20a Ever see one of these and felt thoroughly confused? CCC, CCD, CEP, CYM,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/catechetical-sunday-300x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":41161,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/08\/be-not-afraid-a-catechist-who-almost-quit\/","url_meta":{"origin":5143,"position":3},"title":"Be Not Afraid: The Story of a Catechist Who Almost Quit","author":"Julia Motekaitis","date":"August 15, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"My first time teaching religious education was as a 22 year old, living at home with my parents after college, working in my first (miserable) full-time job and trying to plan a wedding remotely with no friends within a 45 mile radius. I was looking forward to a bright spot\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Faith"","block_context":{"text":"Faith","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/faith-blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Religion Fish sign","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/ichthus.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6879,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2011\/11\/young-adults-and-the-parish\/","url_meta":{"origin":5143,"position":4},"title":"Young Adults and the Parish","author":"Crist\u00f3bal Almanza Herrera","date":"November 8, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Looking back on my childhood, I am very grateful for the role that our parish had in my life. We prayed together, and we played together. Outside of school, the parish was everything to me and my family. That community consists of only a couple hundred families and is the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/parish.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":175085,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2015\/11\/organized-religion-good-humanity\/","url_meta":{"origin":5143,"position":5},"title":"Is Organized Religion Good For Humanity?","author":"Matthew Hartwick","date":"November 19, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I recently came across a website of an organization called \u201cFreedom from Religion\u201d which had a very specific goal: to help all people purge religion from their lives so that they could be \u201cfree.\u201d This view on religion is nothing new, and it isn\u2019t surprising that a movement is currently\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Faith"","block_context":{"text":"Faith","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/faith-blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pointing to Scripture","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/lightstock_167786_medium_cris_a-285x190.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5143"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5143\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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