How Much Theology Is Necessary for Catechesis?

Theology can't make up for the lack of a decent liturgy or liturgical catechesis.

“Theology curriculums designed for learning at several levels just might be the key to attracting them to life in Christ.”

In his Word on Fire Blog, @MixaRobert discusses @BishopBarron’s challenge to theology teachers to not “dumb down” the faith: https://t.co/GjI0jIGGWl pic.twitter.com/uUe5uzzAoD

— Word on Fire (@WordOnFire) July 12, 2021

Universal Teacher and Universal Pastor

But is it really his to appropriate in the name of the Church Universal, as if he had the authority to do so, rather than being a bishop recognizing that the prayer is a valuable part of a Christian tradition that is useful for all?

At this morning’s general audience, Pope Francis encouraged busy Catholics to say the “Jesus Prayer” throughout the day. https://t.co/AqAPlZ0cDl

— Catholic News Agency (@cnalive) June 9, 2021

Where's the Video of His Prayer Life?

What's stirring about his clip isn't that, 50 years ago, a kid could describe the humility of Christ. What's stirring is that this kid describes Christ's humility with conviction. He believes it. He loves it. He desires it. Every catechetical program can turn out kids like this. https://t.co/R1gyOWctgH

— Fr. Aquinas Guilbeau, OP (@FrAquinasOP) May 4, 2021

Catechesis does only so much.

Latin Catechesis?

This is why we need kids at Mass. You think some adult is going to shout “it’s blood time” when it is, in fact, blood time? https://t.co/YQQWSYtaLt

— Fr. David Paternostro, SJ (@DavidPaternostr) March 21, 2021

What would the alternative to this understanding be? Christ is becoming present on the altar? Christ comes to dwell with us?

Spinning the New Directory for Catechesis

Check out the second episode of our podcast, Echoing Faith Today, in which @BishopBarron joins host Dr. Jem Sullivan for an enriching discussion of the new Directory for Catechesis, emphasizing the link between Revelation and evangelization! https://t.co/FJXZ0ONGZT

— CatholicU Theology and Religious Studies (@CUATheology) September 6, 2020

If such an essential connection between kerygma and catechesis needed to be emphasized again, even though many were writing about it before Vatican II and after, then how is the patriarchate of Rome or the Roman Curia not just spinning its wheels?

Kerygmatic Catechesis?

The English translation of the new General Directory for Catechesis is not out yet, so I can't what it says about "kerygmatic catechesis" but I can guess at the meaning, catechesis that is based on othe kerygma and makes use of the kerygma. But what other sort of catechesis is possible, if it is truly catechesis? Yes, there may be worse or less effective forms of catechesis, especially one that is too based on rationalistic apologetics or neo-scholasticism. 

Directory called ‘fresh, focused tool’ that will ‘enhance’ evangelization 

Bishop Barron:

Barron added: “The directory’s call for a ‘kerygmatic catechesis’ affirms the conference’s (USCCB’s) recent focus on the importance of living as missionary disciples. The authentic proclamation of the Gospel leads to the conversion of hearts and minds, which cannot help but manifest that ‘missionary impulse capable of transforming everything’ with the healing power of the Holy Spirit.”

But what is another bureaucratic paper weight going to do about the fact that the patriarchate of Rome suffers not only from a lack of proper catechesis but also from a lack of a proper reminding of the kerygma, which is to be found not only in Holy Scripture but the Roman rite? What sort of catechesis is possible when it makes no reference to the treasury of the Roman rite, given the discontinuity that exists between the extraordinary form and the ordinary form, and when the people have very little familiarity with it, even if they attend Mass on every Sunday?

The problems plaguing the patriarchate will not be solved by instructions from a central authority if it is not accompanied by other forms, and this is assuming the new General Directory itself is free of problems.

Related:
The Content of the Kerygma - Good News for the World!
What is the Kerygma
The Kerygma for Catholics

Dominican Catechesis

Tradivox, Again

Tradivox: Where Latin tradition of the second millenium is identified with the Tradition of the Church Universal.

1P5: Tradivox: Bringing Solid Catechisms to the Hungry Faithful

Which catechism is the best?
We get asked this constantly, and the answer really depends on how you measure. A few certainly stand out. The Roman Catechism remains the most authoritative. There are the priceless historical works of Saints Canisius and Bellarmine. The excellent little catechism of Pope St. Pius X must be mentioned, and the extensively reprinted Baltimore Catechism comes to mind for many Americans. These would be a few of the more significant texts in the genre.
Are these your own personal favorites?
Actually, no. My personal favorites are some of the more obscure texts, mostly for devotional reasons. I’ve grown to deeply love the Catholic martyrs and confessors from the early years of the Anglican schism, so there are several catechisms “baptized in blood” from that period that are dear to me — Vaux, Turberville, Doulye, and White, to name a few. The later, more compendious works of Bp. George Hay and Fr. Michael Müller are some other favorites.
The catechisms must all have fascinating histories.
Yes, there are so many stories. We try to give some of that backdrop in the preface of each volume, hoping to assist readers in experiencing a greater spiritual kinship with our Catholic forebears. I recall one man sharing with us that after reading Volume 1 of our Index, he not only learned things about the Faith that he had never heard (after years of Catholic schooling), but was also deeply moved by reading with awareness that these texts were very much written “by martyrs, for martyrs.”

The Eucharist and the Real Presence

Is the same old catechesis coupled with more second millennium Latin (paraliturgical) Eucharistic devotions the answer?

Latin traditionalists might say yes, it is a partial solution. (A return to the EF would be an additional part.) I suppose the Latin bishops in the U.S. have a few years to try before they are overwhelmed by other developments.

Freskenzyklus mit Szenen aus dem Leben des Hl. Martin von Tours, Kapelle in Unterkirche San Francesco in Assisi, Szene: Die wundersame Messe des Hl. Martin

Master of the Rio Frio. Altarpiece of St. Martin (Spanish; c. 1500). Musée de Cluny, Paris.

Oxford. Bodleian Library. Psalter.

I think it is the typical representation of the Mass, choosing the elevation of the Host during the Consecration as the key or representative moment, and this is undoubtedly linked to the Latin notion of sacrifice as it is applied to the redemptive work of Christ, focused primarily (though probably not exclusively) on Christ's death on the cross. Even if the elevation was originally modified to a greater height for the purpose of affirming the Real Presence and showing the Gifts to the people so that they may adore Christ, in response to heresies denying the Real Presence of Christ in the Gifts, I think in the "traditional" popular Latin understanding of the Mass offering/"sacrifice" has impacted how the elevation is understood. We can see this mentality present in the association of the elevation (both before and after the reform of Eudes de Sully?) with the elevation of Christ in the cross in allegorical explanations of the Mass. Or in the theological explanation (one seemingly warranted by the liturgical texts themselves) that the Church offers Christ to the Father.

See the "Mass of St. Gregory":

End of 15th century

1490

Diego Huanitzin

The new offertory prayer in the Pauline/Bugninian reform was probably invented and not recovered from the Roman liturgical tradition, but it does seem to be more in accord with the Eucharist being a development and perfection of Jewish Thanksgiving/korban. Who was responsible for its creation? I am not sure if Bouyer addressed that part of the reform specifically.

If sacrifice were understood instead as Thanksgiving for the gifts we receive from the Father (and ultimately the Thanksgiving of the Son to the Father), what would be the best pictorial representation of the Eucharist? The presbyteros at the altar united with the Christian people in prayer (and all facing East)? (How would this be distinguished from some other prayer service, except by inclusion of the Holy Vessels and Holy Gifts in the picture?) The reception of the Holy Gifts by the people?

See for example, this image from the 15th-century Calderini Pontifical:

The elevation could be understood as an affirmation of the Real Presence in this particular Holy Mystery (Sacrament), and one necessary component of the Son's Thanksgiving, the Son Himself, who desires that we share in His life by receiving Him in the Holy Gifts, which have been given to us by the Father. This is the core of the (Christian) Mystery, the Gospel, but I think a new catechetical explanation of the Eucharist would be required for Latins to modify their understanding.

I am curious as to how old the offertory prayer is in the DL of St. John Chrysostom, and if there are analogues in the other rites and how far back they date.



Can someone really render thanks to God if he does not respect or have holy fear of God? How many have received a counterfeit Gospel and heresy instead of the authentic Saving Message Who is Christ?

Restoring Liturgical Catechesis

More Apologetics-Based Catechesis?

Crisis: A Remedy for the Catechetical Poverty of Our Time by Christian Browne

How about something that is based on presenting salvation history through the Roman liturgy tradition and Sacred Scripture? Or would that be too much to ask of the Pauline Missal?

Old School is Better than New School

CWR: Memorization and Catechesis: What really works? by Nicholas Senz
Too many catechists have neglected to teach the meaning of the key words of our faith, only to lament that the children do not understand them, and then declare that they must be set aside.

Youth Ministry?

Church Life: Discipleship Isn’t as Exciting as Youth Ministry Makes It Seem by Timothy O'Malley

My adaptation of Fr. Giussani’s method of education involves three dimensions: provocation, hypothesis, and verification. This method of catechesis depends on the authority of a teacher who knows his or her students, who is capable of serving as an authentic source of authority and love. It is an approach that is long-term, requiring the building of a relationship over years.

The first dimension of this method is provocation. Provocation is not equivalent to getting someone’s attention. Too often, the large events discussed above, get someone’s attention. They provoke an experience of social solidarity that is unparalleled. But the “event” fails to provoke additional questions—it stands as an experience apart from life.

Giussani’s understanding of provocation is different. The human being has been made to ask ultimate questions. What is the meaning of life? What is love? What is authentic friendship? For Giussani, each human being has this religious sense, this orientation to the ultimate that sin has not destroyed.

But, the human person also has been taught to not ask such questions. We embrace ideologies that make it impossible to wonder, to ask questions that matter. We do not ask about the meaning of life, about the nature of love, or what constitutes real friendship. Instead, we simply live our day-to-day lives, a kind of practical atheism whereby only the visible and tangible matter.

The goal of provocation is to reawaken the young person to asking questions. A good teacher provokes not through emotional manipulation but daring to ask the ultimate questions to the student. Students want to talk about the nature of love. They want to discuss friendship. They want to be provoked.

Big events can be aids to provocation. They may allow the student to enter into the kind of liminal space where they do ask the big questions. But, it is not the “event” that is the telos of such formation. It is the moment of provocation, the moment in which the student asks, “What is the meaning of life?”

Christian provocation has two key dimensions. First, provocation is always grounded in the scriptures. It is Jesus Christ who is the answer to the human heart’s deepest longings. It is the God-man, fully human and fully divine, who provokes in us the ultimate question: What does it mean to be human, now that God has dwelt among us? A “big event” approach to ministry cannot attend to the one-on-one conversations that are necessary for good provocation.

Second, provocation emphasizes beauty, silence, and contemplation. Provocation is an inward awakening, for every person has to ask the ultimate questions on his or her own. Too often, big events in ministry overwhelm the young Christian, functioning almost as a saturated phenomenon, taking away all capacity for wonder. We need to allow space for the young person to work on his or her inner life, to encounter the ultimate questions that are always present in the human heart, if only we listened. Who am I? What is my destiny? Learning to attend to these questions is not simply a task of the young adult but an essential task of Christian maturity.

Addressing the Mechanical Reception of the Eucharist

and lukewarmness among children.

Even if the traditional Christian initiation for infants is adopted/restored in the West (Baptism, Chrismation, and Eucharist), what should be done by parents to catechize their children? Should there be a "coming-of-age" ceremony, with first confession and a special rite for Eucharist for children, so that they can renew their promises and show their rational acceptance of faith? This idea does not sound right, but I wouldn't be surprised if some were to advocate it.

What then? Those who do have their children initiated have a special responsibility to catechize their children well, and thus they have the burden to make sure that they themselves are properly catechized, rather than relying on others to catechize their children for them. Catechesis through the liturgy should probably be the primary way for doing this, and parents should explain the importance of a feast before Divine Liturgy, or after if necessary. They should be modelling prayer in the temple and at home. And if they do not have the requisite knowledge or prayer life to model for their children? Maybe they shouldn't have their children initiated, unless in danger of death.

Choosing Christ

Was reading some books about the history of Confirmation in the Patriarchate of Rome. Not it would follow that if children were to not be given the sacraments of initiation as infants, that the number of Catholics who fall-away later in life would decrease, as the total number of Catholics would decrease, and the only neophytes would be of adult age, or close to it.

Still, if it is necessary, as Baptists claim(?), for people to make a deliberate decision to become Christian before being initiated, then is there a case to be made, in light of the number of Catholics who fall away from the practice of the faith in their adolescence and young adulthood, that Catholics (and Apostolic Christians in general) should refrain from initiating their children until they've attained the age of reason or after? Or are we merely seeing the effects of generations of poorly-catechized Catholics who've never been properly introduced to the practice of prayer and Christian spirituality and made them their own just doing with their own children what their parents did?

Educating in Christ

μωραίνει Κύριος ον βούλεται απολέσαι

German bishop wants to make 16 years the minimum age for the reception of Confirmation: German Bishop Suspends Confirmation For Four Years

News on the ROC Catechism

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill told members of the Bishops’ Council about the preparation of the Catechesis of the Russian Orthodox Church (via Byz TX)

Catechism of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Is an Achievement

Russian Orthodox Catechism Progresses to Next and Last Phase

Exercises in Orthodox catechism in Moscow by Stefano Caprio (via Byz TX)