UNDERSTANDING CATECHESIS

Definition of Catechesis

Catechesis is an ecclesial ministry of formation in the Christian faith imparted to the baptized generally in an organic and systematic way, with a view to initiate and lead them to maturity of faith and fullness of Christian life. (GDC, 21; CT 18; CCC 5, GDC 30).

Catechesis is intended to make a person faith more living, conscious, and active through the light of instruction. The General Directory for Catechesis defined catechesis as “distinct from the primary proclamation of the Gospel; it promotes and matures initial conversion, educates the convert in the faith and incorporates him/her into the Christian community” (GDC, 61). It is a moment in the process of evangelization and a period of formation and apprenticeship in the whole Christian life. Catechesis initiates one into the knowledge of faith and apprenticeship in the Christian life, thereby promoting a spiritual journey which brings about a progressive change in outlook and morals.

The GDC says “catechesis is the term used for the form of ecclesial action which leads both communities and individuals members of the faithful to maturity of faith” (General Catechetical Directory, 21).

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church and Catechesi Tradendae “catechesis is an education in the faith of children, young people and adults which includes especially the teaching of the Christian doctrine imparted, generally speaking, in an organic and systematic way, with a view of initiating the hearers into the fullness of Christian life (CCC 5; CT 18). Catechesis is for the maturation of the faith of Christians and for their witness in the world; it is aimed at helping Christians to attain to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God.

Meaning of the Term Catechesis

Catechesis comes from the Greek word Katecheo which means ‘to sound from above’ ‘to echo or’ ‘to hand down’, in the Greek context, this word is used to refer to poets addressing their hearers from a stage. But in common use, two meaning have developed:

(i) to recount something or someone or to inform someone or something

(ii) to instruct or to teach something to someone.

In the New Testament, on some occasions we find this term signifying the ‘instruction given by the mouth’ (Lk 1:4; Acts 18:25; Rom 2:18; 1 Cor 14: 19; Gal 6:6). In the Bible, there is also another commonly used word didakein or didache, which means teach or teaching. The word diackein is used to refer to the teaching act of Jesus. In the Greek context the word didakein is used for the authentic teaching act of philosophers, who have some inspiration or revelation. Hence the didakein is authentic teaching while katekein is an instruction given to someone in the teaching of an authentic person. In order to make distinction between the teaching of Jesus and the teaching act of the Apostles, St. Paul uses the word katekein. According to him catechesis mean the instruction given by the Apostles on the teaching of the Lord. The Church uses this word catechesis to refer to that particular mode of Christian instruction, imparted to the believer, either baptized or aspiring to be baptized, in the teaching of the Lord, by an authorized person of the Church.

In the Patristic period, the word catechesis received the precise significance of the fundamental teaching of the Christian faith in the context of the catechumenate. The term continued to be used down through the history of the Christian Church to designate an oral instruction. After the reformation, however, it seems to have become an exclusively Catholic word, and it is a common term in Catholic circles today.

What is Catechesis?

Catechesis holds an important place in the life and mission of the Church because it is the form and part of the ministry of the World. It is the proclamation of the Good News to be baptized believers in order to deepen and sustain them in mature Christian faith. Formerly, catechesis was considered an instruction in faith given to children or catechumens alone, while now it is understood as an ongoing process in the life of Christian which fosters their faith till the end of their life. Catechesis id faith formation and it is the process of forming Christ (Gl. 4:19) in the individual and community. Catechesis is a ministry of the Word that calls the community to stronger faith. Faith is at the centre of Christian life. It is a personal adherence to God and a free assent to the whole truth that God has revealed. “Christian faith is a life lived in response to the Kingdom of God in Jesus Christ.” (Christian Religious Education: Sharing Our Story and Vision, GROOM T.H).

The purpose of catechesis is to bring faith to life and life to faith for both the individual and community. The Church give priority to catechesis than any other activity since it is intimately bound up with the whole of the Church’s life.

Why Catechesis?

Catechesis is the mission of the Church. Jesus entrusted this mission to his disciples. “As my Father has sent me even I send you’ (Jn.20:21). Again Jesus said to them “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Mt 28:19). “The Church on earth is by its very nature missionary since, according to the plan of the Father, it has its origin in the mission of his Son and the Holy Spirit”(AG,2). Catechesis is regarded as the most significant and most important activity of the Church.

Catechesis is a ministry of the Church. It is part or form of the ministry of the Word. The Church is called upon to establish the Kingdom of God. The Church is called upon to establish the Kingdom of God and thus make Christ’s salvific spirit operative. This is the mission of the Church. This mission has various aspects: the ministry of the Word, the ministry of Worship, the ministry of guidance. These three ministries are the continuation of the ministries of Christ namely, prophet, priest and king and they are complementary. The ministry of the Word is the fulfillment of the ministry of prophecy; the ministry of worship is fulfilled in the liturgical celebration and the ministry of the guidance is carried out through the education of the Christian community. There are four forms of ministry of the Word: Evangelization, catechesis, homily and theology. Catechesis is the second form of the ministry of the Word, the Ministry of the Word is a pioneering ministry among the ministries of the Church, because in the process of making disciples of Christ, it is through the ministry of the word that the Kingdom of God is proclaimed and introduced.

Catechesis is the right and duty of the Church. The Church has always regarded catechesis as a sacred duty and an inalienable right. It is a duty, which comes form the final command of Christ, that is, a call to the ministry of being pastors. Another important factor that the Church discovers in this work of catechesis is that she finds in catechesis a strengthening of her internal life as a community of believers and of her external activity as a missionary Church.

Communication of faith is one of the primary tasks of the Church. If Christianity is still alive today after two thousand years, both in free and in some communist countries, it is because of the activity of handing down the faith, either orally or in writing, by those who believe in and are committed to the person of Jesus of Nazareth. This act of communicating the faith is called evangelization and catechesis. It is used in the New Testament as an oral instruction in which a very simple explanation (one step beyond the kerygma) was given to the people as milk rather than solid food is given to children. The message was spoken orally.

(Groome, 1978, p. 18).

Catechesi Tradendae defines Catechesis as "education of children, young people and adults in the faith ...especially the teaching of Christian doctrine imparted in an organic and systematic way with a view to initiating the hearer into the fullness of Christian life". (Catechesi Trudendae, no.18). ‘Catechesis leads both community & individual members of the faithful to maturity of faith’
(General Catechetical Directory, 21 (1971)).

EVANGELIZATION

Evangelization takes on different meanings, but the most popular and common meaning is that "activity whereby the Gospel is proclaimed and explained, whereby living faith is awakened in non-Christians and fostered in Christians"

(Evangelization of Asia Today, 1972, p.1).

Technically, it is defined as "the proclamation of the Good News of salvation to all, generating new creatures in Christ through Baptism, and training them to live knowingly as children of God"

(The Catholic School, 1978, no. 7).

Pope Paul VI defines evangelization as “bringing the Good News into all strata of humanity, and through its influence transforming humanity from within and making it new: ‘Now I am making the whole of creation new’”