A note from Debbie Stollery, Minister of Faith Formation
Did you know that our Holy Father, John Paul II calls adult formation "the principal form of catechesis?" In the document "Adult Catechesis in the Christian Community", issued in 1990, we are told that the Church regards adult catechesis as the path to follow as a disciple of Christ. Canon Law (217 and 774) tell us that adults in the church are people who have " a right and an obligation to be catechized just like everyone else."
It will come as no surprise that, despite these clear words, our parishes still devote the largest share of our resources to catechizing our children and youth. While providing an environment for children to grow in their relationship with Jesus and with his followers still remains an important function of a parish, the U.S. Bishop's pastoral passed in their November 1999 meeting makes it clear that this should not be the central task of catechesis in a parish. The resources and energy belong focused on the adults in a community, who by their age and maturity have a unique mandate to lives lives that glorify God, bring the Kingdom to bear and serve the Church.
Said more simply, the message of Christ and the work of the Church are adult concepts requiring adult minds and adult activities to bring them to life. While children know and respond to love, mercy, kindness and compassion, it takes adults to understand injustice, social action, transubstantiation, selflessness and love...not the warm fuzzy love of adolescents, but the mature demanding love of the covenant.
It will be some time before our church, which has focused itself almost exclusively on the religious education of our children, begins to invest in the formation of its adults in a like manner. We here at St. Mark want to begin by offering the adults of this parish opportunities to be rooted in the Word, knowledgeable about and thus better nourished by the sacraments, and aware of the Holy Spirit's work among us so that we may be guided by it. Watch for Little Rock Scripture Study, Small Faith Sharing groups, Parental Preparation for the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, reconciliation and eucharist. Look for enriching relationships, marriage information evenings, the communal celebrations of anointing of the sick, reconciliation and of marriage. Listen for and participate in discernment prayer for leaders of the community, in determining readiness to celebrate sacraments, and for the prophetic voice of the Spirit among us. And finally, see our works of social justice not as more nice things to do, but as a central expression of our belief in Jesus command to care for the least of our brothers and sisters.
May this year see every adult in this parish undertake at least one adventure into catechesis so that we may begin a new millennium prepared to share Good News!
A peaceful and adventuresome new year to all!
Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time
The term “eternal life” appears not only in today’s Gospel reading but
also in the Gospel readings of the last couple of Sundays. In each of
these readings, Jesus promises eternal life to anyone who eats His body and
drinks His blood. Let’s take a closer look at what this promise really
means.
Although people sometimes use the terms “eternal life” and “Immortality”
interchangeably, the two terms really do not mean the same thing even though
they both describe something that will never end. The distinction between
these two terms becomes clear, however, when we focus on the beginning of what
they describe rather than their ending. An immortal person did not always
exist; he or she had a beginning. On the other hand, an eternal person
always existed; there was never a time when it didn’t exist and there won’t
be a time when it won’t exist. We have to understand this distinction
when trying to grasp the meaning of Jesus’ teaching in today’s Gospel.
Notice that Jesus does not promise us immortality but eternal life. Since
God is the only being who has always existed, only God possesses eternal life.
Therefore, when Jesus promises eternal life to those who eat His body and drink
His blood, He is promising that God will share His own life with them.
Normally, we share our lives only with the people whom we love and those whom we
consider special. Therefore, we can conclude that God offers to share His
life with us because He loves us and because He considers us special. This
is a central teaching of our Christian faith as well as one of its greatest
mysteries.
For
Reflection ...
Relationships don’t just happen. We need to work on them and develop
them. What specific steps are you taking to strengthen your relationship
with God? How much time and effort do you devote each day to developing
this relationship?
"Cycling Through the Gospels" copyright 1991 by Jerome J. Sabatowich
Published by Resource Publications, Inc. Reprinted with permission under license number 6115.)
Here are some links of interest from a recent article "Now that I'm on-line, where do I go? Creating Catholic Interactive Websites.