I think the word “catechesis” can be part of the problem when it comes to embracing the Church’s catechetical efforts. It is the ugly step-sister of “evangelization.”

Think about it. Evangelization is hip. According to Pope John Paul II, it’s “new” and exciting and capable of energizing the youth. After all, evangelization is about proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ. Everybody, Catholic and Protestant, is into that.

Catechesis, on the other hand, sounds foreign to many people. For all most people know, it’s an unpleasant procedure done at a doctor’s office. And even for those who might have an inkling as to what catechesis is, it certainly doesn’t conjure up the dynamic images of World Youth Day. Rather, to many it connotes the decidedly negative experience of mandatory CCD classes that bored them out of their minds--and often enough, out of the Church. 

Let’s look, then, at a more positive, biblically based understanding of catechesis, which nonetheless closely parallels the formal definition found in the glossary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Shortly before ascending to His Father, Our Lord commanded the eleven apostles to go “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 commanded you . . .”  (Mt. 28:19-20).

That is what catechesis is all about: forming disciples who sit at the feet of Jesus, leading them to the sacramental life of the Church, and instructing them in the body of teaching that Christ entrusted to His apostles (what we Catholics often call the “deposit of faith,” drawing upon imagery found in St. Paul’s letters to St. Timothy).

It would be great if the word “catechesis” were rehabilitated, but even more we need to foster a renewal of the substance to which the word refers. In other words, now is the time for us to recommit ourselves to the Church’s catechetical mission--a mission in which all of us share as members of Christ’s mystical body.

It's good to be back! I didn't have a chance to post here at Catholic Hour most of last week. I was attending a catechetical conference at Franciscan University of Steubenville, where I was letting people know about our new online courses here at My Catholic Faith Delivered. Besides being on the short list of excellent Catholic colleges and universities, Franciscan University also hosts some fantastic conferences during the summer. For more information, click here.

Speaking of catechesis, last week I likened the deposit of faith--all that Christ has revealed to us through His Church--to a bank deposit, with the Church being the bank and the apostles and bishops having special authority to safeguard this deposit so that it might bear interest for the kingdom of God.

Another way of approaching this reality is to think of the Church’s Magisterium, or teaching office, as a fence or wall. If the deposit of faith is understood as a body of teachings regarding what we are to believe and how we are to live as Christians in the world, one important role of the Magisterium is to give this body definition and shape. More...

“O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you” (1 Tim. 6:20).

This sort of language is a recurring theme of St. Paul as he instructs his successor Timothy. In fact, St. Paul tells Timothy that “what you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim. 2:2; see also 2 Tim. 1:14).

But what exactly was entrusted to Timothy? More...

Fifteen years ago, while editing Lay Witness magazine, we were creating an ad for the (then) new Catechism of the Catholic Church, opposing it to a fictitious "Catechism 'Lite.'" You know what I'm talking about: only half the commandments of the regular Catechism, and one-third the doctrines.

Over the past couple decades we've seen countless variations of this humorous (and, to our sorrow, often accurate) description of an approach to Catholic faith and life that is watered down, minimalistic, and largely uninspiring. In fact, we might say "Catechism lite" or "Catholicism lite" and not have to complete the thought. More...

Not long ago I was asked, "Is there anywhere a list of the definitive moral teachings of the Church? Would it be correct to call anyone a dissenter who dissents from a teaching in the Catechism even if it not on a list of definitive teachings?"

Probably the closest thing to a comprehensive list of definitive moral teachings, in the context of offenses against human life and dignity, would be More...

I've been involved in many discussions with Christians who have axes to grind with the Catholic Church. It seems that every time I patiently answer one of their grievances, they come up with five more!

It typically comes down to an assessment that the Catholic Church can’t be the true Church because the Church isn’t holy. It’s a big, money-grubbing bureaucracy with wealthy bishops, pedophile priests, and ignorant, superstitious laity. How could such an institution claim to have the “fullness of truth”? Why can’t I just pray to God in my own way and with my own Bible without having to pay homage to this corrupt institution?

Our apostolic faith teaches us that we believe in “one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.” The Church’s unity, or “one-ness,” can be quite a challenge for many, given the many divisions among Christians. Yet, I think the holiness of the Church may be even more difficult to understand and accept at first blush than the Church’s unity. After all, the Church is composed of frail, weak, sinful human beings, yet we have the gall to say the Church is holy. More...

During the Easter season we rejoice in Christ’s Resurrection. What’s not to like about Easter? Yet to really appreciate the gift and blessings of Easter, we do well to consider what Christ’s Resurrection ultimately saves us from. For that reason, I thought I would list six things everybody should know about hell, drawn from Catechism of the Catholic Church, nos. 1033-37: More...

Our Lord’s descent into hell, under whose aegis Holy Saturday stands liturgically in the Church’s year, is an article of faith that is of particular significance to modern man. On Good Friday we contemplated Christ on the Cross, and now beginning on Easter Sunday we celebrate Christ’s Resurrection.

In between, on Holy Saturday, the words of Nietzsche, if not his underlying meaning, are entirely appropriate: “God is dead, and we have killed Him.”

Too often, our own experience is that God is effectively dead in our midst. The scandal of the death of Christendom, coupled with the alarming rise of aggressive secular atheism, shakes the very foundations of our being. More...

A few days ago, I wrote this post about the merits of the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, explaining how it wonderfully summarizes the Catechism for us in a very helpful format. Yet, that begs the question of the value and purpose of the Catechism itself, this 900-page beast on my desk. Why do we keep this space-eater on our desks or in our bookcases? More...

Since its publication in 2006, and even more so in recent months as I’ve grown increasingly accustomed to using it, I’ve thought the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church is a godsend to all who are involved in teaching (and learning) the Catholic faith.

Of course, being a document of the Holy See and published in the United States by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops isn’t the recipe for a best-seller. Surely the book’s title is accurate, as a “compendium” is a brief summary of a larger work, but it’s not as accessible or endearing as The Catechism for Dummies or Cliff Notes for the Catechism. I’ve found it shocking that many Catholic school teachers and catechists are still unfamiliar with the Catechism itself, let alone its “compendium.”

But marketing concerns aside, I want to provide five reasons why everyone who is interested in teaching (and learning) the Catholic faith should own a copy of the Compendium:  More...

In the Disney film Lion King, when the lion cub Simba is born, he is lifted before the throng of animals, and all of them (as well as animated animals can) kneel or bow out of reverence before the child who one day would be their king.

Reverence is the virtue that empowers us to give appropriate honor and respect to others, especially to God. Since it is a virtue, or habit, certain practices help us to grow in reverence, which is a necessary building block for growth in Christian holiness. Some such practices are part of Church law and practice, such as kneeling during the Consecration at Mass, when Our Lord becomes truly present on the altar. Other traditional practices are well established in Catholic piety and devotion, such as genuflecting before a tabernacle, bowing one's head at the name of Jesus during the Hail Mary (cf. Phil. 2:5-11), and maintaining a respectful silence in God's house before and after Mass.

Much more can be said about the nature of reverence and the many ways we can foster it in our families and parishes. Here I'd simply like to point out one opportunity at Mass that is frequently missed. More...

Welcome to "Catholic Hour," the new blog of My Catholic Faith Delivered!

Our goal is to provide posts that will not only inform you about the Catholic faith, but also inspire and challenge you to make the faith come alive in your lives. We will do our best to engage you, not only through online discussions and interesting links (and occasional humor!) but even more by calling you--and us--to be all that God has created us to be.

Over the next couple weeks, we will take a closer look at what we mean by "Catholic Hour." Today we'll start with "Catholic." Clearly we're a Catholic site. After all, we're My Catholic Faith Delivered. We're upfront and joyfully unapologetic in our presentation of what the Catholic Church actually teaches.

Now, the word "Catholic" has many different connotations, some positive and some negative. For some people, "Catholic" implies the exclusion of those who aren't Catholic, or maybe just "not Catholic enough." For that reason, I want to be clear that we are Catholic in the widest, most inclusive sense. All are welcome here. To explain how that can be, let me introduce you to my patron saint, St. Ignatius of Antioch. More...

The first and foremost revealed truth about our Blessed Mother, from which all her other roles and honors flow, is that she is the Mother of God.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (no. 509) summarizes the teaching as follows: “Mary is truly ‘Mother of God’ since she is the mother of the eternal Son of God made man, who is God himself.” The title “Mother of God” points to the sublime truth of the Incarnation, that Jesus Christ is true God and true man.

The Church’s teaching concerning Mary’s divine maternity is deeply rooted in Scripture and Tradition, and was dogmatically defined at the Council of Ephesus in 431. The Church celebrates this mystery of our Catholic faith every year on this date. (And you just thought it was New Year's!)

For many Catholics, Mary’s “divine maternity”--in other words, her status as the “Mother of God”--is almost second nature. One of our oldest and most recited prayers, the Hail Mary, explicitly invokes “Holy Mary, Mother of God.” We typically call Mary our “Blessed Mother,” which points to our participation in the divine life as adopted children of God (cf. Rom. 8:15-17; Gal. 4:4-7; Rev. 12:17). Yet we could not call her our Blessed Mother unless she was first and foremost His Blessed Mother.

Since the fifth century, Mary’s title as “Mother of God” has been firmly established, and is easily the least controversial of the Christian doctrines concerning Mary. This teaching is a good starting point for ecumenical discussion and, as will be shown below, preserves correct teaching concerning who Jesus Christ is.

Now that we celebrated Christ's birth last week, let's take a closer look at His mother, from whom “the Word became flesh” (Jn. 1:14). More...