1. Welcome
Introduce yourself
Introduce the Effective Catechetical Leader series as a joint effort between Loyola Press and the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership (NCCL)

2. That’s SO last millennium!
The Effective DRE
Explain that the original collaboration was titled The Effective DRE series and that it was published in the late 1990s
Talk about how the Church, society, and the world have experienced significant changes in these past several decades leading to the need to revise the series
NCCL approached Loyola Press about collaborating on a revision several years ago and the new series came to fruition in 2017.
That’s SO last millennium!

3. The Effective Catechetical Leader
Do a brief overview of the titles and their authors:
Called by Name: Preparing Yourself for the Vocation of Catechetical Leader – Joe Paprocki (National Consultant for Faith Formation, Loyola Press)
Catechetical Leadership: What It Should Look Like, How It Should Work, and Whom It Should Serve – Adrian Alberto Herrera (Associate Director for the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis, Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston)
Developing Disciples of Christ: Understanding the Critical Relationship between Catechesis and Evangelization – Julianne Stanz (Director of New Evangelization, Diocese of Green Bay)

4. The Effective Catechetical Leader
Cultivating Your Catechists: How to Recruit, Encourage and Retain Successful Catechists – Jayne Ragasa-Mondoy (Director of Religious Education, Diocese of Honolulu)
Excellence in Ministry: Best Practices for Successful Catechetical Leadership – Tom Quinlan (Director of Religious Education, Diocese of Joliet)
All God’s People: Effective Catechesis in a Diverse Church – Donna Tolliver Grimes (Assistant Director for African American Affairs in the Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)

5. All God’s People Effective Catechesis in a Diverse Church
By Donna Toliver Grimes
Introduce the focus and theme of this book: All God’s People – Effective Catechesis in a Diverse Church. This book considers the wide variety of people to be catechized and offers strategies for catechetical leaders to engage all of them in life-giving formation.
Donna Toliver Grimes is the assistant director for African American Affairs in the Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Previously, she was the poverty, education, and outreach manager in the USCCB Department of Justice, Peace, and Human Development. Grimes is a member of the Catholic delegation of Christian Churches Together USA and is on the executive board of Sisters in the Spirit of the Archdiocese of Washington. She is a longtime catechist and active member of St. Teresa of Avila Parish in Washington DC.​

6. “The Church has a grave duty to provide catechesis to all the faithful
“The Church has a grave duty to provide catechesis to all the faithful.” (Canon Law #773)
Begin by talking about participants’ understanding of the Bill of Rights and how we are guaranteed various rights such as free speech, assembly, and worship.
Point out that, according to Canon Law, each baptized Catholic has a right to catechesis.
Explain that according to Canon 773, “The Church has a grave duty to provide catechesis to all the faithful.”
Ask participants to share their understanding and the implications of the word “grave” with reference to the Church’s duty to provide catechesis to all the faithful.

7. One Size Does NOT Fit All!
Point out that, if we are to provide catechesis for all the faithful that this will require a variety of offerings.
Explain that “one size fits all” does not apply to faith formation.
Invite participants to identify the many varieties of people for whom faith formation must be tailored and adapted such as age groups, ethnicities, special needs, and so on.
Consider using the printout Ch. 2 “Who’s Been Cropped out of the Picture?” to further the discussion.

8. The End of the Catholic Bubble
There has been an ecology of institutions that have traditionally supported faith formation.
Homogenous communities
Public schools promoting Christian values
Sunday as a day of rest
John Westerhoff, Will Our Children Have Faith?
Consider beginning this topic by using the printout Ch. 1 “Waking Up Rip Van Catechist” to talk about how the world and society have changed in recent decades.
Share the elements of what John Westerhoff called “an ecology of institutions” that once supported faith formation in our society. Read this full list aloud:
Homogenous communities with shared traditions
Stable family units
Public schools that promoted Christian values
The unquestioned authority of institutions such as Church
Religious periodicals in the home
Sunday as a day of rest
Talk about how these realities once enabled Catholics to live in a “bubble” that supported faith formation and how these realities have changed.

9. Catechesis and Inculturation
“Since persons can only achieve their full humanity by means of culture, the Catholic Church in the United States embraces the rich cultural pluralism of all the faithful, encourages the distinctive identity of each cultural group, and urges mutual enrichment. At the same time, the Catholic Church promotes a unity of faith within the multicultural diversity of the people.” (NDC no. 11.C.)
Introduce the concept of inculturation and the need for catechesis to speak to the unique needs of various groups.
Emphasize that, as an incarnational faith, the Gospel needs to “take flesh” within the community it is being preached to.
Explain that inculturation refers to much more than ethnicity: pre-school children have a different “culture” than do adolescents, etc.
Read aloud to explain:
Although diversity in the Church is increasing, the CARA Study of LEMs concluded that only 17% of LEMs believe they are prepared to work in a multicultural setting.
Consider using the printout Ch. 3 “The Word Must Become Flesh” to further the discussion.

10. A Multi-Cultural Calendar
January
Martin Luther King Day
Chinese New Year
February
Valentine’s Day
Black History Month
March/April
St. Patrick
Easter
May/June
Asian American Month
Caribbean American Month
July
St. Junipero Serra
St. Kateri Tekakwitha
August
Our Lady of Czestochowa
September/October
Hispanic Heritage Month
Korean Martyrs
Indigenous Peoples’ Day
November
Dia de los Muertos (All Souls)
Black Catholic History Month
Thanksgiving Native American Heritage Month
December
Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Simbang Gabi
Christmas
Kwanzaa
Point out that the secular calendar provides numerous opportunities for connecting faith formation and worship with various ethnic cultures’ traditions and celebrations.
Go over this list, with some of them shown on the slide:
January
New Year’s Day
World Day of Peace
Migration Week
Martin Luther King Day
Chinese New Year (Jan. or Feb.)
February
Valentine’s Day
Black History Month
Mardi Gras
St. Paul Miki and Companions
St. Josephine Bakhita
March/April
St. Patrick
St. Joseph Table
Easter
May/June
Pentecost Asian American Month
Juneteenth
Caribbean American Month
July
St. Junipero Serra
St. Kateri Tekakwitha
August
Our Lady of Czestochowa
September/October
Hispanic Heritage Month
Korean Martyrs
Indigenous Peoples’ Day
November
All Saints
Dia de los Muertos (All Souls)
St. Martin de Porres Black Catholic History Month
Feast of Christ the King
Thanksgiving Native American Heritage Month
December
Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Las Posadas
St. Juan Diego
Simbang Gabi
Christmas
Kwanzaa
Invite participants to share examples of successful efforts or additional examples.

11. The Domestic Church
“The Christian home is the place where children receive the first proclamation of the faith. For this reason the family home is righty called “the domestic church,” a community of grace and prayer, a school of human virtues and of Christian charity. (CCC #1666).”
Point out that the first and most important “grouping” to pay attention to when it comes to faith formation is the family.
Introduce the concept of the “domestic church” and talk about what families need today to truly become a domestic church.
Discuss approaches to forming families in faith and invite participants to share examples that are effective.
Consider using the printout Ch. 4 “Connect, Awaken, and Share” to further the discussion.

12. Adult Faith Formation Self-motivated Experienced Goal-oriented
Adult Faith Formation
Self-motivated
Experienced
Goal-oriented
Relevant
Practical
Want respect
Life-long learners
Coping with change
Developing wisdom
Adults like to laugh!
Emphasize that the General Directory for Catechesis refers to adult faith formation as the “chief form” of catechesis (#43)
Discuss the implications of this statement if it were put into practice in parishes.
Talk about how adult faith formation needs to address everyday living issues so that faith and life connect.
Go over this list of principles of adult faith formation and invite participants to share their insights and experiences:
Adults are self-motivated—they resist ideas being imposed upon them.
Adults bring life experience that must be respected.
Adults are goal-oriented—they learn in order to cope with life transitions and want to apply what they learn immediately.
Adults demand relevance and practicality, and need to take ownership.
Adults’ time commitments must be respected.
Adults learn best in relational, interactive, conversational settings.
Adults like to laugh!
Celebrating life
Getting through difficult times
Letting go
Coping with change
Living heroically
Finding your source of energy
Developing deeper wisdom
Discovering courage
Reaching out to others
Living a more meaningful life
Coming to terms with suffering
Becoming a more loving person
Becoming a more selfless you
Learning from failure
Spend some time discussing the effectiveness of small faith sharing groups and share strategies for forming such groups.
Invite participants to share experiences of working with small faith groups.
Consider using the printout Ch. 5 “Treating Adults Like Adults’ to further the discussion.

13. Youth and Young Adult Faith Formation
Youth and Young Adult Faith Formation
The goal of young adult faith formation is to connect young adults with:
Jesus Christ;
the Church
the mission of the Church
A faith community
Discuss current and recent efforts related to Young Adult faith formation such as the Synod on Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Development.
Explain that the U.S. bishops issued a document on young adult faith formation, Son and Daughters of the Light.
In this document, the bishops outlined the overall goals of young adult faith formation. The goal is to connect young adults with:
Jesus Christ;
the Church, by inviting and welcoming their presence in the Christian community;
the mission of the Church in the world;
a peer community in which their faith is nurtured and strengthened.
Ask participants: How can we achieve this? Invite ideas from participants. Then, highlight these points:
Listen
Engage
Think Digital
Rely on Relationships, not gimmicks
Offer adventure/heroism
Tap their expertise
Don’t isolate them
Focus Outward
Consider using the printout Ch. 6 “Where Are They Looking?” to further the discussion.

14. Child Faith Formation
“Faith-formation ministry needs to be not so much about catechizing children as about evangelizing households.” –Tom Quinlan
Read the quote from Tom Quinlan from his book Excellence in Ministry (Effective Catechetical Leader series) – “Faith formation ministry needs to be not so much about catechizing children as about evangelizing households.”
Invite participants to react to that statement and to share implications of taking it seriously.
Have participants share examples from their experience of engaging parents in their children’s faith formation.
Share examples such as the Family Catechesis programs from Loyola Press (Finding God and Christ Our Life)

15. Special Needs Faith Formation
Special Needs Faith Formation
Approach the parents with gentleness
Express your desire to learn
Interact directly with the child
Create opportunities for the whole family
Emphasize that the child is not spiritually disabled.
Ask if any participants have experience working with people with special needs.
Point out that we began by talking about every Catholic’s right to faith formation and how this includes those with special needs. Recall the phrase “the Church has a grave duty” to provide faith formation for all the faithful.
Go over some of these principles for reaching out those with special needs:
Approach parents of children with special needs as partners in their child’s faith formation.
Express the desire to learn from parents and other professionals about a child’s gifts and needs.
Interact directly with the child in ways appropriate to his or her communication style.
Maintain a warm and open presence to families at liturgies and key program events.
Create opportunities for parents, siblings, and children to participate in liturgies and other parish events.
Emphasize that a child with a disability is not spiritually disabled.
Lead conversations about how the children themselves can serve and participate in the parish, the larger Church, and the world.
Introduce resources such as the Adaptive Finding God program from Loyola Press.
Consider using the printout Ch. 9 “Resources for Serving Those with Special Needs” to further the discussion

16. Faith Formation in the Catholic School
Selection of Resources
Implementing Diocesan Curriculum Guidelines
Faculty Faith Formation
Liturgical Life
Sacramental Preparation
Ask participants if they have had, currently have, or will have responsibilities related to the parish Catholic school. Invite them to share their experiences.
Go over these possible responsibilities associated with doing faith formation in a parish Catholic school:
Selection of Resources
Implementing Diocesan Curriculum Guidelines
Faculty Faith Formation
Liturgical Life
Prayer Experiences
Service and social justice
Peer ministry
Catholic identity
Interdisciplinary efforts
Parent/Board meetings
Sacramental Preparation
Curator of resources
Invite participants to add any responsibilities that may have been missed.
Consider using the printout Ch. 10 “Helping Catholic School Teachers Instill Catholic Identity” to further discussion.

17. Available for iOS and Android in the app store.
The ECL App
Available for iOS and Android in the app store.
Make reference to the ECL App and note that it is FREE.

18. More Resources
Continue to train and equip your catechists with The Catechist’s Toolbox Series.

19. More Resources www.LoyolaPress.com
Visit our home on the web for resources for catechists and lesson plans.
Sunday Connection
Catechist’s Journey