Cate-WHAT? Why should I get involved?

Presumably you are here because either you have become a Catechist or are considering becoming one. Maybe someone asked you to volunteer, or you read a bulletin asking for volunteer teachers. Perhaps you thought to yourself "Hey, that is something that I could do!" But what do we do, and why is it necessary? Furthermore, if we AGREE to do it, what is in it for us? 

People today are busy. There are a zillion things competing for our attention at any one time. There are a million distractions. Our friends, our family, our jobs, our social life, our education, the list is unending of places we feel we need to be or things we need to be doing. Why would one add another thing onto that list when it seems that we already are mishandling other things? 

There are very few things in life that we can do and KNOW that they are the "right" thing to do. We all have "guilty pleasures" that we know we should NOT be doing, whether it is that extra bowl of ice cream or harmful gossiping or doing 70 in a 55 or whatever the case may be. We do them and then maybe afterwards we feel guilty about it. I submit to you that of all the things you could or should do, accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior is something that you can be absolutely certain is the right thing to do. It is something you can be glad over doing, something you can think about and talk about with surety, something you will not be sorry for. In such busy and uncertain lives, things you can be absolutely positive of doing are uncommon. 

For the sake of argument, let us assume that you agree with the previous paragraph, you have faith, you believe. What does one DO with that? There is a level of involvement in the goings-on of the Catholic Church that is more than attending mass, though make no mistake there is nothing wrong in any way with being someone who attends mass and does not volunteer! Assuming that YOU want to do more, what is there to do? Many parishes desperately need volunteers to function. Eucharistic ministers is one way, ushering is another, and these are just at mass. But teaching our faith and the love of Christ to our children is another place where help is needed. If you feel called to do more, teaching is a great way to go, especially if it suits your skills and talents. Is it possible that you feel that calling because you SHOULD teach? I think it is highly likely that you find yourself in this place deliberately. Many of us are called to be more than attendees, and it is important to recognize that moment when we might be called to action. 

What PSR needs most is dedicated volunteers who can get through to our students. They need people they can look up to, relate to, and that are good teachers. We teach the "facts of faith" if I can coin that term in order to support and build THEIR faith. As I have read we must propose faith to them, nor suppose it. In Catechesis, we learn not only in order to teach, but our learning supports and builds OUR OWN FAITH at the same time! If we get anything concrete out of it, THAT has got to be one of the biggest benefits to us, ourselves. But more than that, we are doing what Christ called us to do in handing on the faith in an authentic way. We are after all the "Body of Christ" here on earth, doing what we were instructed to do. We seek to share God's love with others through educating them about it, sharing it with them, and by modeling Christ ourselves. It is safe to say that everyone involved benefits if we agree to teach! 

You should get involved, however you feel called to. Sing in the choir! Be an usher who greets people and makes them feel welcomed! Volunteer at meetings or retreats where people seek to deepen their faith! Become a Eucharistic Minister or a Lector! If you are reading this, I would suggest becoming a Catechist. It is rewarding, it is fulfilling, it is joyous and happy, it is a loving thing to do. You can be sure you are doing something good, something beneficial, in spreading the Gospel. You can and WILL deepen your own faith as you teach, as many times I feel as though I learn as much from the kids as they learn from me. You can take steps down a path that you can be sure won't end up at a cliff! You can participate in the mission of the Church, traceable all the way back to Christ and the Apostles, and help others to find the joy and peace that I sincerely hope YOU feel inside! Inner peace can be aided by external work, especially in this case. Spreading God's love is always the right thing to do, and pushing to do just a little more is also always the right thing to do when it comes to our faith. 

Pursuing your own faith can be a difficult journey, and maybe you are at a fork in the road. Choose the path that has MORE Christ on it, whenever there is a choice! Teaching is hard work, and I make no pretense to be able to teach anything any better than anyone else. It is, however, something I believe in and am motivated to do, so I do it. I think you should too! Answer the call! Talk to your Parish Catechetical Director about it, they would very likely love to hear from you. God just might need you to put the intersection of your desire to teach and your faith together for the good of all. You can be sure that as a Catechist, YOU ARE NEEDED. More importantly, the intersection of your own personal faith journey and the faith journeys of many kids might be just what they need.