Last month I wrote about some cards that made up the CEM Center's "strong hand" in the game of regional ministry. As promised, I turn this month to some of the challenges.

Let's start by modifying the first question from last month:

How has the Catholic Education Ministries Center fallen short of its mission over the past seven years?

Our Charter states that the Center will provide resources and opportunities for growth in Catholic education for the parishes, schools and other Catholic institutions of Central Maryland. As I noted last month, the Statement contains no explicit strategy for regional ministry. It simply states that the CEM Center will do it. That left us to figure out the how. Some ideas have worked. Some strategies succeeded on only a minimal scale, or simply fell flat. I have for several years held onto some of these "cards." Here are three cards that we have not yet fully played. I wonder if we should let them go.  Let's call them our "Discards."

Discard #1: Regional Projects
For the past seven years, I have operated under the assumption that the Center would not only provide programs and services, but also facilitate large-scale collaboration between parishes and schools of the region. Marshalling all of the talent and resources of the three counties, there would be virtually no limit to what we could do. Rallies, seminars and workshops with national presenters, retreats/missions, and technology or Internet projects were among the projects in our grasp. A number of times I have asked the question, "What can we do together that we cannot accomplish alone?"

I conceived of the Central MD Formation Day as just such a project, a day to bring the entire region together to celebrate faith, and to have our volunteers formed for catechetical and youth ministry. While the event has enjoyed some success, attendance has not grown over the past three years. Considering that we have over 1,000 catechists in the three-county area, the event could easily double in size. While a number of area leaders appreciate having a day like this in our region, I am not sure that they have actually taken ownership of it. It could be much, much more.

One example of a truly regional project is the annual True Love Waits Rally, organized by area youth ministers. This single evening event draws substantial participation from a minimum of six parishes a year, and serves 600 to 800 young people.

Apart from these exceptions, and some cases where two or three facilities have worked together, there appears to be little enthusiasm for large scale projects. Do I need to rethink this strategy? Are these types of projects too much work to bother with? Should we return this card to the deck?

Discard #2: A Resource Center
I write this column in an office surrounded by shelves. The Center's library includes current catechetical textbooks for preschool through youth ministry, resource books for all areas of catechetical ministry, church documents, plus assorted videos. When people call looking for a particular resource that we don't have, we often order a copy for the library.

People check out resources about once per month.  On top of that I average 12 to 15 consultations via phone, email, or office visits each month. With a number of specialists at the Divisions of Evangelization & Catechesis and Youth & Young Adult Ministry, some people bypass the Center and go directly to these people for consultation. 

When I started, I thought that the resource library and consultations would be a mainstay of the Center. This has not proven to be the case. Is this a card we should send back to the pile? 

Discard #3: A Formation Renaissance

One of my most prominent objectives has been increased training and formation for catechists and youth ministers in the region. Despite repeated efforts and some successes over the years, I do not think we have moved this agenda very far. Many volunteers and even Catholic school teachers begin teaching in the name of the Church with little or no orientation. Even worse, many who have been catechizing for years have little or no ongoing formation. With over 1,000 catechists in our parishes and schools, only 29 were certified this year. What does this statistic tell us?

The Center provides regional training to whet the appetite for further  formation in the parish or school. To date, our programs have whetted a relatively small number of appetites. Regional training, while valuable, cannot take the place of formation offered on site in each parish or school.  Apart from the annual Formation Day, people don't travel more than a few miles beyond their parish/school doors for training.

We can't send this card back to the pile. I can't abandon formation of catechists in our parishes and schools; it is too critical for the present and future of our ministry. However, I wonder if we need to rethink our methods.

Is the Center adequately helping you achieve the goal of forming/training your people? If not, what is missing?

Playing the Hand
Okay, so the title of this month's article was a bit misleading. I have no plans to "fold, " to give up on regional ministry. However, I would like to consider how we might adjust the work of the Center to be of greater help to you.

The cards have been dealt. How do you want to play the hand?

Chris Weber
Director
Catholic Education Ministries of Central Maryland
301-447-3707

This is Part 2 of a series - to view Part 1, click here.

Copyright © 2005  by the Catholic Education Ministries Center of Central Maryland, Emmitsburg, MD 21727. All rights reserved.

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when to hold ’em,
know when to fold ’em,
Know when to walk away and know when to run.
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