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 May
2000
A
Better Way to Build the
Mouse Trap?
A
Catechist Formation Plan
for Central Maryland
I have been talking with
leaders in parishes and
schools of the region
about a new catechist
formation initiative for
Central Maryland. In
this month's column, I
will introduce you to
elements of the first
phase of the plan that
will be implemented over
the next few
months.
How
do we certify EVERYONE?
My
work on a comprehensive
plan for Central
Maryland began with a
review of the
Archdiocesan document Faith
Lived, Faith Shared:
Regulations for the
Formation and
Certification of
Catechists (1991).
This document very
clearly spells out
expectations regarding
the certification of
catechists in the
Archdiocese of
Baltimore. Pages 6-8 of
this document clearly
set the expectation that
all who catechize in the
Archdiocese's parishes
and schools need to be
certified or in the
process of being
certified. In the pages
that follow, the
document outlines
varying requirements,
starting with the 30
hours of formation for
Preliminary
Certification.
As
I reviewed these
requirements, I asked
myself, "What do we
have in place right now
to help catechists
fulfill these
expectations? What would
it take to certify every
catechist in our
Region?" As we
discussed this matter at
regional A/C/DRE
meetings, it became very
clear that certifying
every catechist would be
possible only if many
parishes and schools
collaborated with the
Center to make it
happen.
Echoes
of Faith at the
Heart of the Plan
In
late December, I met
with Yvette Leith
and Rina Roca,
A/C/DREs in Emmitsburg
and Thurmont parishes.
They were trying to come
up with a shared
schedule for offering Echoes
of Faith video-assisted
modules to their
catechists. From these
conversations emerged
the outline of a plan
for providing
Preliminary
Certification in the
Region. We considered:
What
if every parish and
Catholic school within a
given region worked
together to provide Echoes
of Faith modules?
What if each parish or
school in that area
offered different modules,
and publicized these
offerings to all
catechists in
surrounding facilities?
And what if they were to
do this in a systematic
fashion, perhaps
rotating modules each
year?
The
less motivated catechist
could take courses at
his/her own facility,
and would, eventually,
do all of them. If
enough facilities took
part in the rotation,
the ambitious
catechist could
conceivably complete all
of the modules within
one year or two years,
and easily complete
requirements for
Preliminary
Certification or more.
This is the basic
premise behind the plan
that I am bringing
before the 21 parishes
and 5 schools of Central
Maryland.
Four
Regions
In
the plan that will be
finalized later this
month, I have divided
the facilities
affiliated with the
Center into four
regions: Carroll County,
Frederick County North,
Frederick County South,
and Washington County.
Each parish or school
will be required to
offer a two-hour
catechist module and a
four-hour expanded
module of Echoes of
Faith, or their
equivalents, each
year. Within the regions
I mention above, they
will be encouraged to
coordinate their efforts
with nearby parishes, so
that they were offering
a clear rotation of the
modules.
Where
possible and
appropriate, facilities
will submit their Echoes
dates to the Center,
for publication to the
entire region. Thus,
every catechist in the
region will be able to
receive a list of 20 or
more training
opportunities using Echoes
of Faith. This phase
of the plan alone could
produce the result of
certifying every
catechist in the region
within three years or
less!
The
Center's Role?
As
you will see on the
final version of the
plan, the Center
will take the initiative
in establishing the
rotation of courses for
each area. Working with
leaders in each of the
parishes or schools, I
will fine tune the
schedule and topics. I
will also work with
parishes and schools who
need to offer something
other than the Echoes
module specified for
a given year. The Center
will provide training
sessions on how to
facilitate Echoes of
Faith sessions. In
parishes without a
formal A/C/DRE, the
Center might have to
coordinate the very
modules themselves.
What
other formation
opportunities would the
Center offer? The plan
calls for the Center to
offer at least one 6-8
hour formation workshop
in each of the four
regions, rotating topics
evenly among required
certification areas. In
addition, we will offer
the Formation Day on
March 10, 2001 at Mount
Saint Mary's. This will
result in a minimum of
28 clock hours sponsored
by the Center. Other
workshops sponsored by
Central Services will
continue as well.
A
Weighty Task, A Sacred
Duty
To
ensure success, this
plan demands much from
us all.
For parishes and schools
it requires:
- offering
at least 6 hours of
training for its own
catechists, and,
where, possible,
opening these
sessions to others
in Central Maryland;
- willingness
to work in
collaboration with
neighbors to provide
numerous options for
catechists to be
trained;
- enthusiastic
commitment to our
sacred obligation to
provide
catechists
solidly formed in
faith.
For
the Center it requires:
- diligent
oversight and
extensive
communication with
all to coordinate
schedules;
- willingness
to
"troubleshoot"
in situations where
the plan does not
take into account a
particular school's
circumstances or
needs;
- willingness
to offer additional
training as needed;
- commitment
to at least 28 hours
of formation
sponsored by the
Center.
Despite
the challenges of moving
forward here, the
leaders who have
reviewed this plan with
me have suggested that
it is a reasonable, and
very do-able. Working
together, we can go far
to ensure the quality
catechesis of learners
young and old. Watch
your mail for the plan
later this month!
Chris Weber
Director
Catholic Education Ministries
of Central Maryland.
Copyright © 2000 by the
Catholic Education Ministries Center of Central Maryland, Emmitsburg, MD
21727. All rights reserved.
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