IMCA-680: Catechesis in the New Evangelization (2 credits)
The 2020 Directory for Catechesis shifts the emphasis for catechetics to a missionary key for this era of the New Evangelization. This is the third phase in a documentary tradition of Directories for Catechesis since Vatican II. The first included the Second Vatican Council’s shift in approach to teaching the faith and the second made adjustments for incorporating the new Catechism of the Catholic Church. During this sixty-year process, apostolic exhortations such as Evangelii Nuntiandi and Catechesi Tradendae provided important theological and pastoral insights.
When presented in a missionary key, catechesis focuses renewed attention on the formation of adults by working with processes of conversion and growth for the development of an intentional discipleship and committed path of faith. In this course we will learn about catechesis from the documentary tradition by focusing particular attention on the 2020 Directory for Catechesis, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Evangelii Gaudium, and other relevant magisterial documents. We will explore the latest developments, programs and processes for conversion and growth including the thresholds of intentional discipleship made popular by the Siena Institute. We will also look closely at the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults which incorporates these insights and turns them into concrete steps for adult converts to the faith.
This course will highlight topics from the Directory for Catechesis and show how, for example, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd fulfills much of this framework. Students will be challenged to apply the same “criteria” to measure and evaluate their current or future catechetical programs.