Parish of St. Monica

“Sacrament Saturday”

Topics Today

Opening Prayer

Current View of the Catholic Church

Issues and Explanation

Approaches and Resources

Suggestions and Q&A

Lord Jesus Christ, We thank you for having called us together here.

We offer you what we are called to do …as the People of God - of the Parish of St. Monica

for your greater glory and the coming of your Kingdom.

Grant that we may begin this time a spirit of hope and anticipation,

and that you will guide and feed our minds, our hearts and souls in the day ahead...in the name of the Father and of the Son

and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Whose in the Pews?

30%

38%

32%

-----------

100%

Americans raised Catholic & are “practicing”

= Attend Mass once/month

½ of these are at Mass any given weekend

Hold on to their Catholic Identity but seldom/never attend Mass

No longer consider themselves Catholic

And Whose not …

“32% No longer consider themselves Catholic “

• 3% - Part of a non-Christian faith

• 14% - Unaffiliated

• 15% - Part of some Protestant faith tradition

• =600 St. Monica Parishioners

• Compare: 800 at Mass/weekend

Issues:

Protestant / Evangelicals:

Highly attuned to spiritual mobility of Postmodern Americans

Constantly consider how to reach out to them.

Conviction: every person has a personal decision to make!

Personal relationship with Christ

i.e. “getting saved”

Catholics:

Assume religious identity is largely inherited.

Faith can be passed down through Catholic Schools, PREP, youth programs, etc…

Assume religious practice remains stable throughout one’s life.

Issues:

CCD, Youth Groups, Catholic Grade- High School make little/no differencewhether or not American teen stays Catholic.

“Eucharist” will not bring them back.

Sacraments for “their children” will not bring them back.

Since Renaissance, Catholic church highly Influenced by power of education

Strategy was:

Childhood Catechesis

Sacramental Initiation

Implications for

current practice at St.

Monica?

Kerygma: The Faith Journey

Pre-Evangelization (Get

Them Curious First)

Evangelization

Relationship Here)

Next, Deepen & Form

The Relationship

Catechesis (Teach

Deeper Here)

In Religious Education: WE’VE REVERSED THE ORDER!

We Catechized FIRST –

THEN Sacramentalized –

THEN Evangelized (maybe?)

We Should Evangelize FIRST –

THEN Sacramentalize –

THEN Catechize

In The Past: Catered to Silos

Evangelizatio Sacramental Catechesis Service Other..

Pre-Trust

TrustCurious

OpenSeeking

DiscipleApostle

CatechesisOnlyEffectiveHere

“Apologetics”NecessaryHere

DeliveryTowards:Evangelization– Encounter- Formation– Discipleship?

………

Whereis“smallgroup”(orotherapproaches)effective?Appropriate?

Sacrament Saturday

“Selected Resources”

Selected Resources: TEENS, YOUTH, CONFIRMATION

.

Selected Resources: CONFIRMATION

Chosen from

Ascension Press

Selected Resources: FIRST PENANCE / COMMUNI0N

Blessed from Dynamic Catholic

(Matthew Kelly)

Brand New

This Year!

Selected Resources: CHILDREN LECTIONARY-BASED SCRIPTURE STUDY

Gospel Weeklies -Pflaum

Practical Formation1. What working in YOUR FAMILY?

1. Prayer

2. Instruction

3. Practical

4. Pastoral

2. Any “best practices”

3. Resources:

1. Blogs & web sites

2. Conferences and books

3. Other

“Sacrament Saturday”

Questions & Answers

“Sacrament Saturday”

Summary and Evaluation