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Parish team training has been completed and regular sessions for Why Catholic?, a program that leads Catholics in adult faith formation and evangelization, will begin this fall, said Chris Malmevik, associate director for Catechesis for the diocese and the diocesan Why Catholic? coordinator.
Why Catholic? defines what Catholics believe and how they live, pray and worship, Malmevik said. Additionally, it fosters the goals of Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us, the United States Bishops' pastoral plan for adult faith formation. The program is designed to be a four-year process for providing direction in catechesis as well as evangelization outreach based on the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Why Catholic? was created by RENEW International and is coordinated through the diocesan Office for Catechesis, said Malmevik. Sister Kathleen "Kass" Collins, SFCC, conducted the initial training - the "Launching Why Catholic?" and the "Nuts and Bolts of Evangelization" sessions - that were held earlier this year. Sister Marenid Fabre, OP, conducted the Spanish "Launching" workshop and will return in August to do the Spanish "Nuts and Bolts of Evangelization" workshop.
"Why Catholic? is based on the four pillars of the Catechism," said Malmevik. "For that reason it follows four books divided into 12 sessions." Parishioners will be trained in September as small group leaders.
Response to the Why Catholic? program has been good, Malmevik said. "At this point 101 (of the Springfield diocese's 131) parishes are involved. Parishes can always get involved later on," she said.
Malmevik said over 1,030 people attended the training sessions that were presented in English while 46 people attended the Hispanic sessions. "We are anticipating a larger number of parishioners at the small group leader training in September," she said.
Adults who take part in Why Catholic? will generally meet in small groups, focusing on encouraging each other in prayer, worship and putting faith into action on a daily basis, Malmevik said. Most parishes will have six sessions in the fall and six more sessions during Lent.
In between the two sessions there will be an adult faith formation gathering presented by Sister Kass, while Father Bruce Nieli, CSP, a nationally known retreat leader, will facilitate a spring retreat at the end of the 12 sessions. Both the adult faith formation gathering and retreat session will be scheduled in various locations around the diocese.
Deacon Ben Hoefler, director of religious education and PSR at St. Aloysius Parish in Springfield, believes Why Catholic? will be beneficial on several levels.
"The Catechism is the backbone of all of this and Why Catholic? has a really great study guide that gently introduces the Catechism," he said. "It is also a community-building process. In the small group process parishioners really begin to know each other.
"From the average person's standpoint, this is a small (time) commitment," Hoefler said. "But you really get a lot from it."
For more information on Why Catholic? call Malmevik at (217) 698-8500, ext. 178.
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