As we have journeyed along the Via Fidelis in this year devoted to catechesis, we reflected on the various ways in which the Church catechizes. We have considered the authoritative teaching office of the Church, the Magisterium, and the ways in which, by virtue of our baptism, we all are called to make disciples. But you may note there is at least one glaring omission so far: the particular ministry of the catechist.

After all, most of us received our catechetical formation from dedicated individuals, often lay people, but sometimes from clergy and religious, who exercised a ministry dedicated to forming others in the faith. While we have seen that, as baptized Christians, we are all called to catechize through the witness of our lived faith, there are those who have a particular calling to catechize in a more explicit and direct way.

These persons help constitute several of the ministries that we encounter in everyday parish life. They catechize children, young people, adults and even entire families in a variety of settings, formats and models. Catechists are a vital ingredient in the life of the parish. Their tireless efforts are essential to our experience of Christian life. Yet, they not only teach others about Jesus Christ and his Church, they also share their lived faith with those whom they catechize.

This vocation, and indeed it is a vocation, is a special and particular way of living out our wider baptismal call. This ministry is a gift to Christ and to his Church. “Catechesis” is the word we use for instruction in the faith. The word has the connotation of “resonance,” by which we “resound” with the Word of God: the Word who took on our human nature in the Incarnation. 

As we are called to do this in our lives, parents have a special role as the first catechists of the faith. This doesn’t necessarily take the form of formal instruction, but it always involves teaching by example. However, many people are tasked with providing more direct instruction in the “strict” sense. And while this involves giving detailed teaching in the faith, being a catechist is unlike teaching any other subject. 

When the mission is handing on the faith, the catechist is personally involved and personally interested in the topic of discussion. He or she does not approach teaching our faith as a neutral observer. It is for this reason that we talk about the importance of a catechist being, first and foremost, a witness to Christ.

When we discuss faith and handing it on, we have a classic distinction that is helpful for us to understand. We can refer to fides quae creditur, a Latin phrase meaning the “faith that is believed.” This is the content of faith, the what of our belief. It is passed on to us in sacred Scripture and sacred (capital-t) Tradition, which together we call the Deposit of Faith. The catechist is called to hand this on and to do it accurately, sincerely and with fidelity.

However, this is not the sum total of what a catechist does. It’s not only handing on facts and doctrines but also living in relationship with Christ. We can also refer to fides qua creditur, which is faith as a personal relationship or of trust in the Lord, the act of believing. This tells us that unless each person is working on deepening his or her relationship with the Lord, that person is not equipped to catechize. This relationship need not be perfect, since we are all works in progress, but it must be authentic and sincere.

This relationship is what St. John Paul II refers to in the first passage on these pages. It’s from his 1979 post-synodal apostolic exhortation Catechesi Tradendae (Catechesis in Our Time). And while much time has passed since he wrote those words, they remain true because they cut to the heart of the ministry of catechesis and, by extension, to all forms of catechesis. What we seek to facilitate in this ministry is a relationship of communion with Christ that is rooted in the life of the Trinity.

While ultimately it is God who does the heavy lifting in establishing a relationship in the hearts of those we catechize, the catechist’s role is to cooperate with God’s grace in the process and to walk with those who are on this journey. This begins by sharing the ways God’s grace has worked in our own lives (fides qua creditur — the act of believing) and expounding upon how the content of the faith (fides quae creditur — what we believe) has nourished that life.

In my own life, I have found that catechizing others has helped me grow in my faith. This is not limited to expanding knowledge, although that certainly happens as one exercises the ministry of catechesis. I have also benefitted from witnessing God work in the lives of those I have catechized. Watching the process of conversion unfold in the life of others has called me to deeper conversion. 

Catechesis is a lifegiving ministry to those who are being catechized and to the catechists themselves because of the abundance of the Trinitarian life of communion. If you think you are called to serve in catechetical ministry in any way, reach out to your pastor or your parish’s catechetical leader. Your witness is needed for others, and our Church needs you.