Adult Education and Evangelisation
The Department for Adult Education and Evangelisation exists to support
the work of formation and catechesis throughout the Clifton Diocese.
There has been a good tradition of adult religious education in this Diocese, Bishop Declan has created the department for adult education to further this. In his pastoral letter of September 2002, he wrote: “Adult Education needs to be a priority in the life of our Diocese, so that we can better understand, celebrate and share our Faith with others. This is not about being more efficient or even more knowledgeable. Rather it is about deepening our relationship with God and understanding what it is to be God’s People, the Church”.
The Priority of Adult Formation
In the year 2000 the Bishops of England and Wales committed themselves to the work of adult education by publishing the document ‘The priority of adult formation’.
In this document the Bishops offer an outline of the development of adult formation since the Second Vatican Council.
Their conclusions are:
• The need for all the faithful to have easy access to the inspiration of Scripture;
• The emerging importance of the catechesis of adults for Christian maturity and a missionary church;
• The shared responsibility of priests, bishops and lay faithful for adult formation;
• The revival of the adult catechumenate and the implementation of the Rite of Christian Initiation in every parish;
• The importance of formation by the community for communion and mission;
The Department seeks to facilitate practical ways of implementing this vision, principally through:
• Catechists’ training
• Evangelisation
• Formation for Pastoral Councils
• Scripture Courses
The Way Forward
Evangelisation
The way forward must be approached in the context of the Church’s mission to evangelise. Evangelisation is sometimes reduced to the verbal proclamation of the Gospel. The Church’s understanding is much deeper than that.
As Pope Paul wrote:
The Church exists in order to evangelise,
that is to say, in order to preach and to teach
to be the channel of the gift of grace,
to reconcile sinners with God,
and to perpetuate Christ’s sacrifice in the Mass
which is the memorial of his death and glorious resurrection (Evangelii Nuntiandi 14)
The meaning of evangelisation is complex and dynamic. It involves the proclamation of redemption, the transformation of humanity, the witness of Christian life in a vibrant Christian community. Evangelisation does not simply mean outreach, it means the whole truth of the Christian mystery as it is lived.
Catechesis
The two most recent documents of the Church which point the way forward are the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992) and the General Directory for Catechesis (1997). The Church is encouraged to see them as complementary companions so that the content of faith and the methodology of education in and to faith together serve the work of formation.
Catechesis according to the Directory for Catechesis is “situated in the context of the Church’s mission of evangelisation and seen as an essential moment of that mission. The ministry of catechesis appears, then, as a fundamental ecclesial service for the realisation of the missionary mandate of Jesus” (GDC 59)
The Directory affirms that “the vocation of the laity to catechesis springs from the sacrament of baptism ... In addition to the common vocation of the apostolate some lay people feel called interiorly to assume the service of catechist “(GDC 231).
Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults
Fundamental to all evangelisation and catechesis is the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). The General Instruction on Catechesis states: ‘the model for all Catechesis is the baptismal catechumenate when, by specific formation, an adult converted to belief, is brought to explicit profession of baptismal faith during the paschal vigil. This catechumenal formation should inspire the other forms of catechesis in both their objectives and their dynamism.’(GDC 59).
The RCIA is the model for catechesis not only because it is useful as a model and an example of faith-sharing but also because it presents a vision of Church which involves everyone.
The RCIA recalls the Church to its primary task to proclaim the Gospel. The Church is constantly called to be both evangelising and evangelised. The vision of the RCIA is that our Parishes are called to be initiating communities and that the conversion of every Christian is a lifelong process.
1. Initiating Communities
While the RCIA envisages catechists, sponsors and teams who have a specific ministry, the RCIA tells us that the responsibility of initiating people into the Church belongs to all the baptised.
At the heart of the RCIA is the understanding that everyone is involved in sharing their faith, and welcoming newcomers. This implies that our Parishes are welcoming communities which are eager to understand and live our faith and to share it with others.
2. Lifelong Process
The sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist plunge us into the mystery of Christ’s death and resurrection. All of us are continually being initiated into the saving mystery of Christ. The RCIA calls us to see that we are all at some point on the process of conversion. We may be enquiring into the meaning of the Gospel, or preparing for Baptism. We may have been baptised as infants or as adults, but all of us are on a journey of discovering where God is leading us. This vision of the RCIA is what underpins all that the department for adult education and evangelisation does, and so we work to promote:
An understanding of evangelisation
First Communion preparation
Children’s Liturgy of the Word
Confirmation
Summer School (Loud & Clear)
Parish Pastoral Councils
Father Michael McAndrew, Director Department for Adult Education and Evangelisation
You can contact the Department for Adult Education and Evangelisation by writing to:
Alexander House, 160 Pennywell Road, Bristol, BS5 0TX
Tel: 0117 902 5595
Fax: 0117 902 5520
Email: michael.mcandrew@cliftondiocese.com
Email: ronnie.mitchinson@cliftondiocese.com
There has been a good tradition of adult religious education in this Diocese, Bishop Declan has created the department for adult education to further this. In his pastoral letter of September 2002, he wrote: “Adult Education needs to be a priority in the life of our Diocese, so that we can better understand, celebrate and share our Faith with others. This is not about being more efficient or even more knowledgeable. Rather it is about deepening our relationship with God and understanding what it is to be God’s People, the Church”.
The Priority of Adult Formation
In the year 2000 the Bishops of England and Wales committed themselves to the work of adult education by publishing the document ‘The priority of adult formation’.
In this document the Bishops offer an outline of the development of adult formation since the Second Vatican Council.
Their conclusions are:
• The need for all the faithful to have easy access to the inspiration of Scripture;
• The emerging importance of the catechesis of adults for Christian maturity and a missionary church;
• The shared responsibility of priests, bishops and lay faithful for adult formation;
• The revival of the adult catechumenate and the implementation of the Rite of Christian Initiation in every parish;
• The importance of formation by the community for communion and mission;
The Department seeks to facilitate practical ways of implementing this vision, principally through:
• Catechists’ training
• Evangelisation
• Formation for Pastoral Councils
• Scripture Courses
The Way Forward
Evangelisation
The way forward must be approached in the context of the Church’s mission to evangelise. Evangelisation is sometimes reduced to the verbal proclamation of the Gospel. The Church’s understanding is much deeper than that.
As Pope Paul wrote:
The Church exists in order to evangelise,
that is to say, in order to preach and to teach
to be the channel of the gift of grace,
to reconcile sinners with God,
and to perpetuate Christ’s sacrifice in the Mass
which is the memorial of his death and glorious resurrection (Evangelii Nuntiandi 14)
The meaning of evangelisation is complex and dynamic. It involves the proclamation of redemption, the transformation of humanity, the witness of Christian life in a vibrant Christian community. Evangelisation does not simply mean outreach, it means the whole truth of the Christian mystery as it is lived.
Catechesis
The two most recent documents of the Church which point the way forward are the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992) and the General Directory for Catechesis (1997). The Church is encouraged to see them as complementary companions so that the content of faith and the methodology of education in and to faith together serve the work of formation.
Catechesis according to the Directory for Catechesis is “situated in the context of the Church’s mission of evangelisation and seen as an essential moment of that mission. The ministry of catechesis appears, then, as a fundamental ecclesial service for the realisation of the missionary mandate of Jesus” (GDC 59)
The Directory affirms that “the vocation of the laity to catechesis springs from the sacrament of baptism ... In addition to the common vocation of the apostolate some lay people feel called interiorly to assume the service of catechist “(GDC 231).
Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults
Fundamental to all evangelisation and catechesis is the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). The General Instruction on Catechesis states: ‘the model for all Catechesis is the baptismal catechumenate when, by specific formation, an adult converted to belief, is brought to explicit profession of baptismal faith during the paschal vigil. This catechumenal formation should inspire the other forms of catechesis in both their objectives and their dynamism.’(GDC 59).
The RCIA is the model for catechesis not only because it is useful as a model and an example of faith-sharing but also because it presents a vision of Church which involves everyone.
The RCIA recalls the Church to its primary task to proclaim the Gospel. The Church is constantly called to be both evangelising and evangelised. The vision of the RCIA is that our Parishes are called to be initiating communities and that the conversion of every Christian is a lifelong process.
1. Initiating Communities
While the RCIA envisages catechists, sponsors and teams who have a specific ministry, the RCIA tells us that the responsibility of initiating people into the Church belongs to all the baptised.
At the heart of the RCIA is the understanding that everyone is involved in sharing their faith, and welcoming newcomers. This implies that our Parishes are welcoming communities which are eager to understand and live our faith and to share it with others.
2. Lifelong Process
The sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist plunge us into the mystery of Christ’s death and resurrection. All of us are continually being initiated into the saving mystery of Christ. The RCIA calls us to see that we are all at some point on the process of conversion. We may be enquiring into the meaning of the Gospel, or preparing for Baptism. We may have been baptised as infants or as adults, but all of us are on a journey of discovering where God is leading us. This vision of the RCIA is what underpins all that the department for adult education and evangelisation does, and so we work to promote:
An understanding of evangelisation
First Communion preparation
Children’s Liturgy of the Word
Confirmation
Summer School (Loud & Clear)
Parish Pastoral Councils
Father Michael McAndrew, Director Department for Adult Education and Evangelisation
You can contact the Department for Adult Education and Evangelisation by writing to:
Alexander House, 160 Pennywell Road, Bristol, BS5 0TX
Tel: 0117 902 5595
Fax: 0117 902 5520
Email: michael.mcandrew@cliftondiocese.com
Email: ronnie.mitchinson@cliftondiocese.com
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