MADISON — The room was filled with joyful expectation as catechists and invested partners celebrated the presence of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS) in the Diocese of Madison at its third annual gathering.
CGS Diocesan Director Katie Haun warmly encouraged the catechists and directors of religious education (DRE) present to share the joys and challenges of starting and maintaining atrium, the space where children gather to encounter God in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd method.
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I write these words as the annual November meeting of the United States bishops comes to a close. We bishops discussed many significant matters — from racism and immigration to the liturgy for the baptism of children.
But I would like to emphasize one theme in particular that came up frequently in our conversations, namely, the catechesis of our young people. I have a rather intense personal interest in the topic since, at the conclusion of this gathering, I officially became chairman of the bishops’ Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis.
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First in a two-part series on a Pew Study about why young people are leaving the active practice of Christianity.
After perusing the latest Pew Study on why young people are leaving the active practice of Christianity, I confess that I just sighed in exasperation. I don’t doubt for a moment the sincerity of those who responded to the survey, but the reasons they offer for abandoning Christianity are just so uncompelling.
That is to say, any theologian, apologist, or evangelist worth his salt should be able easily to answer them. And this led me (hence the sigh) to the conclusion that “we have met the enemy and it is us.”
