Family Faith Formation - The Challenge of 2020-2021

Last year the parish I work for started a new program; Family Faith Formation.  The concept is simple - it is the parents' responsibility to pass the Catholic Faith onto their children.  It is not my responsibility to teach your child how to pray, how to relate to God, how to behave at Mass, the importance of a Sacramental/Liturgical life.  It is YOUR responsibility.  What I am charged with doing is to support YOU - to help you hand on the precious gift of the Church Jesus founded to the next generation.

Yeah, okay...that sounds great on paper but let's be honest.  Most adults don't know the wonders of the Catholic Faith.  They may be doing great getting their kids to Mass but when it comes to teaching them how a Catholic views something like FAITH (as opposed to a mainstream Protestant or a Bible Only Evangelical) most parents will look at you like the RCIA Victor dog.

Yet for almost 2 thousand years it has been the family that has preserved The Truth.  Yes, we have amazing libraries and museums and we can, today, read documents about being a Catholic written in the year 110 a.d. but the Truth of our beautiful Faith has been handed down over and over again by those parents and grandparents and tribal elders and matriarchs and patriarchs to children.  It has been done out loud and it is being done in secret but it is being done.

Except here, in the United States.

I understand why.  When Catholics arrived here after the establishment of this country we were not welcomed.  We were seen as 'the other' and many of the states had laws that prevented us from buying property or holding elected office.  Schools were established so we could take care of our own.  The neighborhood parish was our refuge, our place to learn how to love God and be good Americans.  It is not a mistake that many of the historical footage of soldiers in prayer show them holding Rosaries.  We did what we could to become a part of this society.  Unfortunately, along the way, we lost a lot of the identity that made us special.

The scandals didn't help.  It is pretty hard to pass on the Truth when the people teaching you are horrible examples of that Truth.  However, I can also testify to those men and women who stayed faithful and did their job.  When I fell, I fell in a spectacular fashion.  When I began to make my way back to life I did so because it had been taught to me that I matter.  Now that I stand on my own two feet I am back in the Church, standing on the shoulders of giants and wanting to do what I can to make sure the next generation behind me knows where to go if THEY fall.

The classroom model for teaching the Faith is failing for parishes.  We get your kids for 90 minutes once a week.  We watch those kids tell us that they sometimes go to Mass and sometimes no.  I am the one that has to tell you why we are not a Sacrament Factory and then stand your wrath because I dare to suggest you need to model the Faith for your child - they need to see you in line for confession, going to receive Our Lord in the Eucharist, praying the Rosary as a family, honoring the Saints on their special days and BEING Catholic.

SO....here is what we are going to do;  we are going to teach YOU how to teach your kids.

Trust me, it will be difficult.  You are going to be frightened and convinced you do not know enough.  You are going to think, "I can't do this, I don't have time!".  And now? Especially now, in 2020 - the year that just keeps on giving - you are being asked to make sure your kids go to regular school as well.  How in the heck are you going to do all of this?

The program we are using helps you become the Catholic God wants you to be and it is by modeling this to your children that you are going to strengthen and rebuild your Domestic Church.  It is by being Catholic that you will be able to pass on the Faith, to echo back to them that which was handed on in the copper mines of Palestine and in Soviet Russia.  You are going to be the giant upon whose shoulders your children will eventually stand.  

My job will be to be YOUR cheerleader, your support, YOUR catechist.  I will be here to help you give the amazing gift to your children, just as my mother and the wonderful sisters at Christ the King gave it to me.  

And because I really want you to succeed, you are going to help ME be a better Catholic, a better Dominican and better woman - and a better American.

Perfect?  Heck no - but guess what, we are to STRIVE for perfection and lean into our beautiful way of life to help us get there.   

I am scared myself.  I really want to do right by all of you and so I ask for your prayers.  Pray that the grace that formed St. Dominic forms me.  

Together I believe we will have a successful year - a year where our little ones will have a chance to meet, get to know and fall in love with Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ - and the amazing Church He founded.

LET'S GET STARTED.