Growth of adult faith formation in our parishes is exciting

Published: December 7, 2002

By Sister Susan McCarthy, RDC

More and more the Church is experiencing a great paradigm shift in faith formation in parishes throughout the United States and Canada. Formation, which in the recent past has been focused on young children and adolescents, is now being directed to adults. At the present time, more than 100 dioceses have an office specifically geared to the development and implementation of adult faith formation.

In 1999, the U.S. bishops published their pastoral plan, “Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us” to “reinvigorate the effort to foster adult faith formation throughout the United States.” (OHWB, Leader’s Guide). This plan is recognition of several key understandings, which have emerged from the documents of Vatican II and subsequent statements from the Pope and bishops’ conferences of the United States and Canada.

As a result of these teachings over the last 40 years, we have learned to value the call to holiness and discipleship we received through our baptism. We have also come to appreciate our call to conversion as a life-long journey, modeled on the experience of the catechumenate. “Such lifelong formation is always needed and must be a priority in the Church’s catechetical ministry; moreover it must ‘be considered the chief form of catechesis.

All the other forms, which are indeed always necessary, are in some way oriented to it.’”(OHWB, 13) It is becoming increasingly clear adult Catholic laity are being called to assume greater leadership roles in a growing number of Church ministries. As these adults are being formed to take responsibility for the future of the Church, the methods that are used in such formation need to be respectful of their life experiences.

The term formation is meant to indicate more than education or “head knowledge.” Itallows adults to acknowledge, share and reflect on their individual life experiences, to critically consider the Gospel message in the context of daily life. Aware of the Church’s catechetical mission and adult learning needs, “Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us” proposes three goals for adult faith formation: to invite and enable on-going conversion to Jesus in holiness of life, to promote and support active membership in the Christian community, and to call and prepare adults to act as disciples in mission in the world.

Jane Regan, theologian and author of “Toward an Adult Church: A Vision of FaithFormation” says “… the goal is rooted in adults’ membership in an evangelizing community that understands itself to be engaged in the proclamation of the “Good News” and the transformation of persons and social structures to more clearly reflect God’s reign.”

One gets the sense our faith is meant to be something vital and active, something that truly contributes to the building of community and to the presence of justice and compassion in our Church and in our world. In a way quite different from our parents and grandparents, our role as baptized Catholics is being recognized and honored in the Church.

We are being invited to participate in our own learning and growing in a way adults have rarely been involved before. Such participation, it is hoped, will lead us to greater involvement in our parishes (especially in our liturgy), to be a more powerful witness of our faith to our children and those we wishto evangelize, and to take a stronger sense of ownership of this gift of faith we have been given.

Sister Susan McCarthy, RDC, is workshop and promotions coordinator with Little Rock Scripture Study. This article was originally published in Arkansas Catholic December 7, 2002. Copyright Diocese of Little Rock. All rights reserved. This article may be copied or redistributed with acknowledgement and permission of the publisher.