On Wednesday 5 January 2011 the Irish Bishops’ Conference launched Share the Good News, the National Directory for Catechesis in Ireland.
This Directory is a ten year plan for Evangelisation, for Catechesis and for Religious Education in Ireland from the perspective of the Catholic Church. Share the Good News may be purchased at any Veritas shop or online at www.veritas.ie.
The National Directory for Catechesis in Ireland, Share the Good News, is addressed to and is aimed at everyone in the Church. It obviously deals with those who have ministerial and teaching positions in the wide Church community but it is particularly addressed to adults – young adults, those rearing children and adults of mature years. It reaches out to children, to adolescents, to those who experience social disadvantage, to people with special needs, to the deaf community, to the travelling community, to migrant workers and other newcomers and to those living with illness. Chapter seven, the final chapter of Share the Good News, presents policies and objectives to be pursued at all levels of Church governance and membership. Alongside each objective, some indicators of achievement are provided, suggesting steps to be realised along the way in addressing a particular objective. The Directory is concerned with your faith development and with the renewal of your Church.
Short-term plan:
During April 2011 an ‘Implementation Committee’ will be established by the Catechetics Council, with the approval of the Episcopal Conference, with the responsibility of drawing up the long-term Operational Plan for the implementation of the National Directory. A period of two years has been allotted to the ‘Implementation Committee’ in order to complete its tasks. After this period the ‘Implementation Committee’ will hand over to the National Faith Development Team as described in Share the Good News.
How to get involved:
Obtain your own copy of Share the Good News. Using the index at the back of the Directory familiarise yourself with the areas that address your current situation. Read the remainder of the Directory in order to provide background and context. Consult the relevant section/s of chapter 7 which details the plans for Faith Development in areas which might impinge on you. Don’t presume that someone else is going to take the initiative – get busy taking the initiative yourself!
Resources:
