Editorial

Abstract

Editorial Raymond Studzinski, OSB This second issue of The International Journal of Evangelization and Catechetics goes to press as the world continues to battle the coronavirus. We awaken all too often these days to the bad news of more cases of COVID 19 in areas where it seemed the virus was under control. Social distancing and face masks protect us and others from further spread of the disease, but at the same time these important safety measures limit and at times deprive us of the social contact and interaction which can be so life-giving. There is indeed a hunger for good news, for images of hope and for clear pointers to a way forward to a renewed humanity. Our need for something to lift our spirits makes the recently published Directory for Catechesis a godsend as it maps out a pathway to maturing in the faith, to acquiring a faith vision, to reinvigorating our hope, a hope that comes from hearing the Good News and allowing that word to shape and form our lives. The kerygmatic catechesis, which the Directory promotes, is concerned with proclaiming the radical and transformative power of Christ risen from the dead and with us now as we face today’s challenges. The Directory attends to the signs of the times and promotes a catechesis which engages a digital culture and reaches out to people at all stages of life who are living in diverse circumstances in a complex and pluralistic world. I am delighted that in this issue we have essays which comment on the Directory and address important themes found within it. We are pleased to have an essay from Bishop Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst who as the Delegate for Catechesis on the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization was very much involved in the creation of the new Directory. Bishop Tebartz-van Elst provides an overview of the Directory as well as discusses its development and the new areas of focus. Dr. Jem Sullivan in her essay expands on the theme of beauty in the Directory and how catechesis attends to the way of beauty. She argues for the importance of including such an emphasis from the perspectives of Christology and Trinitarian theology, theological anthropology, and church history. Sullivan addresses the challenge facing catechists in a contemporary culture where people are bombarded by images. Her essay offers all involved in catechetical ministry a fresh [End Page 131] appreciation of the role of music, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other artistic forms in handing on the faith effectively. The liturgy is an important locus for the experience of beauty and Veronica Rosier, O.P., discusses in her essay how liturgy teaches. Seeing liturgical catechesis as among the most significant instruments the Church has for her mission of evangelization, Rosier examines the formative power of liturgy and the impact it has on worshippers, Church, and the world. In line with the Directory seeing the catechist as a mystagogue, Rosier calls for a mystagogy that draws on the rites themselves as a source and, at the same time, shows concern for human experience, especially its religious dimension. It becomes clear from her presentation how the baptized live from the liturgy. The Directory gives attention to the various challenges and the shifting needs facing people at different stages of life and so requiring varying approaches to catechesis. Dr. Tamra Hull Fromm considers in her essay a strategy for reaching out to young adults who lack a religious background and remain unaffiliated. She calls them “native nones.” Drawing from John Henry Newman, she suggests that with this group what Newman designates as the illative sense needs to be awakened during what can be described as a stage of pre-evangelization. The illative sense allows these individuals to begin to make connections leading to an assent of the heart to faith. The illative sense sets the stage for their coming to believe by triggering reflection on the possibility of the transcendent. Fromm sees the important role of the Scriptures and the believing community along with the creative arts in further stoking imaginations as individuals in this group move closer to a fuller embrace of belief...