NCCL is dedicated to promoting the ministries of evangelization and catechesis in the U.S. Catholic Church by fostering a community of leaders who proclaim and teach the Word of Jesus Christ through the witness of accompaniment, education, and formation in the Catholic faith.
NCCL Online Conference Presentations
The May 2023 presentations for Catechesis for All Learners and Creative Methods for Catechesis are now online.
Be sure to check out the February presentations on adult faith formation & family faith formation
Be sure to check out the February presentations on adult faith formation & family faith formation
Join us for a Fall 2023 NCCL Convocation
NCCL's focus in 2023 - Journey toward the Future of Catechesis with All Ages and Generations - is designed to engage the
catechetical community in envisioning new directions and initiatives for proclaiming and teaching the Catholic faith in our world today.
catechetical community in envisioning new directions and initiatives for proclaiming and teaching the Catholic faith in our world today.
People do not put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are ruined.
Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved. (Matthew 9:17)
Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved. (Matthew 9:17)
Building on the vision of the 1971 and 1997 Directories, the new Directory for Catechesis (June 2020) provides a fresh vision and blueprint for developing catechesis in the 2020s and beyond. This fresh vision describes catechesis as accompaniment, education, and formation.
Catechesis makes the proclamation of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ continually resound in the heart of every person, so that life may be transformed. A dynamic and complex reality at the service of the Word of God, catechesis is accompaniment, education and formation in the faith and for the faith, an introduction to the celebration of the Mystery, illumination and interpretation of human life and history. By harmoniously integrating these characteristics, catechesis expresses the richness of its essence and offers its specific contribution to the pastoral mission of the Church. (Directory for Catechesis)
How can the vision and practices of the Directory for Catechesis guide catechetical ministry in parishes across the United State - today and into the future. This is the focus of the “Journey toward the Future of Catechesis” Convocations in Fall 2023. Together we are going to explore how the catechetical vision of the Directory and the practices that flow from that vision can transform catechesis with all ages and generations in a parish community.
We will explore questions that translate the vision into practice.
Catechesis makes the proclamation of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ continually resound in the heart of every person, so that life may be transformed. A dynamic and complex reality at the service of the Word of God, catechesis is accompaniment, education and formation in the faith and for the faith, an introduction to the celebration of the Mystery, illumination and interpretation of human life and history. By harmoniously integrating these characteristics, catechesis expresses the richness of its essence and offers its specific contribution to the pastoral mission of the Church. (Directory for Catechesis)
How can the vision and practices of the Directory for Catechesis guide catechetical ministry in parishes across the United State - today and into the future. This is the focus of the “Journey toward the Future of Catechesis” Convocations in Fall 2023. Together we are going to explore how the catechetical vision of the Directory and the practices that flow from that vision can transform catechesis with all ages and generations in a parish community.
We will explore questions that translate the vision into practice.
- What is the new context (social and cultural) for catechesis today? What are the new needs of parents, families, and people of all ages? What are the challenges and where are the opportunities?
- What does the Directory mean by catechesis and how is it connected to evangelization?
- How can the catechumenal vision – as a source of inspiration for all catechesis – be put into practice with all ages and generations?
- How can the five interrelated tasks of catechesis guide the development of a holistic curriculum and programming with all ages and generations?
- How do we draw upon the seven sources of catechesis in designing catechetical curriculum and programming, and in teaching all ages and generations?
- What is the relationship between catechetical content and method?
- What educational approaches and methods are most consistent with the pedagogical vision of the Directory?
- How do we design catechesis for families and children, teens, young adults, adults, the elderly, and persons with disabilities informed by the vision and practices suggested in the Directory?
- How do we prepare and form today’s catechist as a witness of faith and keeper of the memory of God; as a teacher and mystagogue, and as an accompanier and educator?
- What new models of catechist formation are needed to engage today’s catechist?
Fall 2023 Convocations |
Convocation Schedule |
September 18-19: San Francisco
Mercy Center, Burlingame, CA September 26-27: Baltimore Bon Secours Center, Marriottsville, MD October 3-4: Dallas Hilton Garden Inn DFW Airport South October 10-11: Connecticut Holy Family Retreat Center, Farmington, CT October 17-18: Chicago Hilton Garden Inn O’Hare Airport October 24-25: Tampa Franciscan Center November 29-30: San Diego Hilton Garden Inn Mission Valley |
Day One
12 noon - Arrival and registration 1:00 pm - Sharing Our Catechetical Journeys 2:00 pm - Topic 1. Identify and Defining the Challenges facing the Future of Catechesis 5:30 pm - Dinner 7:00 pm - Topic 2. Envisioning the Shape of Catechesis into the Future: Life Stages, Family, Intergenerational and Whole Community 9:00 pm - Close Day Two 8:30 am - Morning Prayer 9:00 am - Topic 3. Designing the Shape of Catechesis – Creating New Initiatives 12 noon - Lunch 1:00 pm - Topic 4. Implementing New Initiatives to Shape the Future of Catechesis 4:00 pm - Close |