Photo Caption: Beverly Bryan, regional director of religious education for the Galesburg and Macomb vicariates, uses a prop to make a point during a demonstration at the Catechetical Conference.

Seizing the opportunity to encourage people to go deeper into the Mass as well as helping them to learn the prayers in the new English translation of the Roman Missal, the Diocese of Peoria has prepared a seven-week course of study that will start in October.

The first to be trained in how to use the materials were the catechists, teachers and directors of religious education who attended the Catechetical Conference sponsored by the diocesan Office of Catechetics. The event drew 175 people to the Spalding Pastoral Center in Peoria on Aug. 6.

In addition to the workshop on the changes to the Roman Missal, there were sessions for catechists to learn and share ideas by grade level and opportunities to interact with publishers and vendors. At the request of DREs around the diocese, Loyola Press was invited to make an extended presentation on its “Connect, Awaken and Share” program.

“The catechists left with materials in their hands. The workshops provided a CliffsNotes version of the Curriculum Guidelines, some major themes and back-up materials to use in their classrooms,” said Dr. Vincent McClean, director of the Office of Catechetics.

WELCOMING THE MISSAL
Collaborating on the training materials for welcoming the new Roman Missal were the Office of Catechetics, the Office of Catholic Schools and the Office of Divine Worship. The foundation of the seven-week program is “A Study of the Mass” by Father Christopher Layden and the accompanying PowerPoint presentation, according to McClean, who facilitated the workshop.

“Many Catholics don’t really understand what’s going on at Mass, so this is an opportunity to go through that,” he told conference participants. “I would see this program as being very usable for RCIA, adult formation and just for the general laity.”

The program will start with a short DVD presentation by Bishop Daniel R. Jenky, CSC, which will be shown at all Masses the first weekend of October. The seven lessons that follow will be taught in the schools and religious formation programs of the diocese each week after that, with the pastors and parochial vicars preaching about the same topic from the ambo, McClean said.

Any other parish groups that would like to use the study materials on the same schedule, such as adults in the RCIA process, are welcome to do so.

The study program is designed to begin the week of Oct. 3, with homilies incorporating Session One following at Masses the weekend of Oct. 8-9. The final lesson is planned for the week of Nov. 14, with themes from Session Seven included in homilies given at Masses the weekend of Nov. 19-20.

The new Roman Missal in English will be implemented on the First Sunday of Advent, Nov. 27.

McClean said the study guide will be mailed to the pastors and DREs at the end of this month. The principals received “A Study of the Mass” when they met at the Spalding Pastoral Center for the opening Mass and luncheon of the new school year on Aug. 11.

The PowerPoint presentation is being revised to include more of the talking points from each lesson. When it is completed it will be sent by e-mail and made available for downloading from the website of the Diocese of Peoria, cdop.org, McClean said.

“If a given parish has difficulty with that, we can supply them with a DVD and hard copies,” he added.

TEACHABLE MOMENTS
There were other teachable moments shared during the Catechetical Conference and the catechists were encouraged to incorporate as many as they could into their weekly classes.

In his workshop covering grades seven and eight, for example, Alan Anderson told his listeners how he turned a request to pray the “Glory Be” — “Why do the students like it? Because it’s the shortest prayer,” he quipped — into a lesson on the Trinity as a community of love and the infinite nature of God.

“You’re making a catechetical point, which is listen to the words of our prayers,” said Anderson, who is DRE at St. Mary’s in Metamora and regional director of religious education for the LaSalle and Ottawa vicariates of the Diocese of Peoria. “They’ve said them a lot, but they don’t listen to what the words are saying.”

In her workshop on “Creating Sacred Space,” Sister Jane Marie Osterholt, SP, who is a consultant in the curriculum division at Our Sunday Visitor, reminded the catechists that even their tone of voice plays a key role in making their classrooms prayerful places of learning.

“It creates an entirely different atmosphere,” she said.

She added that students of all ages need to learn prayers of silence as well as the structured prayers of the church.

“We cannot hear God in our hearts if there is no silence,” said Sister Jane Marie, who has been involved in catechesis and pastoral ministry for nearly 50 years. She is completing her term as second general councilor for the Sisters of Providence.