155), and centers for higher education, such as universities and their institutes of formation (cf. 154), a national center of formation for diocesan and national catechetical leaders (cf. The directory distinguishes between diocesan centers of formation (cf. Key paragraphs for understanding the structure of the Institute are: 154-156 (regarding centers for formation), 411 (regarding the Eastern Catholic Churches) and 412-425 (regarding the episcopal conference and dioceses). 'Evangelizing Catechesis' was the overall theme for the inaugural launch of the institute. The vision can be synthesized in the term ‘evangelizing catechesis,’ which aims to place the encounter with Christ first and foremost as the foundation of all catechetical formation, teach catechists how to proclaim the kerygma of salvation, initiate a systematic formation in the faith, accompany catechists and teach them how to accompany those they minister to in and outside of the classroom, and connect all of the ministry of catechesis as an ecclesial act entrusted to the entire Church and delegated by the local bishop and his collaborators. The 'Directory for Catechesis' is the blueprint and vision the institute aims to implement on behalf of the U.S. Last month, Bishop Frank Caggiano, chair of the subcommittee, presented to bishops an update on the institute, in which he said the vision and structure of the Institute is grounded in the Church's 'Directory for Catechesis.' Can you expand on how the directory's vision is expressed in the institute's vision and structure? Subscribe Now The USCCB's Subcommittee on the Catechism oversees the Institute on the Catechism. The institute will collaborate with the USCCB and expert institutions, including the Denver-based Augustine Institute and the McGrath Institute For Church Life at the University of Notre Dame.Ĭharles Camosy spoke this week with Carlos Taja, the associate director of the USCCB’s Secretariat of Evangelization and Catechesis, and the founding director of the Institute on the Catechism. It is not designed to be a physical place, but a bicultural effort to develop teaching and evangelization materials, hold annual formational conferences, and promote evangelizing catechesis.

The institute is intended to be a proactive response to changes in the catechetical landscape, such as a rise in the religiously disaffiliated, the growing percentage of Hispanic Catholics, and the increased use of technology in catechesis, Caggiano said.

The idea behind the new institute was laid out by Bishop Frank Caggiano of Bridgeport, head of the Subcommittee on the Catechism, at the fall USCCB meeting last year. Last month, a group of clergy and laity gathered in Baltimore for the inaugural meeting of the Institute on the Catechism.

Usccb catechism