Book Review
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The
Joy of Being a Catechist
From Watering to Blossoming
Gloria Durka
62 pages
Resurrection Press, 1995
Retail Price: $4.95
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www.resurrectionpress.com
Also available in Spanish
Book Description
In five short chapters, Gloria Durka affirms the person and the ministry
of
the catechist.
- The Amazing Grace of Teaching:
The Joys and Challenges of Teaching
- Feeding Hungers:
Why We Teach
- Planting Roots, Giving Wings:
What We Teach
- Imaging Ourselves, Imaging God:
How We Sustain our Enthusiasm
- Journeying Toward God:
Participating in the Ministry of the Christian Community
About the Author
Gloria Durka, renowned author and lecturer, is a Professor
of Religious
Education and Theology at Fordham University, Bronx, NY
Book Review
The Joy of Being a Catechist is a pep rally for the volunteer
or school catechist. At the same time, it offers a great deal of solid
reflection material on the principles a religious educator needs to
follow to get smarter and more effective about how to go about the ministry.
Gloria Durka’s little gem of a book is a wonderful tool for helping
parish catechists begin the habit of quality spiritual reading. At a
mere 62 pages in length, the book is unlikely to intimidate even the
most harried and overwhelmed catechist. Yet, unlike many easily accessible
books that are filled with good, heartwarming stories, but little solid
formation in the Catholic tradition of passing on the faith, this book
will educate as well as inspire.
However, unlike most books dealing with these sometimes heady ideas,
it does so without becoming too academic. The book is an easy read for
people of most educational levels. Two years ago the Diocese of Belleville
in Illinois made The The Joy of Being a Catechist required
reading for the Apprentice Level Catechist Certification process. Nearly
1,000 catechists in the diocese have read the book. Parishes are encouraged
to give the book as a gift to every new catechist on Catechetical Sunday,
the third weekend of September. Many catechists in the diocese keep
the book at their bedside for a quick dose of inspiration after a rough
class or learning experience with their youth or a run-in with a parent.
The Joy of Being a Catechist contains important insights from
theology, psychology and sociology that are essential knowledge for
anyone in the catechetical ministry. It also includes a host of images
and metaphors for the ministry that many catechists will find motivating,
and directors of religious education can use for the ongoing challenge
of educating the parish on the importance of the catechetical ministry.
For instance, in one section Durka explains how a “catechist feeds
hungers of the heart,” and must become comfortable in helping their
disciples live “between doing and being.” Elsewhere she reflects
on the ways in which a catechist is a “gift, a promise and a command,”
and has the divine mission of helping the young to “grow and glow.”
All of the informational content, reflections and stories in The
Joy of Being a Catechist are woven around a large quantity of Scripture
passages. These biblical references alone are worth the cost of the
book. They are an excellent resource for daily meditation and a catechist’s
personal formation into a deeper grasp of the mysteries of the Catholic
faith tradition and the ministry of catechesis.
Mark Markuly
Associate Director of Religious Education
Diocese of Belleville, IL.
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