DOVER – About 85 catechists from 16 parishes gathered Saturday morning, March 16 to network, encourage each other and celebrate their ministry.
They gathered for the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington’s annual Catechetical Day at Church of the Holy Cross in Dover where Bishop Koenig and Superintendent of Schools Louis De Angelo greeted the teachers.
About 20 more catechists attended this year than in 2023.
Bishop Koenig recognized and thanked nearly two dozen catechists for their years of service teaching youngsters, teens and adults in their local parishes.
“I think they’re encouraged (as) the bishop … goes around to thank them and support them. They love that,” De Angelo said.
The 4-hour event was sponsored by Loyola Press, a Jesuit ministry, and the CDOW Office of Religious Education. The theme was “Engaging Children and Families in Faith Formation.”
MaryAnn Wallen, director of religious education for the diocese, coordinated the event and said she hoped catechists and directors of religious education would be inspired “to look at our programs in each of our parishes … and how we can better get our parents and our students and our families to participate more in the church – and not just coming to Mass, but across the board. How can we make it a priority for them when sports and other things are more of a priority?”
Bishop Koenig told participants, “Those who devote themselves to the ministry of catechesis play a vital role in the curch’s pastoral mission.”
“In this celebration we will bless the name of the Lord for giving us such co-workers,” he said. Catechists read scripture and offered prayers.
De Angelo called the event a “community builder.”
“People who share the same ministry are now coming together and seeing the other people who are also participants in the same ministry, and so there’s … a synergy that happens as a result of it,” he said. “The most important part is that they come together to pray, they come together to learn and they come together to celebrate.”
Second in importance, De Angelo said, was “recognizing catechists who have numbers of years of service, which is really an inspiration that they’ve been called to this ministry. They’ve said yes, and they continue to say yes.”
Two of those catechists recognized for their decade of service were Romeo and Zita Aquino of Hockessin. They have taught fourth and seventh grade students at St. Mary of the Assumption parish since they retired and had more time to devote to the ministry of catechesis.
Romy Aquino said the gathering was “very important to us because it’s a manifestation of the importance of what we do.”
“We all hope that it inspires and encourages other people, especially the younger ones, to take up the responsibility of spreading the gospel for the younger generations,” Aquino said. “It’s a big challenge, but it’s very satisfying.”
Keynote speaker Joe Paprocki is a lifelong Catholic who holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from the University of St. Mary of the Lake (Mundelein Seminary). He’s also the national consultant for faith formation for Loyola Press, a leading publisher of catechetical curriculum.
It’s been 10 years since Paprocki visited Delaware and said it was “nice to be back.”
“One of the reasons that I love doing what I’m doing is that catechists come out on a Saturday morning. They don’t have to be here. They’re here because they want to,” Paprocki said.
“I want catechists to recognize that they are not teachers of a subject, but facilitators of an encounter, and that changes how you approach everything you do as a catechist,” he said. “We’re not just talking about Jesus – we’re inviting young people to encounter him. It’s a relationship.”
“I work for Loyola Press, so I quote St. Ignatius quite a bit,” Paprocki said. “He said that prayer should resemble one friend talking to another, so the kind of relationship that we’re trying to encourage is that nearness – the intimacy of one friend speaking with another – helping catechists help young people to recognize and appreciate the nearness of the Lord.”
Wallen said the event was geared towards catechists whose ministry is mainly focused on public school children who are educated Sunday mornings, or during weekly or summer education programs.
Regardless of when catechists teach, the day allowed them to come “together because they don’t really see each other,” she said.
The event brochure promoted engaging children and parents “who do little more than drop their children off so that the parish can instill faith in them.” Paprocki identified “strategies to more effectively engage young people and their families in dynamic and transformative faith formation experiences.”
Those recognized for years of service were:
Five years:
Carol Berster, Nancy Sheehan-Becker, Mary Koster, Bruce Miller and Jennifer Valentine
10 years:
Romeo C. Aquino, Zita B. Aquino, Cynthia Bennington, Sarah Braack, Dan DiLuzio, Kevin Limbers, Cookie Ruane, Joanne Russell and Cammie Twyford
15 years:
Jan Faust, Karen Headley, Nancy Lindyburg and Christine Shields
30 years:
Elaine Little
35 years:
Dolores Ballintyn, Tammy Korosec, Helen Muser and Karen Yasik
