Parents are the first educators of their children. Within an atmosphere of love, they provide a well-rounded formation for them. This message has been repeated in the documents of Vatican II, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and the General Directory for Catechesis (GDC, 1997).

The faith formation of young children begins many years before any formal catechetical instruction. The family’s role in the faith formation of their children continues when children begin school. Catholic parents continue to share their faith with their children through praying at home, attending Sunday Mass every week, and witnessing to their faith by the way they live every day. Catechesis has two goals:

• To mature the initial faith
• To educate the maturing person “by means of a deeper and more systematic knowledge of the person and message of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Our Canadian Catechetical resources have been developed with the family in mind. Catechists in the parish and teachers in schools are encouraged to send information home about the themes that have been presented. This equips parents to journey with their children in an ongoing way.

“In [reality]... initial evangelization [of children] has often not taken place. [Some] children baptized in infancy come for catechesis in the parish without receiving any other initiation into the faith, and without any explicit personal attachment to Jesus Christ.... Other children have not been baptized... Many pre-adolescents and adolescents who have been baptized and been given a systematic catechesis and the sacraments still remain hesitant a long time about committing their whole lives to Christ... Even adults are not safe from temptations to doubt or to abandon their faith, especially as a result of their unbelieving surroundings.”
Catechesi Tradendae, 19

“The aim of all catechesis is to develop, with God’s help, an as yet initial faith, and to advance in fullness and to nourish day by day the Christian life of the faithful, young and old.”
Catechesi Tradendae, 20

Family/Home Edition of the Canadian Catechetical Resources

Some families, because of distance or other reasons, are unable to participate in formal catechetical classes in a Catholic school, or in a parish. For these families, there is a home edition of our Canadian resources. The home program works best when each family is connected with someone who mentors them along the way, such as a pastor or catechist from their parish. We also suggest that the home program families in a parish/region might gather together every month or two for a general session.

Home Program Resources

The Home Edition for Years 1 through 6 is available in a booklet edition. These programs are still available from CCCB publications.

Other family resources

The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a Pastoral Letter to Young People on Chastity in January 2011.