Great moments of faith
David Sullivan
Our Catholic secondary schools are great places for faith development, faith education and a real lived experience of a Catholic community. I am in a privileged position as Secondary Religious Education Consultant for the Archdiocese, as I am able to assist these schools and work along-side their teachers. Here I see great work of the Holy Spirit in action.
We call the Religious Education programme ‘Education in Faith’. Its purpose is to educate our young people in the Catholic Faith. We don’t impose, but we give a rich knowledge based on Scripture and Tradition. We teach, using latest information and Church response to key areas of our lives.
Under the expertise of the Religious Education teachers, we encourage students to critically work with this knowledge and integrating it into their lives.
The newly-taught Achievement Standards have enhanced this and contributed to a greater student ‘buy-in’.
Last year, I worked with 20 teenagers, preparing them for the Sacraments of Initiation. I witnessed a young faith, alive and wanting to be expressed.
The prayers and liturgies in our schools are teenage-centred, rich and vibrant and examples of our faith alive with participation. Often liturgies are organised and led by our students and are joyful, reverent, and life-giving.
As parishes develop under new structures, questions perhaps need to be asked. Where is the Catholic Secondary school in our parish planning? There are great Catholic moments happening in our schools but are parishes aware of them?
Are we making every effort in our planning, to take our youth with us, and allow our parishes to be places where our young people feel included? In our schools they participate fully, which includes leadership.
Have we the courage to embrace this in our parishes?
In our time of renewal, I challenge this vital relationship between the parish and the school to be one that opens doors and creates community; one that walks side by side without letting traditions and experiences from the past hinder this living faith.
I encourage parish and school to share and experience faith together. This means taking risks, but that is a positive step as we live ‘being church’ together.
David Sullivan is Secondary Religious Education Consultant for the Archdiocese of Wellington.