Fr. Maina
Our Thanks To Pat Klein,
Religious Education Coordinator
Parents and Catechists lay the foundation of knowledge
about life and God for children. The word catechism
comes from the word ‘echo’ which means the repetition
of sound. Catechism refers to the echo or repetition of
God’s word through the heroic virtues and testimonies of
the saints and missionaries as well as catechists when
they bring people to Christ. Men and women continue
to make possible what Christ urged his disciples to do:
“Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations …”
(Matthew 28:19).
Catechesis then becomes not just providing answers to
questions about the Catholic faith, but “the totality of
the Church’s efforts to make disciples, to help men
[and women] believe that Jesus is the Son of God so
that believing, they might have life in His name, and to
educate and instruct them in his life, thus building up the
body of Christ” (#4 Catechism of the Catholic Church).
The Catechism of the Catholic Church mentions the
organic and systematic nature of our faith, what
St. John Paul II called the symphony of faith. Catechism
then is seen as the way children become more human as
they align their lives with the life of Christ. To align
one’s life to that of Christ calls for an awareness of
Christ’s doctrine as handed on through the Catholic
Church and for making such doctrine meaningful in one’s
life. There are four parts in the catechism that make the
catechesis organic and systematic:
- What we believe is contained in the twelve
articles of the Apostle’s Creed.
- Christian mystery talks about how the faith is
celebrated in and centered on the seven
sacraments.
- The life of Christ is structured around the Ten
Commandments and
- Christian prayer is centered on the Our Father.
At this time, I would like to highlight the contribution,
dedication, and zeal of Pat Klein to the Religious
Education program that provides catechesis for school-
aged children here at St. Catherine Labouré Parish.
Father Mair invited Pat to take on the role of Religious
Education Coordinator in our parish shortly before his
retirement. Pat started her role the same time I was
called to pastor St. Catherine Labouré in July of 2009.
Now, Pat has expressed her desire to retire at the end
of June 2018. In a letter she addressed to me and to
the Catechists, she wrote in part:
“I have genuinely had many opportunities for
spiritual and professional development by
being the coordinator of religious education.
While I look forward to enjoying my retirement,
I will miss being with fellow catechists, staff
members, and the religious education children at
St. Catherine’s. I especially have enjoyed the past
several months working with the Seminarians from
Mundelein. They are the future of our Church.”
I can testify that Pat’s heart has always been in the right
place as she has striven to make disciples out of the
children who have come to the Sunday catechetical
program. Pat has worked well with parents, and has
cared for the children, seeing them as Christ’s children.
Please join me in thanking Pat for her generosity and
dedication.
Given this news, I hereby announce that the Religious
Education Coordinator role is open and invite any
parishioner who desires to help make disciples of our
children to take on this role. If you are interested,
please speak with me after any Mass or call me at
the rectory.
May God bless you and your family.
Fr. Maina Waithaka
With you a Christian, for you a priest
Pat, we will miss your
dedication, zeal and
energy.
Mostly we will
miss your leadership.
Thank you for all that
you have done to hand
on the faith to our children.
We wish you a relaxing
retirement.
