Reflections from Retreat
At JP Catholic this past week, we had the opportunity to participate in a retreat given by Fr. Nathan of the Brothers of St. John. It was a blessed day full of talks, adoration, discussion and joyful interactions with other students. Some of the reflections that stood out to me the most are particularly applicable to catechesis, so I will relate them here.
–The Greek word for baptism literally means plunge. Name also has a strong meaning, as it is closely united to the person. It is profound to think about the words of baptism in these terms: “I plunge you in the Person of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” The reality of what takes place in baptism is that we are incorporated into the Body of Christ, into the very life of the Trinity. It is easy to “know” that, but how often do we reflect on it and order our lives according to it?
–As Christians, we are called to evangelize. What form does this take in our lives? A practical note of advice given was, “do not tell someone that God loves them unless you do.” We must be conformed to Jesus so radically that we are able to truly love and care for the person and so want the best for them. If we just rhetorically tell others that God loves them without having a vitally strong relationship with Him and be allowing Him to use us as an instrument, we will be seen as what we are–hypocrites.
–Whatever we do, we must do it well. Every work of art (in any form) must reflect a “good,” and has the power to awaken a sense of wonder, beauty, and truth.
–Finally and most importantly, we must put our focus on Christ. It is in giving ourselves in love to Him that we will be happy, and he will use us to change the world…if we do not recognize our dependence on Him, and try to achieve good things on our own, they will be empty and with no lasting value. In our world where we focus so much on media, we must recognize that good shows are not what ultimately matters; there is a great contrast between the effectiveness of evangelization of ”The Passion of the Christ” and Mother Teresa in her quiet work. While the former is very good, it does not have the same power of Christ’s love lived in our modern world.
As catechists, our greatest goal should be to spend more time praying for the people placed in our care, and strive to become the best educators we can be. If we love God and love His people, our lives will be fruitful.
