Containing excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, these documents about the Sacramental Economy and Catholic Devotion are useful references.
are perhaps the most significant catechetical subject. Enlightenment and preparation of community members to receive sacraments is done by two groups dedicated to catechize parishioners, 
(children & teenagers) and Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (adults).
to a particular item or element of Catholic faith is a means of personal satisfaction. Ardor for a saint, expressions of thanksgiving or petitions for mercy are but a few motives of pious dedication. Devotion may be of many forms, but primarily prayer is the method to practice the dedication. A particular type of prayer, such as a novena or a litany is often used.
is an ancient, distinctively Catholic and beautiful form of prayer. It adds an element to liturgy that uplifts the soul. The polyphonic sound of this sacred music can transport you back in time to a more mystical, monastic and medieval age. Yet it remains a modern means to reach a transcendent sense of worship. At a concert in his honor in the Sistine Chapel, this means of renewal was identified by our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI.
"An authentic renewal of sacred music can only happen in the wake of the great tradition of the past, of Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony."—Pope Benedict XVI, June 24, 2006.
Commonly used for instruction in the elements of religion, the word katechesis means instruction by word of mouth, especially by questioning and answering.
The word katechesis and others of the same origin, shown below within brackets [Greek, Latin], occur in St. Luke's Gospel:
"so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received [katechethes, in quibus eruditus es]" Lk 1:4
St. Paul uses the word twice:
"I give thanks to God that I speak in tongues more than any of you, but in the church I would rather speak five words with my mind, so as to instruct [katecheso, instruam] others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue." 1 Cor 14:18,19
"One who is instructed [ho katechoumenos, is qui catechizatur] in the word should share all good things with his instructor [to katechounti, ei qui catechizat]." Gal 6:6
In the early Church, the Apostles and faithful disciples of Christ catechized by word of mouth and personal writings. During this period of Catholic Tradition, the understanding of the Truth was evolving with ever more completeness. Eventually, our doctrine of faith (dogma) recorded in ecclesial documents became the source which we use today.
Hence the word catechesis, with its technical meaning of oral religious instruction, passed into ecclesiastical use, and is applied both to the act of instructing (Faith Formation, Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) and the subject-matter of the instruction.
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