Mary, the Role Model for a Good Catechist

The parish hall of St. Pius X Parish in Corpus Christi was filled to the brim – catechists, directors of religious education, youth ministers, and teachers registered for the Catechetical Convention – this year held on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
 
Bishop Mario Avilés celebrated Mass and thanked the participants for their help, noting that it is the bishop's role to be the teacher and catechist. He presented Mary as a model for a good catechist. “She went in joyful haste to visit her cousin Elizabeth – you are called to the same urgency, and you carry life itself.”
 
Second, the Blessed Virgin was a bearer of presence rather than programs. “You teach most powerfully not by what you say, but by what you are,” by being present and listening to the students.
 
Mary did not magnify herself, but the Lord, the Bishop continued. “A catechist after Mary’s heart does not teach from a pedestal but proclaims the whole truth humbly.” Even while sin is real and a major challenge, we know that our homeland is Heaven: Jesus “has already won the decisive battle.” He told the catechists that he greatly appreciated what they are doing: “The Church needs you,” but no catechist should ever think this service is enough: “You still need to pray, pray a lot, and be in front of the Lord.”
 
After the Mass, he made an exciting announcement: “Thanks to the Holy Spirit, because he's the author of everything we do, we will inaugurate Our Lady of Guadalupe Institute for Evangelization and Catechesis.” The lessons will begin in January 2027, and courses will last three hours, with two attendance options: two 90-minute weeknight sessions or one three-hour Saturday morning session. Fr. Eric Chapa is spearheading this endeavor, and priests and religious from our diocese will prepare the lessons, which will be in person in different parishes around the diocese. The catechists were very happy about this new opportunity to deepen their faith.
 
Guest Speaker Chris Bartlett, founder and president of Ablaze Ministry, linked his talk to Saint Francis, whose 800^th anniversary is celebrated this year. “Be instruments of peace as catechists.” He asked participants where they encounter chaos in their ministry, and they shared many examples, from student absences and lack of parental support to rowdy teenagers. Bartlett identified challenges at different developmental stages: “big feelings” in Pre-K and Kindergarten and the quest for justice (“that’s not fair”) in elementary school, accompanied by questions like, “Am I good at this? Do I matter?” In these phases, adult authority still matters a lot.
 
Lastly, in middle school and early high school, youth search for their identity: “They don’t know who they are and often push back against family and faith.” The model is the “Road to Emmaus,” where Jesus listens to the two discouraged disciples who are discouraged and ready to go home. Accompanying them and taking their questions seriously, Jesus explains why everything had to happen as it did – and the disciples recognize Him when He breaks the bread.
 
Chris Bartlett encouraged participants to work with parents and visit their students' families: “It will be different once you have attended one of their games or petted their dog.” Generally, the work of a catechist requires patience and persistence: “We want everything to happen fast, like we’re a microwave, but we are crockpots.” In the slow process of accompaniment, the faith of young people will grow; “catechists are lighthouses rather than fireworks.”