USCCB - Catechesis in the Catholic Church

Catechism of the Catholic Church

Catechism Update
Fall, 1997

The Ad Hoc Committee has recently assessed its position relative to the objectives given to it by the Administrative Committee. The members of the Ad Hoc Committee determined that the work necessary to fulfill its objectives required additional assistance and more time. In light of this determination, the Ad Hoc Committee proposed action on two levels.
In May Bishop Robert Banks of Green Bay was appointed to the Ad Hoc Committee. He has distinguished himself in the fields of theology, catechetics and pastoral leadership, and his experience as Chairman of the Committee on Education will greatly benefit the work of the Ad Hoc Committee. Given the expanded responsibilities of the Committee, his contribution would be vital to the achievement of the Committee’s objectives, particularly the review of catechetical materials as to their conformity with the Catechism.
Secondly, the Ad Hoc Committee unanimously agreed to propose a five year extension of the Office for the Catechism. The Office was originally established by the bishops at the June, 1995 General Meeting, with the intention of operating three years. On the advice of the Conference President, the Ad Hoc Committee submitted a proposal to the Committee on Budget and Finance and the Committee on Priorities and Plans. In August, both Committees reviewed the proposal and forwarded it to the Administrative Board with a request for time on the agenda of the November, 1997 General Meeting.
As you know, the Full Body of Bishops approved the establishment of the Office for the Catechism at its June, 1995, meeting. Also at that time, funding for the Office for the Catechism from revenue generated by the sale of the Catechism was approved for a three-year period, ending in 1998. Since then, the Administrative Committee assigned another objective to the Committee, and there has been an increased volume of work relative to the objectives given the Committee. At its recent meeting, the Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism voted unanimously to request a five year extension for the Office for the Catechism. As chairman of the Committee, I am writing to propose such an extension.
It has become evident that certain objectives with which the Committee has been charged will require more time to complete, particularly the review of catechetical materials as to their conformity with the Catechism. The Committee began accepting materials for review in April, 1996, and currently has nine reviews in process. In addition, the Committee has learned that several more catechetical series will be submitted shortly. In order to respond in a timely manner to the growing needs of the publishers, the Committee recently invited an additional 14 bishops to assist them in these reviews and provided orientation and training for these bishops. I have also recently consulted with Monsignor Schnurr regarding the addition of another bishop to serve as a member of the Committee. In short, Bishop Pilla, based on our experience thus far, we do not foresee the completion of our work for several more years.
At the same time, the Committee is undertaking an evaluation and revision of the Protocol, the instrument used in reviewing materials. The members of the Committee, as well the staff of the Office for the Catechism, the additional bishop reviewers, and the 30 outside consultants involved in the review process, can attest to the substantial amount of time and work that is required to complete a review. In light of the extensive review process and the increased number of materials being submitted for review, the Committee is of the mind that an extension of five years is necessary in order to accommodate the bishops’ long-term concern for the doctrinal content of the catechetical materials used in their dioceses.
As to be expected, the volume and complexity of the work required to fulfill the separate objectives does vary, but the review of materials is not the only one that seems to require a more extended time span. In the course of conducting the study of the feasibility of a national catechism/catechetical series, for example, the Committee found it advantageous to develop a Scope and Sequence Instrument Based on the Catechism. This undertaking will assist the Committee greatly in making its recommendation to the Administrative Committee, but the project will not be complete for at least eight months. Such projects are essential to the Committee’s ability to report soundly and fully to the Administrative Committee, and the members of the Committee believe more time will be required for their completion.

OSV grant
In March, the Our Sunday Visitor Foundation has awarded a grant of $500,000 to assist the Catechism Committee’s work. This unsolicited grant is to be given in $100,000 installments over a period of five years. The Committee is deeply appreciative of the support from one of the Church’s most distinguished publishing companies which this grant represents and is encouraged by this generous endorsement. A presentation was given at the Administrative and by the continuing confidence of the Administrative Committee.

1,000 Words
At the request of the Ad Hoc Committee and in anticipation of the pending release of the editio typica of the Catechism, an agreement was signed by Archbishop Celli, Secretary of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See (APSA), on June 15, 1997. This agreement extends the license agreement between the Conference and APSA to December, 2002 and expands it to include the editio typica. It also extends to December, 2002 the June, 1996 amendment by which the Holy See agreed to waive its requirement to directly review works that use more than 5,000 words of the Catechism. Lastly, it amends the license agreement by raising the number of words to be used from the Catechism without permission to 1,000, provided that the user complies with all of the provisions of Part I of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: Revised Statement of Principles, Guidelines for Use of the Text.
The Revised Guidelines approved by APSA and sent to all Bishops in October, 1996 remains the document governing the use of the text of the Catechism in the United States. At its next meeting, the Ad Hoc Committee will discuss amending the Revised Guidelines to reflect the increase in the number of words that can be quoted from the Catechism to 1,000 without prior permission from the USCC.
Recently, the license agreement between the Holy See and the United States Catholic Conference was amended and updated. Two points may be of importance to your work. First, the waiver of the submission of texts directly to the Holy See for review has been extended through December, 2002. Therefore, no manuscripts require review directly by the Holy See. Secondly, the number of words that can be quoted from the Catechism without prior permission from the USCC is now 1,000, provided that the user complies with all of the provisions of Part I of the Revised Guidelines. Both of these points reflect the Holy See's desire to promote the accessibility and widest possible use of the text of the Catechism.

National Associations/Publisher Relations
letter to
Thomas P. Walters, Ph.D.
President/National Conference of Catechetical Leadership
Committee will host a luncheon in November with reps from various national organizations and associations -- goal or intent ( NCCL, NCEA, and Dept of EDU)
Second meeting with publishers of cat materials -- info to report
Thank you for your letter of April 28 and your expressions of gratitude to the Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the staff of the Office for the Catechism. In addition, please accept my congratulations on your election as president of the National Conference of Catechetical Leadership.
I am grateful to you for calling to my attention that the members of your organization seem to lack accurate information relative to the Committee and its work. The work of the Committee is admittedly complex, so in one sense it is not surprising that some do not feel that they have as much factual information as they might like. The Committee regularly keeps the bishops fully informed about its work and encourages them in turn to share that information with their diocesan educational and catechetical personnel. Over the past few years the Committee has generated a number of documents which seem to respond to the requests outlined in your letter. I will be glad to share them with you and would be grateful if you would share them with your members.
As you requested, I enclose with this letter an abbreviated chronology of the genesis of the Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism and the Office for the Catechism, a list of the charges given to the Committee by various entities within the Conference of Bishops and the progress made on the charges as of March, 1997 and a copy of the Protocol and its introduction.
Lastly, I would encourage your members to access the web page of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops at www.nccbuscc.org. By clicking on the Catechism prompt your members can access several additional documents posted by the Ad Hoc Committee. I sincerely hope this information and the documents which I enclose herewith are helpful to your members.
With cordial good wishes, I am

ICC and editio typica

Release of the editio typica
The Conference has been informed that the editio typica of the Catechism will be promulgated in the fall at a solemn ceremony. This will provide another opportunity to call attention to the renewal of catechesis the Catechism is intended to engender. The editio typica will be sent to all the bishops soon after. It is also anticipated that the moderate changes and revised index in booklet form will also be sent to the episcopal conferences, already translated into the major modern languages. These changes and the revised index are intended for insertion into copies of the Catechism which have already been purchased, but will be incorporated into the text of the new editions of the Catechism.

International Catechetical Congress
In June, 1997 the Conference learned the definitive dates for the International Catechetical Congress. The theme of the Congress is “The Faith of the Church and Its Evangelizing Mission,” and it will take place October 14-October 17, 1997. The Congress is occasioned by the promulgation of the editio typica of the Catechism and the revised General Catechetical Directory. Of particular importance to the Ad Hoc Committee are the overview of the reception of the Catechism, discussion of national catechisms, and consideration of the Catechism and GCD as valid instruments and reference points for a renewed catechesis on the threshold of the Third Millennium. Several members of the Ad Hoc Committee have been asked to participate in the Congress.

Internet resources
In April, 1997 staff reported that the home page for the Ad Hoc Committee had been completed. The page is accessed through the Conference’s main page at www.nccbuscc.org. The Ad Hoc Committee’s page offers several options: general information on the Catechism and the Ad Hoc Committee, Documents of the Ad Hoc Committee, past Catechism Update issues, select articles on the Catechism, a listing of foreign language translations, and quizzes to test the reader’s knowledge of Catholic belief and teachings contained in the Catechism. The site is updated on a regular basis.
In July, 1997 the Conference learned that the Vatican intends to place the definitive English text of the editio typica of the Catechism on its website soon after the translation is released.

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