General Directory for Catechesis

Contents

The General Directory for Catechesis is a document written by the Congregation for the Clergy of the Catholic Church, based in Rome. That Congregation no longer has responsibility for the issues addressed in this document. In January 2013, its competency for catechesis was transferred to the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation.

Publication history

Following publication of the General Catechetical Directory in 1971, the Holy See realised importance of a wealth of new developments in the life of the Church and of the world, and so in 1997 the first edition of the General Directory for Catechesis was produced.[1]

Purpose and audience

The document largely discusses practical and theoretical aspects of linking catechesis to evangelization. It is addressed both to the clergy and lay catechists. It points to the Catechism of the Catholic Church as a primary reference source for the teaching of faith, religious instruction and the new evangelization.[2]

Reception in the Neocatechumenal Way

The document is extensively referred to by the Statuta of the Neocatechumenal Way,[3] regarding basic aspects of the catechesis in the Church:

  • role of a parish priest, no 225 (Statuta, Art. 6 §2), and of teams of catechists - no 268 (Statuta, Art. 17 §3)
  • community dimension:
  • fostering vocations - no 86 (Statuta, Art. 18 §1)
  • transmitting faith by parents to their children - nos 226-225 and 255, cf. CIC c.774 §2; CCEO c. 618.

References

  1. 1.Cf. Preface, in: "General Directory for Catechesis". Libreria Editrice Vaticana. 11 August 1997. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
  2. 2.Cf. Ryan, Maurice. "The General Directory for Catechesis: implications for religious education in Australian Catholic schools". 25 Years of Religious Education in Australia. A Catholic Perspective. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
  3. 3.Neocatechumenal Way. Statuta - Final Approval (PDF) (in Italian). Rome: Neocatechumenal Center. 11 May 2008. p. 67. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 May 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2011.