While the catechesis offered within the family is ordinarily informal, unstructured, and spontaneous, it is no less crucial for the development of the child's faith. "In a certain sense nothing replaces family catechesis, especially for its positive and receptive environment, for the example of adults, and for its first explicit experience and practice of the faith."
- National Directory for Catechesis, 48.E.1
One of the best ways for families to form faith is to simply talk about the Sunday readings together. Check here each week for discussion prompts.
Second Sunday in Ordinary Time – 17 January 2021
1 Samuel 3:3b-10, 19. Psalm 40:2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10. 1 Corinthians 6:13c-15a, 17-20. John 1:35-42.
Listening, Discerning and Watching, Coming, Seeing, Finding. These words ending in -ing (technically “gerunds”) in the first and gospel readings indicate some continuing action. They point out good Christian behaviors as we start this winter time between the seasons of Christmas and Lent. Like Samuel, we want to be always listening for God’s voice, even while needing the help of another for discerning it. Like the Baptist, we want to be watching for Jesus moving among us, looking for his activity in surprising ways in our midst and, perhaps, the surprising people around us.
These questions are copyrighted and provided by license from The Pastoral Center. Parishes and other organizations need to purchase their own license before distributing this material with their parishioners. As such, the material may not be reposted to a parish website or social media page without the parish obtaining an individual site license. To purchase a parish license, please visit Questions of the Week.
Questions of the Week:
Adults:
Check out our the new section of our website on "Faith Themes." While it remains a "Work in Progress," this is the place to visit for curated resources on a variety of Faith Themes.
While there are some activities and materials written on a child/teen level, much of the material is on the adult level. Parents are encouraged to preview resources and share as appropriate. Families will benefit from talking about the topics with one another.
Vibrant Faith @ Home is an ecumenical resource from Vibrant Faith that offers family resources that can be used either in the home or in gathered faith formation sessions.
Catholic Family Faith is curated by Faith Formation leaders from across the country to help catechists and ministry leaders accompany parents and families in faith.
vCat (Video Catechism) is a ministry and resource of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston and Outside da Box. It offers videos and discussion guides for the Four Pillars of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. While designed specifically for teens, this resource can be used by entire families.
Liturgy Training Publications has a wide variety of resources that can be used for growing family faith. Resources include, but are not limited to, the following:
The Leadership Institute of the Diocese of Bridgeport offers several resources for families: