Foundation providing grants for Catechesis of Good Shepherd

It’s learning without teaching. It’s about love, not knowledge. It’s active participation, not passive listening. The Catechesis of Good Shepherd introduces children to Jesus Christ through the Montessori Method of experiential learning and wonder, rather than textbook teaching.

Thanks to a $21,000 grant from Foundation of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo, training for the Catechesis of Good Shepherd has begun taking place in the diocese.

Certification requires 90-100 hours of training for each level of instruction. The grant will focus on training directors for Level 1 (3-6 year-olds).

The Catechesis of Good Shepherd uses the Montessori Method of education. The approach focuses on independence, hands-on learning, and a thoughtfully prepared environment that allows the child to grow in all the main developmental areas.

For the children, the learning center is the atrium. It’s not a classroom and not a church, but still a place to learn and pray. Maps and globes are present to show where Jesus lived. There’s a prayer corner and puzzles of the liturgical year. A model altar helps children learn the names of liturgical items, so, when they attend Mass with families, they know the vocabulary and are comfortable in a church environment.

“It is really transforming,” said Lisa Benzer, director of Faith Formation for the Diocese of Buffalo.

“There’s no viable step between baptism and first or second grade when faith formation starts for a child,” explained Benzer. “So, we wanted to emphasize the value of encountering God at a very early age. That would be ages 3 through 6. The atrium provides that environment for a child to really truly get in touch with the presence of God, the simplicity of having a relationship with God, of encountering God at a very early age in their lives, so they can take this through their faith formation as they get to their later years – kindergarten all the way through 12th grade.”

The aim is to “Lift up the participation of the children at Mass and other liturgical celebrations,” according to Tracy Tremblay, Family Faith Formation director for Epiphany of Our Lord Parish in Langford.

Unlike a school classroom where a teacher reads to the students who listen passively, Scripture and liturgy are presented to the children and adults “wonder” with them.

“We don’t tell them what Jesus is telling us, we wonder with them,” explained Mary Lata, certified instructor. “And the answers that come from those questions are absolutely amazing.”

In the first year, they present the parable of the mustard seed and they wonder why did Jesus compare the Kingdom of God to a mustard seed?

“The answers are deep and profound,” Lata said. “Sometimes they just answer with silence and a deep sigh, but other times they answer with beautifully profound responses. ‘We’re the mustard seed and we’re supposed to grow in the kingdom.’ We never tell them what Jesus meant. We wonder with them. We want to foster in the child a great love of Scripture.”

It’s not a religious education program, although the children learn a lot.

“This is time to fall in love with God, to grow more deeply closer to God through Scripture and liturgy and to foster a desire to go further into that as they grow,” Lata explained, comparing it to Lectio Divina.

“The best thing about the Catechesis of Good Shepherd is you see the kids develop kind of on their own, with a little guidance,” explained Tremblay. “But we learn together, so I’m learning about the mystery of the Kingdom of God while the children are learning something from the Scriptures from me. I’m presenting it, but I learn from their responses. God speaks through the children as well. It’s a work that once you begin and you see the profound effect on the children and the adults. You know that God is working.”

She admits it takes time, talent and treasure, but feels it’s worth it.

Tremblay works with children in her parish Mondays and Thursday, teaching levels 1 and 3. She also hosts the adult formation at her Quiet Waters retreat house.

Catechesis of the Good Shepherd began in the 1950s by Sofia Cavalletti and Gianna Gobbi who used the Montessori Method following the stages of child development to teach religion. Calvetti, a Scripture scholar, was asked by a friend to prepare her 8-year-old for his sacraments.

“She was able to take out the essential, then sit with the children and let the teacher in the room, who is Christ Himself, reveal what the Scriptures speak,” said Tremblay.

“The essence of the Catechesis of Good Shepherd is it honors the intrinsic relationship that children already have with their maker, and enhances it by being humble enough to introduce the Scripture and liturgy in bite sized pieces that the children can filter out what is essential and make it their own and grow in their faith.”

Benzer would like to see an atrium in every Family of Parishes. Currently, 21 are in place or have people being trained for them.

The Foundation has extended the grant to Jan. 4, 2025. Parishes can contact Lisa Benzer at 716-847-8760 for an application.