Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:10] Speaker B: Welcome to a new edition of our diocesan podcast, Big City Catholics, with Bishop Robert Brennan, the Diocesan Bishop of Brooklyn and Queens, and myself, Father Christopher Henyu. Today we are joined by a special guest, Ms. Angie Vasquez, the director of Children's Faith formation and catechesis for the Diocese of Brooklyn. We're happy to have you on with us today to talk a little bit about Catechetical Sunday, which has just passed, and to talk about the incredible work of our catechists and catechesis in our diocese, all the exciting things that are happening. But before we jump into it, we'll begin, as we do in all things, in prayer, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen. Asking, as always, the intercession of our Blessed Mother, the patroness of our diocese, to intercede for us and for our families, for our children as we pray. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[00:01:00] Speaker C: Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
[00:01:05] Speaker B: Name of the Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
[00:01:07] Speaker C: Amen.
[00:01:07] Speaker B: Bishop, before we jump into it, last week we had a special edition with your visit to Columbus, Ohio, St. Gabriel radio. That was pretty exciting.
[00:01:15] Speaker C: Yes, it was a great opportunity. I enjoyed the visit in Columbus, hadn't been there in a while, and I enjoyed the chance to sit down with the folks at St. Gabriel Radio. St. Gabriel Radio is an independent Catholic radio station that covers a lot of the territory around the Diocese of Columbus. But it was a vehicle. I would talk about some of the happenings in the diocese from time to time.
But I often trace this podcast origins back to St Gabriel radio, because what I did there was during COVID had a daily communication that was the way of talking to people in the diocese when everything else was shut down. And then, you know, as things started to get back to normal, we made it a weekly update, and then that turned into what we called a weekly faith dialogue for the rest of my time there. And we picked up the tradition here with the weekly faith dialogue, which we call Big City Catholics. So it was nice to do that recording and nice to visit. So glad we could run that interview with St. Gabriel right here on Big City Catholics. And, you know, in the last couple of weeks, we've had some great happenings. I've been involved with the ethnic ministries, and you were one of the honorees at the great Irish fair.
[00:02:29] Speaker B: Yes. A beautiful event to be with you, and thank you. As you began our day in Mass at Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Windsor Terrace. It was a great, great day in general, just to be around and to celebrate all things Irish. You know, as we often celebrate, like the month of March is a month dedicated St. Patrick. And this is a nice opportunity as we begin the pastoral year to kind of celebrate the Irish heritage. And then, of course, as you. Thank you for the plug in the midst of the Mass, but we are excited to have our second St. Bridget Feast Day Mass coming up on the 30th of January, that Saturday prior to our Feast Day on February 1st. So it was a beautiful day. Great honorees. Most of those titles are in honor of a deceased person, whether they be deceased firefighters or police officers. From 9 11, I received the Bishop Sullivan Memorial Award. There's a number of wonderful, talented people within the Irish diaspora. And so it was really great to be able to celebrate with them.
[00:03:30] Speaker C: And I had to run out of that. Yeah, I had to run out because the Venezuelan apostolate was celebrating Our lady of Coromoto. And so I wanted to get to that feast that was important because I've been trying to get that Venezuelan apostolate going. And it seems that the Venezuelans are kind of more dispersed in different parts of the diocese. So Father Ernesto took up the charge and did a great job, got people together. This was the first one. And of course, in terms of some of the immigration struggles, the Venezuelans, they're suffering terribly, terribly at home. Oppression and terrible oppression at home.
And just like the Haitians. So those are two immigrant communities that I worry about what's going on there, but also some of the pressures that they're feeling in terms of TPS and all of that. So it was important to be with them. And then I also got last week, the Latin rite Indian celebration, the celebration of Onam, which is the end of the harvest season. But that meal is entirely vegetarian, celebrating all of the fruits of the harvest. And then, of course, last week, we gathered with the priests. We had our convocation of priests and spoke about some very timely topics.
[00:04:42] Speaker B: The convocation, bishop, was a real blessing just to be able to gather with all the guys to fill the chapel. You know, before the convocation sort of kicked off, there was a little talk from a religious sister that was here. One of the vendors that was kind of here to support her order. She mentioned something that struck me. She said, you know, this is a sacred space. Not just because, you know, the chapel, the tabernacle, but she said, think of the thousands of feet that's stepped on these Grounds that were here studying to serve the Lord as faithful priests of Jesus Christ. Think of the thousands of feet that stepped into that chapel on that marble. And I just was struck by that because it is a beautiful building, it's a beautiful grounds, and there's something very special here. But the topics, Bishop, the topics, the speakers were really, really very timely and very important.
[00:05:32] Speaker C: We dealt with some of the bioethical issues that face us today, and some of those are more timely. You know, we have to secure speakers well over a year in advance, so we had to anticipate. But we spoke about some end of life issues, which is a big issue here in New York State. As you know, as of this recording, we're still waiting to see what the governor is going to do, but it doesn't look all that promising. We still try to advocate that she rejects the bill that was passed. And we spoke about some of the gender issues and some of the moral issues surrounding the dignity of the human person. That was really the keynote, the dignity of the human person and serving the dignity of the person. So it's really very important. And like you say, there's kind of a national notice that the priests of Brooklyn and Queens, when they get together, there's something really good that happens. We're known for enjoying each other when we do get together. And that was no different this time. It was really good, just good to be with the priests of the diocese.
[00:06:38] Speaker B: Well, Bishop, it was. And we're very happy today now to welcome Angie Vasquez to join our conversation. You know, this past Sunday, we celebrated Catechetical Sunday in many of our churches throughout the diocese. We had the blessing, I know, at St. Joan of Arc, we blessed our catechists. We acknowledged and celebrated them, these men and women volunteering their time to be assisting parents in the formation of their children in the ways of the faith. Angie, you're fairly new to this particular position. Welcome.
[00:07:06] Speaker A: Yes, thank you. And first, let me extend a note of gratitude to Bishop Brennan for having me join him. Just an honor to be here, discuss this topic that is so very near and dear to my heart.
[00:07:16] Speaker C: And you know, as the priests were talking last week about all these current issues, we recognize that we have to be very well grounded in the faith. And that's a lot of your ministry.
[00:07:26] Speaker A: Absolutely. And I think it's such an important ministry. You know, I formation is one of many of the important ministries, for sure. But when you think about it, we really are the evangelizers in so many ways.
And that, I think, is an attitude that we have to adopt. And it's one that's very needed nowadays as we encounter families and we try to minister to them in the best ways possible. So, as Father Henyu mentioned, last Sunday was Catechetical Sunday and plenty of churches. So by 153 programs, so 153 parishes having an opportunity to really bless and come together, to really celebrate this most important ministry with catechists and dres and the families, and to show our unity and the desire to really move forward in our faith and to continue the mission to build your church. So it's a really exciting time.
[00:08:15] Speaker C: That's great. And it's so important. And I'm glad you're mentioning families, because it's not just, you know, gathering kids for an hour in a classroom, but it really does involve working with parents in their responsibility to share the faith with their children.
[00:08:31] Speaker A: And I think that's one of the shifts that we're noticing more and more that families are a very much needed component of any vibrant kind of program that we have them involved in any way that we possibly can have them, because they really are, as we've said continuously over the years, and as a new directory for catechisi says, they are the first formers of faith.
[00:08:52] Speaker D: Right.
[00:08:53] Speaker A: They. They begin that process at home, and we really are their partners in that. And, and so really, it's. It's really about adopting the mentality of opening up that partnership and really trying to meet them where we can so it can be a successful ministry and the most effective one.
[00:09:07] Speaker C: And you've just taken on an important role in the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis as the Director of Children's Faith Formation. It's very important role, but you're not new to the work. You've been involved in the work of catechetical ministry for some time as a catechist yourself and as a catechetical leader. How would you describe the state of catechesis in the Diocese of Brooklyn these days? How are things going?
[00:09:31] Speaker A: Yeah, so, you know, I would say it's a mixed bag, I think, you know, so I don't want to date myself, but I will. I will admit that I was a catechist for 12 years prior to becoming a Director of Religious education for about 14 years afterwards. So, yes, I'm nowhere near new to the work and, and to demand. That's really set before catechetical leaders in this day and age. And I think it's just a beautiful ministry, but yet still a challenging one. Right. I think it's the reward that we get to see are the families and the students that the young disciples that really do start to take form and that really do start to move forward in their faith and in their relationships with both Jesus and the church. But the struggles remain with, I think, a shortage of staff, right. Getting catechists. That's always an issue. I don't think I've ever discussed the topic of this ministry without someone saying, hey, we need more help.
[00:10:23] Speaker D: Right?
[00:10:23] Speaker A: We need more volunteers. I think that's a given everywhere. And then. Then, of course, the. The hectic life of families, you know, trying to really engage them in a meaningful way. I think those remain two of our top struggles to this day.
[00:10:37] Speaker B: When I was at Holy Child Jesus, my first parish, as I was leaving, we were sort of, as my last years there, we began a program of family catechesis as well. It was like in addition to.
Just to remind again, you know, that focus on families, reminding them their importance, that we're just here to help. We're here to help you, to lend a hand. But on the day of your baptism, you made a promise that you would train these children in the ways of the faith. And they're doing a great job just by signing them up, thanks be to God. But we want to offer them those resources. And so what kind of resources are, in your opinion, working for families? What do you think is, like, best practice?
[00:11:18] Speaker A: I think that that's a big question.
[00:11:19] Speaker D: Right.
[00:11:20] Speaker A: And it's something actually that we've answered at the catechetical summit, which was our faith effort was really a family. Faith effort was really the goal of that summit as well, which the conversation really was. How do we engage them in a welcoming way?
[00:11:33] Speaker D: Right.
[00:11:33] Speaker A: How do we. And I. And I think the right word is empower them. I think that families sometimes are really lost with how to really help their children grow in the faith. I don't want to say it's just a willful carelessness. I don't think it's that. I think that they just don't.
How to really go about it in a way that's meaningful and effective. And I think in that sense is where we enter the partnership. So as far as best practices, I think it's a matter of both sides coming together. I think that we as catechetical leaders need to strive to kind of come out the box a little bit and think about how we can be more welcoming, engaging. I think one of the best practices to take into consideration truly, is, you know, when building our programs, what are the needs of the families that we are serving and ministering to.
[00:12:17] Speaker D: Right.
[00:12:17] Speaker A: We're dealing with families who have a lot of small children. Then are we taking that into account when we, you know, put together programs and events where we're inviting families? You know, we want them to feel welcome, we want them to feel part of the, the community and part of, and part of the parish life. We don't want to build obstacles. So I think it's understanding where some roadblocks are and, and perhaps taking a fresh pair of eyes and looking and seeing well, how can we kind of be a little more creative about engaging them in a different way? And I think it's also about accessibility. You know, I think technology is scary for some people, and some people heavily depend on it. Right. So how can we best utilize technologies to really reach families in a way that's inviting and that doesn't really pull them away?
[00:13:02] Speaker B: So I talked about Holy Child and now for a few years I was at the CO Cathedral. Now I'm at St Joan of Arc parish. And it strikes me because at St. Joan of Arc we have a school. It's about 200 kids registered in the school. We have a religious ed program with a little over 400 kids. And so it's exciting to see just an extreme amount of kids, you know, like, that are being portrained in the ways of the faith. Do you have any idea of, as of maybe last year, how many children of in our diocese are being trained in faith formation?
[00:13:31] Speaker A: So we had about 23,000 students enrolled from kindergarten to eighth grade. Then we had about another 3,500 in high school. So we're talking grades nine through 12 for a total of 26,000. A little over 26,000 students registered in programs. And again, to give some context, there's 153 programs. So 26,000 kids, right? 26,000 young disciples are coming out of our programs.
[00:13:59] Speaker B: Wow, that's incredible.
[00:14:00] Speaker C: It is, it is. And it's an interesting thing. We talk about the diversity of Brooklyn and Queens, but it's not just cultural diversity. It's actually we have parishes that are very, very large and have some of the old traditional structures with the school building and set times and large numbers of children enrolled in the program in one area. But then you have a parish that's relatively small where the catechetical leader actually knows every family and there's a lot of walking with the families. Yes, we do have the cultural differences as we go around to the different parishes. It's probably both rewarding to see that kind of diversity, but also a little bit challenging to be able to meet the needs of the various different places.
[00:14:42] Speaker A: I think that that's part of the struggle for so many of the catechetical leaders. But I also would say that it's. While it's a challenge, it's one that we rise for. So, funny enough, the theme for this catechetical year is always be prepared to give an explanation for the reason for your hope. You know, we are a people of hope, and despite the very real struggles that we are facing, we know that, you know, Jesus has been victorious and us and united with him will be so, too, right? So we. We continue the mission and we keep trying. And. And this point, it's just a matter of, okay, that didn't work. Let's figure something else out, right? Because there is something and there is a way. And so we keep going. And so while the realities of the challenges don't diminish and. And we are faced with them every day, it's important that we just remember to really, what I say, be Christ, hands and feet here, right? To continue to encounter people as best as we can and to. And to continue to let grace flow wherever possible, right? To not be a barrier to that. And so we continue to try and do what we can to really meet people and bring them with us on the journey as we continue to walk towards Christ.
[00:15:49] Speaker C: In a sense, the job of the catechetical leader, the dre, or the different titles that are out there, but the catechetical leader for the parish is really with your individual catechist, is to encourage, to recruit and walk with them as they're striving to walk with the families.
[00:16:07] Speaker A: I think catechetical leaders are in a very unique but very beautiful position to both work with their catechists and continue to support and accompany them on their journeys as they minister to families. But they also have the ability to walk with families and accompany them, to be that liaison, if you would say, right? But really just a vessel to ensure that both sides are able to come together in a most effective way.
[00:16:33] Speaker D: Right?
[00:16:34] Speaker A: So it's really about keeping the bigger picture.
[00:16:36] Speaker C: And that's very important because, you know, while I wish I could say that everybody enrolled in our school and everybody enrolled in our catechetical programs are also living out the larger practice of the faith, particularly through Mass, that's not always the case. I mean, I guess in some of the more traditional, meaning the models that have been all along, this sort of a school model, and there's a School mentality. At the very least, families see a value and bringing their kids for instruction. So we wish they would walk with everybody all the way through the sacraments and weekly Mass. But it really then places a very important responsibility to the catechetical leader and to the catechist, because for many families, yours might be the only face of the church that they see on something of a regular basis. And we count on you because that comes with a great responsibility. But it's also great privilege.
[00:17:31] Speaker A: Absolutely. You know, part of our ministry is to bear witness to God at work in our lives.
[00:17:36] Speaker D: Right.
[00:17:36] Speaker A: And to what a living faith looks like. And that's really where a lot of our shift is taking place, right? Where we're no longer intellectualizing our faith.
[00:17:44] Speaker D: Right.
[00:17:44] Speaker A: We're no longer just memorizing doctrine, but we're really looking at a practical theology. And, well, what does my faith look like on an everyday basis? How am I really living my faith? And, yes, it really does fall on the shoulders of catechetical leaders and catechists to really start to embody that and to exemplify that for families. Because you're right, Bishop, so many families don't have other examples, and we are their only example. So it's really important that we understand that as catechetical leaders and that we embrace that call and we respond to that call by really truly embodying our own faith and being a witness to that.
[00:18:19] Speaker C: And the beautiful thing is that you take on that role of being the only faith, but hopefully being the faith that's opening the door to draw people into the fullness of life in the church.
[00:18:30] Speaker A: We want them all to come, you know, and we. And we want to minister and to love them in the way that they are, in the way that they arrive to us. And through grace and with teaching and with formation, they will learn to be their own disciples.
[00:18:41] Speaker D: Right.
[00:18:42] Speaker A: They will learn to have their own relationship with Christ, and that'll manifest, you know, on its own with the help of the Spirit. And we're just the agents that help open that door for them.
[00:18:50] Speaker C: I'm going to shift gears for a minute. One of the things that you said when you were giving us the numbers, you mentioned some 3,500 high school students. Students, which I think is very impressive because that's the group of people who are following up post confirmation. And a lot of it comes through youth ministry. But the youth ministry is very tied into that larger issue of catechetical ministry. So our youth ministry is very, very important.
I'm glad to see those Kinds of numbers.
[00:19:22] Speaker A: People say a lot of the times, oh, the youth are our future, but they're not our future, they're our present.
[00:19:27] Speaker D: Right.
[00:19:27] Speaker A: They're here now. And so it's such an important thing to understand that, to see that, and to tap into that.
[00:19:33] Speaker D: Right.
[00:19:34] Speaker A: And so make sure that there's a place for them.
[00:19:35] Speaker C: And so what does some of that look like? Like, what does a high school catechesis look like in practice in a parish? I know it varies very much from parish to parish, probably more so than the others. The younger children in the sacramental preparation years especially, that's a little bit more defined, but just in general.
[00:19:52] Speaker A: Yeah. So I think that it kind of follows some type of youth ministry.
[00:19:55] Speaker D: Right.
[00:19:56] Speaker A: I think it's a little more evol. I think it's a little more not so much about textbook faith.
[00:20:01] Speaker D: Right.
[00:20:01] Speaker A: But a lot more probably about morality and actual real issues that they're encountering and how do they bring God and Jesus into those situations. So I think it's a lot more in that model where there's a lot more prayer, a lot more service, a lot more activity, but a lot more engagement, where they're literally participating in parish life. So I think it's built kind of around that type of a concept, that type of an idea.
[00:20:24] Speaker C: My own touch point with that occurs really at diocesan gatherings. And I'm always so impressed by the quality of the events that are put together and by the youth ministers who are bringing young people. So all through the year, we've had holy hours that different groups have come to. Of course, we have some of the trips around World Youth Day, and all of that. We've had evenings for vocations. We have the dases in Youth Day. But all of those are very solid offerings, good speakers, important topics, and really do focus on that living faith, right?
[00:21:01] Speaker A: Absolutely. And I think it's one of the rewards that we have when we get to see so many youth gathered and joyfully expressing their faith and coming together in unity. I mean, you can't beat that. You can't beat that. And it reminds us that this is exactly what we're doing. Right. This is what we're doing this for.
[00:21:17] Speaker B: If I may say, I think also the role of the priest, the pastor, the parochial vicars in this category, catechetical ministry, obviously, as catechists in our own way. But I was a public school kid growing up, grammar school and middle school, and I was the religious ed class that came in on Wednesdays into St. Mary's Parochial School. And you know, I didn't have the same encounters with the priests of the parish as the Catholic school kids did, you know, to see their priests on a more regular basis, you know, now as pastor, I'm visiting the classrooms at St. Joan of Arc. I'm there for morning prayers.
But for me, when my pastor would come into the classroom in religious ed and just stopped for a moment to visit us, there was such a great joy and that was tangible in all of my classmates. I remember just feeling so excited to meet this guy who, he's the one that's up on the altar on Sundays. He's sort of like a celebrity and he's coming into our classroom to be with us and to join us. I think the role of the priests in these programs and just their presence. I don't really even remember my pastor saying much or teaching much, but just coming in and saying, hi, boys and girls, how are you? How is your week? And I hope to see you at Sunday Mass. Made a big impact for me, really. I credit some of my catechists for instilling in me this desire to the love of priests, the love of the Eucharist and the desire to consider even priesthood. So I wonder, Bishop, you know, when we think about our seminarians, modern day seminarians, now I know that generations changed, but I wonder, you know, many of our seminarians, what would be their. The breakdown between Catholic grammar school or religious ed and be something interesting to consider. But I do believe the role of the priests just in visiting is such an important one.
[00:23:08] Speaker C: Actually, I would say this about the seminarians. I don't know the breakdown in that way, and especially since they come with so many varied backgrounds on everything. I'm sure that too would have its variations, but part of their training is pastoral work, apostolic work, and they do go out to places and one of the things they do would be catechetical ministry. So they have that experience in the parish, which I think is a great thing. But, you know, I was going to turn to you and you make the perfect segue. You yourself have been through different experiences as a priest in catechetical ministry and had the different styles. I was talking about the different styles before a larger parish, a parish with the school, a smaller parish in terms of the numbers of children in a program. And now again, you're in a very, very large program and I know you're just getting the, the catechetical year off to a start. But what are you looking forward to now as this new adventure begins?
[00:24:05] Speaker B: Yes, well, upcoming, we have another week or so before our catechetical year starts. But I hit the ground July 1st and spoke with our Dre and she said, father, we need, as Angie mentioned, we need catechists. Can you please start, you know, asking people to be catechists? And the Gospels were just perfect. It was Martha and Mary. And I said, you know, we need the Marthas, we need catechists. We need the ones who are going to get out and do. Interestingly, even my siblings are all in a parish up in Rockland county. And they were mentioning at my father's birthday recently that, you know, Father Matt has been asking us for catechists and my brother, who's recently retired nypd, my sister, who's a school teacher, and they're starting to feel like that pressure, you know, he's really begging, we really need catechists. And I said, well, why don't the two of you do like a, you know, teach together? You know, I think sometimes commitments might be difficult, but I hit the ground at St. Joan of Arc. We started searching for catechists. I'm really, really excited to just be able to visit the program. We have three different sessions, one on Wednesday, two on Saturdays. So we're able to kind of utilize catechists on, you know, the same catechists Wednesday and Saturday. Thanks be to God. But just to bring them to Masses, we had a back to school blessing and we invited all of our school children and our religious head kids just to see the church filled with kids was such a blessing. So I think trying to bring them, invite them to particular masses that can be themed and directed for that audience, that particular audience is something that's exciting because, you know, sometimes when we're preaching to kids, the parents are the ones that are really getting a lot out of it too. They kind of like things to be simplified in the message. So I'm looking forward to it. It's going to be a very exciting, exciting time.
[00:25:56] Speaker C: So, you know, for us as priests, it's an interesting thing among the priests, between the Presbyterian Council and now we're going to be talking about Deaneries and the diocesan Pastoral Council, that whole work of formation and catechetical ministry. And what are the opportunities for adult faith formation? You know, our catechists, they make a great commitment. They make a commitment to be formed in the faith themselves. And we have different programs for formation, but over the course of this year, we are going to be having a diocesan wide conversation about faith formation, about catechetical ministry at every level. I think that fact that so many people are committed to this work. Work is a great blessing for the diocese and I hope these conversations will bear good fruit and a renewed vigor for sharing the good news.
[00:26:50] Speaker B: Well, thank you, Angie. Thanks for joining us. The best of luck this year in your new ministry and your new work, directing this catechesis, the formation of children's formations. And so, Bishop, perhaps as we bring this podcast to a close, you could give us a prayer. And as we pray for us, we pray also for all of our catechetical programs in our parishes, for all the thousands of young children that are being assisted and helped in the ways of the faith. We keep them in our prayers as well.
[00:27:17] Speaker C: The Lord be with you with your spirit. May the Lord bless you and keep you. May his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May he look upon you with kindness and grant you his peace. And may almighty God bless you and your families, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. And as we offer that prayer, I realize this will air coming up on some pretty big feasts. The archangels, the Guardian Angels, St. Therese, St. Francis. So we're going to have a rich festival of holy days and great saints interceding for us.
[00:27:48] Speaker B: Amen. God bless you all. And thank you for joining another edition of Big City Catholics. We hope that you'll join us again next week.
[00:27:58] Speaker C: Sam.
