Adult Ministry

"I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly." John 10:10

The catechetical formation of adults is essential for the Church to carry out the commission given the apostles by Christ. "Because it's important and because all other forms of catechesis are oriented in some way to it, the catechesis of adults must have high priority at all levels of the Church." - National Directory for Catechesis

Goals of Adult Catechesis

Adult catechesis promotes mature adult faith: the faith of the disciple who has been saved by Christ's redemptive love and who is being continually converted to him. Adult catechesis fosters this discipleship by providing "a comprehensive and systematic presentation and exploration of the core elements of Catholic faith and practice - a complete initiation into a Catholic way of life." - National Directory for Catechesis.

It invites and enables adults "to acquire an attitude of conversion to the Lord."

This attitude views the Christian life as a gradual transformation in Christ, in which the Christian takes on the mind of Christ, trusts in the Father's love, accepts the Spirit's guidance in searching out and obeying God's will, and seeks holiness of life within the Church. It fosters a baptismal spirituality in which the Christian's faith in Jesus is continuously deepened through participation in the sacraments, the works of charity and justice, and the prayer life of the Church.

It fosters active participation in the Church.

It helps adults to make "a conscious and firm decision to live the gift and choice of faith through membership in the Christian community." It fosters active participation in the Church as she is realized in families, small faith-based communities, parishes, dioceses, and the communion of saints. It helps adults to develop a deeper sense of their cooperation with the Holy Spirit for the mission of the Church in the world and for her internal life as well.

It helps adults to become "more willing and able to be a Christian disciple in the world."

It enables adult disciples to accept their rightful place in the Church's mission to evangelize, to hear the cry for justice, to promote unity among Christians, and to bear witness to the salvation won by Jesus Christ for all.