The Catechetical Review - Communicating Christ for a New Evangelization

Loving God and Loving Man: Interpreting St. Augustine's Formation for Catechists

Authored by Sam Robson in Issue #35.1 of The Sower
Sam Robson shares practical examples of St Augustine’s model for catechesis. St Augustine suggests a model for catechesis in which, “loving his neighbour as himself, a man turns the whole current of his love both for himself and his neighbour into the channel of love of God.”[i] Catechesis aims to “promote communion and intimacy” with Christ,[ii] who is true God and true man.[iii] Where this is prompted by a loving impulse of God’s grace, the catechist may be like a party host who is at ease introducing guests, recalling the genuine affection with which each friend is held. Learning to love God and man more may be both an essential starting point and a lesson to which the catechist should repeatedly return. How might this love of both God and man manifest itself in catechetical practice? Here are a few examples.

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This article is from The Sower and may be copied for catechetical purposes only. It may not be reprinted in another published work without the permission of Maryvale Institute. Contact [email protected]

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