Thomas Groome, widely regarded as the most influential scholar and teacher of Catholic catechesis in the nation, told NCR that texts in conformity with the bishops’ curriculum framework, currently being readied by religious publishers, will be the ones used in many Catholic high schools.
“Other Catholic high schools that more independent than the diocesan schools may not follow suit,” he said.
Groome is senior professor of theology at Boston College and chair of the Institute of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry. He is the author of Christian Religious Education and of Sharing Faith, a foundational work on Christian ministry. He is also the principal author of the Coming to Faith series, the best-selling elementary-school-level religion curriculum in Catholic schools and parishes today. Groome currently works with RCL Benziger, which recently merged with Silver Burdett Ginn publishers, preparing new catechetical resources that follow the bishops’ framework curriculum.
“It’s an official document relying relentlessly on the catechism,” Groome said. “On the other hand, something was needed for Catholic high schools, whose catechism curriculum has largely been assembled higgledy-piggledy, with no rhyme or reason. Each school would typically decide on their own electives with no consistent whole story account of the Catholic faith on the high school level, across all its varieties.
“When I taught undergrads at Boston College, I was amazed at kids from good Catholic high schools who placed high in academic achievement yet didn’t know much about their faith. There was a lacuna that needed to be addressed, and it’s potentially positive that the bishops are doing just that.”
Most of the emphasis in the framework, according to Groome, is on the Jesus of faith, “the Christ from the creed, who came down from heaven to save us from our sins, died and was resurrected. But there’s not much about the Jesus of history who forgave sinners, called disciples to ministry, treated women as equals, etc.”
This social justice emphasis should permeate all the texts, not just be presented as an elective, Groome said. “In the framework, justice is not seen as a constitutive aspect of the curriculum.
“The challenge and opportunity for us catechists will be to bring out material that honors the framework but does it in ways that are both good theology and good pedagogy.
“For example, when teaching about the Resurrection, the bishops’ framework sends us to that particular section of the catechism that deals with Jesus’ rising from the dead, yet there is no mention of the key role of women in discovering the risen Christ. We will teach Resurrection as the bishops want us to, but we will also probably enhance and enrich it, deepen it with contemporary theological scholarship and with good pedagogy that is critical, probing, that invites people to think and to understand, to make judgments, to make decisions.
“Simply presenting the catechism would do little really to enhance the faith lives of young people today.”
Groome said that he felt catechists will make the best of it, “and I think it can be done. Publishers, though, are not following this as a rough guide; they are definitely determined to follow it very faithfully, and see it as hazardous not to.”
[Rich Heffern is an NCR staff writer. His e-mail address is rheffern@ncronline.org.]
