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| From the Executive Director
Welcome to the NCEA Department of Religious Education!
Thank you for who you are and what you do in contributing to the Catholic Church’s work of evangelization and catechesis.
The Department of Religious Education is the section of the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) that provides leadership and services that foster effective religious education/catechesis at all levels—child, youth, adult, family, parish, school and diocese. We are excited to work with you and the other departments within NCEA to advance excellence in catechesis in parishes and schools across the country.
I invite you to explore the NCEA website to discover all that the association has to offer as well as opportunities for you to share your gifts as a catechetical leader through the work of the national organization.
I look forward to serving you as the Executive Director of the department. I hope to meet many of you in the coming years to see the reflection of Jesus Christ in those who have answered “yes” to the call to be a catechist. May our Triune God continue to guide us in our responsibilities of leading others in this vital ministry within the Catholic Church.
Serving with you in the peace and joy of Christ, Our Teacher,
Executive Director
Department of Religious Education
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The Department of Religious Education is made up of members who are:
- Parish Catechetical Leaders (Directors of Religious Education and Coordinators of Faith Formation)
- Pastors
- Faculty from college religious education departments
- Individuals interested in continuing education, and
- Students
- The NPCD Executive Committee consists of parish catechetical leader-representatives elected from 11 regions across the country.
- The NPCD Executive Committee works with the NCEA staff to serve its members in networking, representing, and empowering parish catechetical leaders at the national, regional, and local levels.
Membership in the NCEA can be either individual or institutional and the appropriate type is contingent upon the professional responsibility of the person seeking membership.
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WHY WE EXIST
Founded in 1976, the NCEA Department of Religious Education’s mission is to advance excellence in catechesis by:
- networking with catechetical leaders
- empowering catechetical leaders, and
- representing catechetical concerns in appropriate forums, such as committees within the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops or within the Partnership for Adolescent Catechesis
Our vision is to support the evangelizing and catechetical mission of the Catholic Church through building generative, mutual relationships with members and partners through listening, learning, and collaboration that promote effective practices in the discipline of Catholic religious education and faith formation.
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WHAT WE DO
The Religious Education Department supports catechetical leaders in diocesan offices, parishes and Catholic schools. Through consultation, publications, assessment tools, and projects, the department encourages catechesis that is:
- evangelizing
- ecclesial
- collaborative, and
- responsible in the ongoing formation toward mature Christian discipleship
The annual NCEA Convention is a unique opportunity to gather with a wide range of Catholic educators from across the country to further develop your knowledge, practice, and spirituality as a religious educator. The department sponsors religious education offerings within the Convention, such as workshops, award ceremonies, a departmental keynote address and an evening concert. The convention’s major keynote sessions, exposition, and other events along with the departmental offerings help attendees to:
- celebrate our shared work in echoing the Word of God
- renew their commitment to Catholic education and ongoing faith formation
- develop the professional aspects of competent catechetical ministry
- explore the latest resources available to support effective ministry, and
- network with others to support and strengthen the work of handing on the faith to people of all ages
The annual convention includes the NPCD Convocation, a conference-within-a conference designed especially for parish catechetical leadership and addressing the issues and needs distinct to catechesis in the parish setting.
The department also partners with others to help fulfill our mission in serving you and the discipline of catechesis. One such collaboration is the Partnership for Adolescent Catechesis.
The department also develops publications and tools such as Assessment of Catechesis/Religious Education (NCEA ACRE) and Information for Growth (IFG) to assist those working in the field of catechesis. These assessment tools help schools and parishes know how effectively they are teaching the faith at two levels: the cognitive level (knowledge of the faith) and the affective level (practicing the faith).
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We value hearing from our members as we seek to serve you. We also encourage members to connect with one another to advance excellence in catechesis. We invite you to:
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As the bishops remind us in the National Directory for Catechesis, “The word of God nourishes both evangelizers and those who are being evangelized so that each one may continue to grow in his or her Christian life” (NDC, Washington, DC: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2005, no. 17).
We invite you to join us in praying with and for one another as teachers and learners, evangelizers and the evangelized. May the Holy Spirit continue to deepen our own knowledge, intimacy, and communion with Jesus Christ as we live out God’s call to catechize.
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