Catechetical Sunday is celebrated in the United States on the third Sunday of September to acknowledge and commission those who serve the parish and school community as catechists. This year, it falls on September 17 with the theme: “Come to me all you who labor and are burdened.”
In his Apostolic letter, Antiquum ministerum, Pope Francis describes the role of the catechist: “Catechists are called first to be expert in the pastoral service of transmitting the faith as it develops through its different stages from the initial proclamation of the kerygma to the instruction that presents our new life in Christ and prepares for the sacraments of Christian initiation, and then to the ongoing formation that can allow each person to give an accounting of the hope within them. At the same time, every catechist must be a witness to the faith, a teacher and mystagogue, a companion and pedagogue, who teaches for the Church. Only through prayer, study and direct participation in the life of the community can they grow in this identity and the integrity and responsibility that it entails.”
The faithful are encouraged to use Catechetical Sunday to publicly commission and pray for those who will serve as catechists and teachers in the parish community. It also offers an opportunity to recall that all of the baptized have roles in sharing the faith in their daily lives with their families, at work and through church involvement.
For more details and resources, visit these links.
A commissioning rite to use at the Sunday Masses or in a special prayer service:
- Commissioning Service English_Apr27.pdf (usccb.org)
- Commissioning Service Spanish_Apr27.pdf (usccb.org)
The USCCB provides resources for parishes to use for the celebration of Catechetical Sunday:
Pins and other certificates:
Bayard Faith Resources collection of books, booklets, periodicals and more: