By Jessica Donohue, Special Contributor
I have to make a confession. When my children were baptized, there was one really important part that I don’t think truly hit me until much later. Like many new parents, I was caught up in the joy and busyness of motherhood, and the need to attend to the many details of the sacramental celebration.
But it was only later on when I reflected on the words spoken by the celebrant, that the gravity of one phrase finally took hold: “You have asked to have your child baptized. In doing so you are accepting the responsibility of training him in the practice of the faith.”
As Catholics, community is such an integral aspect of who we are. God made us for community, and so we rely on the community to help us grow in our faith. One of the most visible ways that this is expressed in our Church is through the faith formation of children in our parishes and Catholic schools. But we can begin to rely so much on our community for helping us to raise our children in faith that we forget an essential truth: that as parents, we are really our children’s first – and most important – model and teacher of our Catholic faith.
Like any major responsibility, this can be a little daunting! But there are some basic ideas to remind us that this vocation is one we can all follow.
You don’t need to be a theologian! The idea of “training” our children in the practice of the faith can conjure images of an expert who knows everything about Catholicism. This is really not what the Church is talking about here. Being your child’s primary model and teacher in the faith means guiding them and setting examples by fostering a love for Jesus by making him the center of family life; placing our children into the life of our parish communities, and teaching them how to pray our beautiful Catholic prayers. There are other wonderful ways – often small but powerful – to transmit the faith from generation to generation.
Let your family’s faith life reflect your family’s uniqueness. While we all share one faith, there are many ways to express it. Look at Catholic traditions from your own cultural heritage that you can bring into your family life. Perhaps celebrate each family member’s patron saint with a special dessert on the saint’s feast day, or make your faith visible in your home with objects such as a Crucifix, holy water font, Advent wreath, etc. This is where some online research can be a wonderful help. For example, CatholicIcing.com and catholiccuisine.blogspot.com are two great resources.
Recognize how your family is already living Catholic values. In family life, we may take for granted those ways that we love one another the way Jesus loves. Remember St. Therese of Lisieux’s teaching that doing small, everyday things with great love is one of the best things we can do to be closer to God. Those moments, such as a child opting to share a beloved toy, or a middle schooler who went out of his or her way at school to be kind to a child having a hard day, can be understood in a new light when we show children how they reflect and express our Christian values.
Above all, we must always keep in mind that we are not alone in our vocation as our children’s first teacher of faith. When we invite God into our lives, and into the lives of our children, his grace finds us when we need his help. This partnership we have with God and with our Catholic community allows us to give our children a priceless gift of faith.
This is, as Pope Francis once said so simply and powerfully, “the greatest inheritance they can receive” from us as their parents.
Jessica Donohue is parish catechetical leader in St. Joan of Arc Parish, Marlton.
Faith at Home is a monthly column coordinated by the Diocese of Trenton’s Departments of Catechesis, Evangelization and Family Life, and Youth and Young Adult Ministry. For additional Faith at Home resources, visit dioceseoftrenton.org/faith-at-home.