6 Cebuano catechists to attend Pedro canonization in Rome

BEING a modern-day catechist is a “big and great challenge” in visiting parishes and schools teaching Catholic doctrine in different parts of the Archdiocese of Cebu.

“Sometimes we have one classroom with 60 students,” said 45-year-old Carol Arsenal, a catechist from the Our Lady of Fatima Vicariate covering Paknaan in Mandaue City to Liloan town.

“Many of us (catechists) are already old. We have a few young catechists,” she added.

The difficulties of a catechist, though, may not be as challenging as the time of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, who was killed in Tumhon village in Guam more than 300 years ago.

Arsenal said the common challenge is living the faith and to preach the same.

“The content of catechesis is Jesus, (this lesson) will never fade,” she told Sun.Star Cebu, adding that she always sees the people’s “hunger” for knowledge of the Catholic faith.

Travel taxes only

At a press conference yesterday, Archdiocesan Catechetical Center director Msgr. Vicente Tupas announced that there would be six catechists who would join the Cebu delegation that will attend the canonization rites in Rome, Italy in October.

He said the catechists would only have to pay for the travel taxes.

Arsenal is one of the catechists who will join the group that includes Myrna Castro from the San Guillermo Vicariate, Teresa Yap from the Santo Niño Vicariate, Emmanuel Pulotan from Sacred Heart Vicariate, Glenda Pateña from the Virgen de la Regla Parish, and Archdiocesan Catechetical center staff member Teresita Camillo.

Tupas said the archdiocese has about 6,000 catechists, “the most number of catechists (in a diocese) in the world.”

Tupas, who also heads the committee of catechesis for the preparations for the canonization of Calungsod, said they are conducting seminars within the archdiocese on the catechesis on the life and martyrdom of Blessed Pedro Calungsod.

A catechetical module has been prepared, and this is being translated in Manila to five different languages. In the Visayas, the module is also being translated to Hiligaynon, Waray and Ilonggo.

In Manila, the catechesis is conducted in parishes and schools by seminarians from the University of Sto. Tomas, based on the same modules prepared by the Cebu group.