September 14, 2012

Religious Education Supplement

Catholics across archdiocese will take part in the Year of Faith

Bishop Christopher J. Coyne, apostolic administrator, and priests ministering in central and southern Indiana process into SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis on April 3 at the start of the annual archdiocesan chrism Mass. The upcoming Year of Faith will be a time for Catholics across the archdiocese to grow in their faith so that they can share it better with others. (File photo by Sean Gallagher)

Bishop Christopher J. Coyne, apostolic administrator, and priests ministering in central and southern Indiana process into SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis on April 3 at the start of the annual archdiocesan chrism Mass. The upcoming Year of Faith will be a time for Catholics across the archdiocese to grow in their faith so that they can share it better with others. (File photo by Sean Gallagher)

Criterion staff report

The Catholic Church is observing two significant anniversaries in 2012.

Fifty years ago, Blessed John XXIII opened the Second Vatican Council. And in 1992, the Catechism of the Catholic Church was promulgated.

To celebrate these anniversaries, Pope Benedict XVI has called for a Year of Faith that begins on Oct. 11 and concludes on Nov. 24, 2013. He intends for the year to be an opportunity for all Catholics to deepen their faith and their relationship with Christ.

The Archdiocese of Indianapolis will help Catholics in central and southern Indiana take advantage of this opportunity by encouraging them to read and reflect on “Lumen Gentium” (“Light of the Nations”), one of the main documents of Vatican II.

Copies of this document and a study guide for it are available through the archdiocesan purchasing office for $4.75 each. For more information, call 317-236-1451 or 800-382-9836, ext. 1451, send an e-mail to sjames@archindy.org or log on to www.archindy.org/purchasing.

There will also be a series of meetings to discuss this document and the basic teachings of the Church.

The meetings will start at parishes and continue on the deanery and archdiocesan levels.

These discussions are aimed at producing a faith-sharing resource to be titled “10 Things We Want You to Know about the Catholic Faith.”

There will also be an archdiocesan Mass to conclude the Year of Faith. The homily to be delivered during that Mass will be informed by the discussions in the meetings described above.

The date for the Mass has not been determined, but it is likely to take place in October or November 2013.

The box at right lists the timeline for the Year of Faith events in the archdiocese.

For more information about the Year of Faith, log on to www.archindy.org/yearoffaith. †

The Year of Faith

  • Sept. 29, 2012—Training for facilitators of the “10 Things We Want You to Know about the Catholic Faith” sessions at parishes.
  • Oct. 11-Dec. 1, 2012—Parish sessions occur.
  • Feb. 18-May 9, 2013—Deanery sessions facilitated by archdiocesan pastoral staff members.
  • Sept. 14, 2013—Archdiocesan session.
  • Jan. 1, 2014—Promulgation of “10 Things We Want You to Know about the Catholic Faith.”

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