Love of faith, teaching and children leads catechists to 'rewarding' life

However, that "itch to teach," as she put it, never really went away. And that's why she became a catechist. Twenty years later, Ms. Tessitore is still teaching religion at St. Mary's Church in Schenectady.

"All these years, I've loved working with children," she said. "I just started my 21st year working as a catechist, and I can't imagine not doing it. It's gratifying. It's rewarding. You're living on love."

Variety

All must share "kindness, integrity, a love of God and a desire to share it with the children. They have to be a good example to the children, teaching them through their actions."

Excitement

"I'm around little kids a lot. It's very exciting to work with kids," she said. "I really enjoy first grade, because they're easier to get to and make them understand what they're there for."

David Findlay, an engineer for Remington, teaches faith formation at Blessed Sacrament parish in Mohawk. A convert to Catholicism, he was attracted by the "logical" part of the faith, which he says "hit me in the heart."

"If I hadn't gone to engineering school, I was going to be a teacher in history or math," he said. Drawn to catechesis after his conversion, Mr. Findlay found a way to impart his new-found faith by teaching a course in apologetics for Confirmation students.

"Once you've been converted, you're full of yourself," said Mr. Findlay. "You made this commitment, and you're in fire about it. God sucks you in."

Teen growth

Apologetics, he added, is extremely important for young Catholics to learn.

Eventually, "all of us get questions as to why we're Catholic," he explained. "I needed reasons myself. At this stage in the game, they have a mind, they're thinking adults, they're questioning. They need reasons. If you provide reasons, you can keep their interest."

Back to class

"I've been an educator all my professional life, and being a principal, I don't get to teach as much as I would like," he noted.

Although he was a catechist before this year, a summer-long sickness changed his outlook on his involvement with faith formation. He fell ill with pneumonia and suffered from kidney failure. While recovering, he felt that he was "finding out, through God, that my life needed to go in a different direction. As I was getting better, I almost had an epiphany, saying that 'this is all part of God's plan.'"

Returning from the hospital, Mr. Dillon felt that God was calling him towards "helping people grow in the spirit." Now, he speaks animatedly about his time as a catechist.

"My faith went from being black-and-white to color," he said. "The beliefs didn't change but became more real."

Improving

He also wants to impart to his students the importance of stories in the life of the Church. "I want to tell them my story," he said. "That's all we really have -- our stories."

He plans on reading stories from the Bible during class, hoping that kids who don't pay attention during Mass are able to realize that "the stories have more to them than what I heard half-listening in church."

(10-31-02) [[In-content Ad]]