CATECHETICAL SUNDAY 2025

What is Catechetical Sunday and why do we celebrate it?

Pope Leo XVI raises the monstrance during Benediction after a Corpus Christi procession to Rome's Basilica of St. Mary Major June 22, 2025. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez) (Courtesy photo of Lola Gomez)

Catechetical Sunday is a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the role that each person plays, by virtue of baptism, in handing on the faith and being a witness to the Gospel. 

This year, the Church will celebrate Catechetical Sunday on Sept. 21, and the theme is “Always be ready to give an explanation … for a reason for your hope” (1 Peter 3:15). The 2025 theme encourages us to be prepared to share the basis of our faith, the Lord, and the hope he provides. In the same manner Saint Peter encouraged the believers of his time, the Scripture reminds us, the sharing should be done with gentleness and respect. We are called to be Eucharist by word and action to our brothers and sisters in Christ. Our times cry out for this kind of holiness, one inflamed by the ardent determination to bring as many of our brothers and sisters as possible to Christ. Those who the parish community has designated to serve as catechists will be called forth to be commissioned for their ministry. Catechetical Sunday is an opportunity for all to rededicate themselves to this mission as a community of faith.

Why do we celebrate Catechetical Sunday?

In 1935, the Vatican published “On the Better Care and Promotion of Catechetical Education,” a document that asks every country to acknowledge the importance of the Church’s teaching ministry and to honor those who serve the Christian community as catechists. For the first few years after Catechetical Sunday was established, national catechetical congresses were held in conjunction with the celebration. Beginning in 1971, the USCCB’s Department of Education began producing materials to help parishes celebrate the event at the local level. When the Committee on Catechesis, now named the Committee of Evangelization and Catechesis, was named by the conference as a standing committee, it continued to publish Catechetical Sunday materials each year. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has designated the third Sunday in September as Catechetical Sunday.

What does ‘catechetical’ mean?

The word might be more familiar than you think. Many Catholics have used the word “catechism” for years, and they know it has something to do with the compendium of the Church’s teachings. The root word, “catechesis,” is from a Greek word meaning “to echo or resound.” Catechesis is the act of resounding or bringing the Church’s teachings to the world. A catechist is one who teaches in the name of the Church.

Why do we have a special day to commission catechists?

Catechesis is a distinct and special ministry in the Church. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church makes clear, “Catechesis is intimately bound up with the whole of the Church’s life ... her inner growth and correspondence with God’s plan depend essentially on catechesis” (no. 7). This ministry of teaching in the name of the Church has a profound dignity, which is why catechists are formally commissioned by the Church. It is only fitting that we set aside a day to highlight this ministry and invite the entire church community to think about our responsibility to share our faith with others.

How are parents recognized on Catechetical Sunday?

Parents are truly the primary catechists of their children. They prepare the soil and plant the first seeds of faith. On Catechetical Sunday, we not only highlight the work of catechists in parishes and schools, but we also commend parents and guardians and encourage them to take seriously their role of making their Catholic households a place where faith is passed on to the next generation. This is why the rite of blessing of catechists used on Catechetical Sunday includes an optional blessing of parents and guardians

 Source: USCCB.org