A guide for a traveller’s Faith journey

Personal Profile

Colm Fitzpatrick speaks with a Dublin catechist about Faith development

Many people of Faith oftentimes do not understand the symbols, gestures or language of the Church, especially in an Ireland where religious education is not a priority. In an attempt to combat this problem, one woman is giving parishioners the opportunity to understand their Faith in a whole new light.

Clondalkin native Natalie Doherty is a catechist and involved in youth ministry at the Archdiocese of Dublin. Her current role entails running adult Faith formation events and encouraging families to properly prepare their children for receiving the Sacraments. This position resonates personally with her, as from a young age she had always been involved to some degree in the lay ministry of her church in Sruleen.

“My mum always took me and my brother to family Mass in our local church…every weekend I would have been involved in the choir there, involved in the music, then after my Confirmation, mum said it’s your choice now whether or not you go,” Natalie explains.

Mass

She attended Mass for a short period of time following this, but throughout her teenage years, Faith became less important to her.

“I used to go with a friend of mine, but during my teenage years I stopped going then completely and I suppose I disengaged a bit with Faith,” Natalie says adding that her friend decided she was too “cool” to attend and so Natalie followed suit.

In her late teens, she studied theology which eventually led her to pursue a Religious Education and Music degree in Mater Dei, where she began to re-engage with her Faith again.

“It wasn’t my first choice but I had it down on my CAO. I wanted to be a primary school teacher and I think there was a slight mess up on my CAO form and I think at the end of the day maybe it was an act of God and I ended up there,” she says.

“That started me to re-engage and be reawakened in my Faith, and I think maybe during those teenage years, you do need a bit of a break or you do need to explore various different pieces and then come back to it yourself in your time when it’s right.”

Natalie then received a Master’s degree in music from Maynooth and secured a job in the university working as an educational support worker. During this time, she was heavily involved in her own parish ranging from a role in the liturgy council, working in sacramental preparation and setting up a youth group. Music plays a crucial role in her own Faith development and provides her with a new way of understanding Scripture.

“At the beginning I would have been very detached, I was just there in the role of singing and providing the music and it was only over time that I started to engage more with the readings and engage with [questions such as] ‘What am I receiving when I go up at Eucharist time?” she says.

“But now when I hear a certain piece of music or a certain piece of Scripture or particularly a Psalm I almost hear a version of the song in it. It takes on a different meaning for me. So, for me, music would be one avenue of engaging with my Faith, especially for Scripture. I’m trying to deepen my knowledge, my understanding of Scripture.”

While sitting in Maynooth one day, the Dublin Diocese Facebook page popped up with a job advertisement asking for a new parish catechist, to which Natalie applied and was warmly received.  She has been working in this position for over two years, having moved from a part-time to a full-time role.

The biggest part of her work is adult Faith formation which has two prongs. The first is how to engage with parishioners and support them and their Faith. This may entail running Lecto Divina or just a series of talks about a liturgical or religious topic. Even though some of the attendees could all be regular Mass goers, many of them may not understand important aspects of the Church language, says Natalie.

“I know this from my own mum, she would have always brought me to Mass, but now through talking with her she’s telling me that she sees all these things happening at Mass that she has seen her whole life, but she may not fully understand why it’s done.”

The other part of her work concerns parents who are preparing their children for the sacraments of initiation (Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist) and how she can work with them – particularly in households where Faith “wouldn’t be the highest topic of conversation”. Her goal is to equip skills or remind families to have conversations with one another about Faith.

“At the end of the day, the whole family comes to the celebration of the Sacrament so why can’t the entire family be part of the preparation?” Natalie says.

“Even with Communion, the preparation can be quite onerous for a child and if the parents don’t know what’s going on or the parents aren’t clued in or aren’t part of the conversation, then the child can get little support at home.”

Challenges

Although her work can pose many challenges, such as trying to communicate the language of Faith with relevant and accuracy today, she loves being able to meet a variety of people who are on their own journey of Faith and discovery.

“All have a different story, all are on a different part of the Faith journey,” Natalie says adding she enjoys, “the fact that you get to walk with them as best that you can throughout what they need and what support they’re looking for from you.”