Gerard Rummery, FSC, Ph.D.
ABSTRACT
The Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools originated in seventeenth-century France to provide a human and Christian education for the children of artisans and the poor. This article describes several influences on the Lasallian educator’s catechetical role, from the mid-nineteenth through early twentieth centuries, in the United States. The significance of early texts and instructional methods; sociocultural factors; and dynamics within the Roman Catholic Church are described. The article describes the emergence of formation programs for Lasallian lay partners as a development necessary to implementation of the Lasallian educational mission in the context of a culture characterized in the early twenty-first century by deepening religious pluralism. In conclusion, the author identifies the potential of the Christian Catholic vision inherent to Lasallian ministries as a resource around which staff, teachers and students can encounter enduring questions about the meaning of life.
KEYWORDS
American Catholic Education; Lasallian Pedagogy;
FULL TEXT
The Lasallian Catechetical Heritage in the United States Today
About the Author
Gerard Rummery, FSC, Ph.D.
Gerard Rummery, FSC, holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Lancaster University. He served two periods on the staff of the International Lasallian Center (CIL) in Rome and was twice elected to the General Council of the De La Salle Christian Brothers (1986-1993 and 1993-2000). He remains a presenter and researcher with Lasallian Education Services in Australia.
ISSN: 2151-2515
© Christian Brothers Conference 2023.