For families
So much of what happens within the context of family is formative. For better for worse parents educate by example. I remember the advertisement where a father and son were fishing. The son imitated the father every step of the way. They were so much in harmony. Finally the father lit a cigarette and of course the son imitated the behaviour. Formation and education are a daily reality of family life.

At the baptismal ceremony parents are reminded that parents are the primary educators of their children in the ways of faith. It is one of the great guilt inducing statements because, rather than seeing the ways in which they form children in the ways of faith, parents have a tendency to focus on their perceived shortcomings.

What are some of the everyday ways in which parents and other family members educate children in the ways of faith? I remember as an adolescent being instructed by mother to bring a plate of hot food "up to Jimmy." Jimmy was old (in my eyes), lived on his own, and lived in sparse conditions. I had better things to do, it seemed to me, but when you are given a plate of hot food you know that time as precious. I would rush to the door but rarely did I escape the final instruction: "make sure you sit with him for a while a have a bit of a chat." I was learning, graining against my selfishness, that being a member of my family meant caring for others, sharing for others and spending time with others. Family faith formation is rooted in example.

What stories do you have of your faith being nurtured by example? Where are you conscious of nurturing the faith of your children by your example? Contact us wit your stories.

The issue of families' role in more formal religious education (catechesis) is a big one in Ireland. The down side of the development of a very effective school based religious education system has been that religious education has largely become a school activity rather than a home activity. Parents, perhaps, have become less confident in speaking about Christ and faith in an explicit way in the home.

What do you see as the role of parents and others in the religious education of children today? What are the success stories? What are the obstacles? What help do you need? This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it what you think.

For the parish community
Perhaps the challenge for parish communities is to move beyond offering platitudes such as "parents are the primary educators of children in the ways of faith" to offering skill training to parents and other primary carers in a variety of areas. What good practice that will be an encouragement to others can you share with us? What are you doing by way of child development training, fro example? What initiatives are you adopting by way of encouraging a family based catechesis or intergenerational learning? Please do share your experience or thoughts on this question – new strategies and possibilities are needed here.