Kerygma and Catechesis: Two Influences on our Faith Formation

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What is Kerygma and Catechesis? 

Kerygma is the Greek word for “proclamation.” An example is the text of Luke 4:18-19, where Jesus is said to have taken up a scroll in the synagogue and read from the book of Isaiah, “the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captive and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.” The word refers both to the preaching and the content of the “good news”, and also to the mission and work of Jesus. 

Catechesis is the greek word for instruction. Luke uses this word when it states in Luke 1:3-4, “I too decided, after investigating everything carefully, from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed. 

Both these words represent an important aspect of spiritual growth. At some point, Christians hear the good news (gospel) proclaimed, or receive instruction on the beliefs of the church. What is fostered and nurtured is faith. That word "faith" itself is complex, it is not only a system of religious belief and values, but it reflects actions taken by people because of those beliefs. Often, it is defined not by what we can measure, or factual evidence, but something we believe in spite of evidence to the contrary. 

Religious faith should never be placed in opposition to the natural world or the discipline of science.  Because all truth is God's truth, Christians should hold to the findings of science regarding what it tells us about our universe.  This includes evolution, archeology, astronomy, and every other scientific field.  

Faith has to do with what we believe about God, and Christian theology is about what Jesus revealed about God and life in God and in our world.  This kind of faith is centered on the compassionate self giving life of Jesus.  We can never know through science that God exists, yet by faith, we may believe that God is and that God has created us and our world for a good purpose. 

Faith begins with God. It is God that creates, strengthens, and nurtures faith in the human heart. We love God only because God first loved us, and it is God that pursues us out of love and grace (1 John 4:19). St Augustine wrote, “You never go away from us, O God, yet we have difficulty in returning to you. Come, Lord, stir us up and call us back. Kindle and seize us. Be our fire and our sweetness. Let us love, let us run.” Faith is not something that we can earn or achieve on our own, it cannot be stolen or purchased, it is ours only to receive. 

Ordinarily, faith is nurtured through Word and Sacrament. The gifts of God's grace comes to us through the hearing of God's word, at the font, and at the Lord's table. The church understands the Sacraments to be a means of grace, there are two; Baptism and the Eucharist (in most Protestant churches).  In the Sacraments Christ is present with the church.  It is Christ, who comes to us, meets with us, and encounters us in the reading of the gospels. The promises of scripture are sealed for us in when we eat together Holy Communion also called the Eucharist (to give thanks). We enact and demonstrate our faith in the sacraments. For example, at the table, all are welcome, there is equality, diversity and inclusion at the table. All are welcome who come to partake in faith by grace regardless of social or economic standing. 

What exactly is the message of the “good news” (which means gospel). Simply put, it is the proclamation that God loves us, that Jesus embodied that love in his death, and through the Holy Spirit, was raised from the dead, vindicated by God, and empowers us for life and ministry (1 Tim 3:6). In the Sacraments (Baptism and the Eucharist), we are claimed, sustained and empowered for a life of faith. We are accepted as the people God created, forgiven of our sin, engrafted into the body of Christ, and called to exhibit the love of God in our world. Often Jesus spoke of God and God's kingdom, this is the 'realm' or the way in which we live to extend God's grace and mercy in our world. All are welcomed to be part of this family or community of faith. 

This is why infant baptism as a sacrament is essential in the life of the church. Peter the apostle offers baptism for adults, children and infants after his Pentecost sermon (Acts 2:39). Similar to the covenant with the Hebrew people that had circumcision a sign of the covenant so the early followers of Jesus adopted water baptism as a sign of the covenant God makes with all people. Infants are also included in this covenant relationship with God. Infant baptism emphasizes a life long journey to which we are called, as well as the assurance of God's sustaining grace. 

An infant in baptism becomes a child of the covenant but must likewise grow into a living faith just as all Christians. This leads us to see salvation (life in this life and the next) as a process, a journey, or a cycle of growth. Christian education and spiritual formation is vital in the life of all christians as we grow into our faith. Too often, “salvation” has been seen by Christians as something that is only individual while it is in reality corporate as well as individual, and extends to our world as well. Christians are called to bring healing to the natural world as well. 

The sacraments are themselves a means of grace. It is essential in spiritual matters to embody meaning in physical tangible ways. This is not only because we should not make a division between the physical and spiritual, mind and body, but also because the spiritual is often something unseen, just as faith is. In the sacraments we see outwards signs of spiritual realities, of God's work in our lives. Water, bread and wine, are taken as representing the daily life giving elements that we require, that brings life, joy and nourishment. We gather as we are, a group of often cantankerous, grumping, annoying, sinful, people, different in many ways. Regardless of our gender, gender identities,  sexual orientation, nationality, race or social or economic differences, we gather to partake together as family and as neighbors, in the worship and work of the church.  

Faith comes to us as a gift from God, whether it is the first time we hear the story of Jesus or if we are seasoned Christians having attended worship our entire lives, the Spirit continues to be active awakening and strengthening faith in our hearts and lives in us and in our churches.  It is faith that flows out of the faithfulness of Jesus to God, and the invitation to walk the same path as Jesus. It is a faith that invites all to be part of the family and people of God. So, in baptism we are introduced into the family of God, and in daily communion we grow.  

Finally, it is important to note that God is at work in the church but also outside the church.  In 1 Cor 5:12-13 Paul encourages Christians not to judge those outside the church.  God alone is the judge of the conscience.  Jesus himself taught that many would enter into the realm of God before the religious leaders of his day.  Jesus sermon on the mount clearly states that those that see God are those that seek God. As such, Christians should never use their faith as an exclusive right to God's grace, mercy and love. As a theologian once said, 'grace universally given is still grace.' 

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