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The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd by Fr. Giancarlo Pani, S.J.

The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd by Fr. Giancarlo Pani, S.J.

CGSUSA is delighted to share a beautiful and important article on the foundations of CGS, written by Fr. Giancarlo Pani S.J. Fr. Giancarlo is the Deputy Director of  Civiltà Cattolicaand has served on the faculty of “La Sapienza”of the University of Rome. He first met Sofia Cavalletti in 1971, on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, in which she served as guide. Father Giancarlo became a priest in 1974 and then, in 1976, began a collaboration with Sofia and Gianna at the atrium of Via delgi Orsini in Rome. In addition to celebrating Mass throughout the atrium year, he heard the confessions of the children and assisted with the retreats and celebrations of their First Communion. He was one of our keynote speakers at our International Retreat in 2014.
This article was published in La Civiltà Cattolic, a highly respected digital Catholic journal from the Vatican in Rome that reviews present issues alive in the Church and the Church scholars interpreting the history, politics, culture, science, and art in the light of the Christian faith. It was also published in “Avvenire,” the Italian daily newspaper of The Italian Episcopal Conference.
We thank Fr. Giancarlo for his words of wisdom and Francesca Cocchini for sharing this article with us.

Please read Fr. Giancarlo’s article here.

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What is the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd? The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd was born from the joy of the children’s encounter with God. It has been observed that children of the same developmental stage, even those from widely varying cultural backgrounds, respond to elements of the Christian message in the same way.

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In Catechesis of the Good Shepherd adults are given the opportunity to embrace a method of catechesis (or religious education) that will deepen one’s relationship with God. Catechist formation in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is both instructive as well as experiential. It captivates both the head as well as the heart.

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