Directory for Catechesis

The official guidelines for catechists.

Evangelization is the responsibility of every Catholic and the collective mission of the whole Church. Catechesis, as an integral part of evangelization, plays a vital role in educating and forming individuals in the teachings and traditions of the Faith.

In this light, the Directory for Catechesis (2020) offers “how-to” guidelines for catechesis and presents universal norms to guide pastors and catechists in the work of evangelization. The Dicastery for Evangelization presents the Directory to guide the proclamation of the Gospel to people of all ages and in all seasons of life.

The Directory:

• Places catechetical instruction and formation of catechetical teachers clearly within the realm of evangelization
• Offers guidelines to assist in the creation of local directories and catechisms
• Clarifies the importance of catechetical renewal in Christian communities
• Affirms the presentation of the Catholic Faith articulated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church as a sound point of reference for instruction
• Draws deeply from Scripture and the writings of recent popes, especially Pope Francis' Evangelii Gaudium

The Directory for Catechesis is indispensable for all those responsible for formal religious instruction, including bishops, priests, deacons, lay and religious catechists, and religious education teachers in dioceses, parishes, and schools. It also aids directors of formation who train the faithful in the forms and means of catechesis.

This new edition of the Directory features:

• A newly designed cover with beautiful sacred art
• Colored tabs with paragraph numbers at the top of each page for easy navigation
• Carefully designed pages to make each page readable, organized, and inviting
• A document summary explaining the intended audience, the document’s origin, and the purpose it seeks to serve within the mission of the Church
• The official text of this work written by the Vatican’s Dicastery of Evangelization

This new edition is the first in The Vatican Collection published by Ascension, which features official documents from the Vatican previously published by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).