In an age when children encounter artificial intelligence before they learn to tie their shoes, when they navigate questions of identity before they can define it, when they swim in a sea of information without a compass for truth, the ancient call to pass on the faith has never been more urgent—or more complex.
This book exists because Catholic parents today face challenges unimaginable to previous generations. Your six-year-old might ask not just “Who made me?” but “Can robots go to heaven?” Your teenager grapples not merely with peer pressure but with algorithmic influence, gender ideology, and the daily witness of practical atheism even among the baptized.
The early Christians said, “The blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church.” Today we might add: “The wisdom of parents is the soil where faith takes root.”
Yet the solution is not to retreat into a defensive crouch, building higher walls against the world. Christ calls us to be in the world but not of it, to engage with confidence and charity, to form children who can think with the Church while speaking intelligibly to their generation.
This curriculum represents one family’s attempt—offered now to all families—to create a comprehensive formation that is:
The Second Vatican Council did not invent but rather recovered an ancient truth when it declared parents the “first and foremost educators of their children”¹. This is not merely a pious sentiment but a theological reality rooted in the nature of marriage and family life.
Consider what the Church teaches:
“Parents have the first responsibility for the education of their children. They bear witness to this responsibility first by creating a home where tenderness, forgiveness, respect, fidelity, and disinterested service are the rule. The home is well suited for education in the virtues.”²
But what does this mean practically in an age when many parents feel unequipped for this task?
You do not need a theology degree to be your child’s first catechist. You need only to live the faith authentically, admit when you don’t know something, and journey together toward the Truth who is a Person, not a proposition.
This book serves as your companion, not your replacement. It provides structure, content, and confidence, but the living transmission happens through you—through your prayers, your choices, your repentance, your joy.
Modern education has trained us to think of learning as information transfer: facts in, tests out. But catechesis is fundamentally different. The Greek word κατήχησις (katēchēsis) means “to echo” or “to resound.” We are not filling empty vessels but awakening resonances already placed in the human heart by the Creator.
This is why this curriculum uses the Scholastic method—not to create miniature academics but to honor the natural movement of the questioning mind toward truth. When a child asks “Why can’t I see God?” they are not seeking a theological treatise but an encounter with Mystery that respects their intelligence.
Throughout this book, you’ll notice we proceed by:
This curriculum can serve multiple contexts:
Use each year’s material as your core religion curriculum, supplementing with the suggested activities and readings. The content typically requires 2-3 sessions per week of 30-45 minutes each, plus integrated prayer and liturgical living.
Review what your children are learning at school and use this material to deepen, supplement, or sometimes correct their formation. The “Parent Guide” sections help you understand the theology behind what they’re learning.
This becomes your primary source of religious formation. Pay special attention to the “Integration with Life” sections that help children navigate secular environments while maintaining their Catholic identity.
Focus on the elements that build basic Christian faith while being sensitive to your spouse’s perspective. The interfaith dialogue sections can help navigate differences respectfully.
Start with just the “Driving Questions” and “Saint of the Week.” Even 10 minutes at dinner discussing one question plants seeds that grow over time.
This curriculum stands firmly within the Catholic Tradition—not as a museum piece but as a living river flowing from Christ through the apostles to us today. Every doctrinal claim is rooted in:
Yet we also recognize that the Church is catholic (universal), embracing legitimate diversity within unity. You’ll find:
“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” This ancient maxim guides our approach throughout.