Stages of the Life Cycle, the Stages of Catechesis: The AEC Catechetical Statements

The years 2000 and 2004 were important markers for the Catholic Church in the Caribbean. The bishops of the Caribbean (AEC) issued two documents which, for the first time, focused on the ministry of catechesis and specifically addressed catechists. The first, On the Ministry of Catechesis (2000), revived the concept of catechesis as a ministry of the Church and situated it both within an international global framework and in the regional framework of the Caribbean. It ended by promising a document that would lay out the necessary guidelines rooted in the essential elements of catechesis and the Christian community as the context for catechesis. This promise was fulfilled when the second document, Guidelines for Catechesis (2004), was released.