Advanced Ministry Studies
CATECHETICAL MINISTRY YEAR
Evangelization and Catechesis
November 15, 2025
Course Description
Discover the heart of the Church’s mission! This class invites all ministers, catechists, and parish leaders to deepen their understanding of how evangelization and catechesis work together to form missionary disciples. Rooted in the Directory for Catechesis and the teachings of the Church, we will explore how the joy of the Gospel inspires every act of teaching, witnessing, and accompaniment.
Participants will learn the centrality of the Kerygma—the living person of Jesus Christ— and how to form hearts ready to encounter Him more deeply. Whether you serve in faith formation, liturgy, or parish ministry, this session will renew your passion for helping others know, love, and follow Christ.
This 6-hour class will cover the following objectives, preparing participants in the Advanced Studies Program and parish catechetical leaders to be effective ministers in today's Church realities.
Course Learning Objectives:
The learners, participants, catechist will:
- Understand that catechesis and Evangelization integrate and complement each other.
- Be able to proclaim the Word in such a way that calls forth a conversation of the heart.
- From Directory of Catechesis 2020: Catechesis is at the service of the New Evangelization
- Understand catechesis as a missionary going forth.
- Describe the relationship between the kerygma (Evangelization) and catechesis.
- Trace the core content and history of catechesis through: Sacred Scripture, Oral instruction, Liturgy
- Learn the impact of the development of catechesis after Vatican II and how it shaped the Directory of Catechesis.
Course Code: AMS Cat 204
Date: Saturday, November 15, 2025
Time: 9:00 am to 4:00 pm (Breaks and Lunch time included)
Format: Zoom Live Class
Professors: Fr. Frank Donio and Dr. Megan Kanatzar Ferguson
Fr. Frank S. Donio, S.A.C., D.Min. is Founding Director of the Catholic Apostolate Center and a member of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate (Pallottine Fathers and Brothers). He is also Executive Director of the Conference of Major Superiors of Men of the United States (CMSM). His academic background, teaching, presenting, pastoral, and administrative work are focused primarily on evangelization, spiritual formation, and pastoral practice that fosters greater co-responsibility and collaboration among all the baptized.
He holds additional provincial, national, and international leadership positions in the Pallottines and in the Union of Catholic Apostolate (UAC), an international public association of the faithful founded by St. Vincent Pallotti in 1835. Fr. Frank is former Provincial Rector of the Immaculate Conception Province of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate. Some of his other prior assignments include Provincial Director of Formation, Pastoral Director of St. Jude Shrine in Baltimore, MD and Chaplain of Bishop Eustace Preparatory School in Pennsauken, NJ.
Dr. Megan Kanatzar Ferguson, D.Min - Catholic Apostolate Center
Meg Kanatzar Ferguson, D.Min. is the Curriculum Coordinator at the Catholic Apostolate Center. She helps develop online course materials and curricula and assists with the development of Catholic Apostolate Center Publications.
Meg graduated from the Catholic University of America in 2024 with her Doctor of Ministry degree (D.Min.). She holds two Master's degrees in Theology from Newman University in Wichita, Kansas, and the University of Notre Dame, respectively. Meg is a graduate of the Echo program from the University of Notre Dame, and she has five years of teaching theology at the high school level. She currently resides in Yukon, Oklahoma, with her husband, Connor, and their three children..
Notes:
Please register as soon as possible, as this course requires pre-reading material.
- This class is eligible for ongoing formation. Those not registered in the Advanced Ministry Studies but who would like to take the class as an ongoing formation, please use the discount code CatAMS204-25 for a 50% discount.
