Are you smarter than an 8th grader? Take this catechesis quiz.

Edie Heipel   By Edie Heipel for CNA

August 26, 2022 Catholic News Agency News Briefs 0 Print

 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church / Carl Bunderson/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 26, 2022 / 17:00 pm (CNA).

The National Catholic Register reported this month that one Catholic school’s decision to begin every day with Mass has transformed the spiritual lives of both students and the broader parish community – and soared the school to second place among 30 diocesan schools that took a catechesis assessment test.

One of the Church’s biggest struggles in recent years has been the problem of inadequate catechesis, for children and adults alike.

The problem of poorly catechized Catholics is evident in recent polls. An EWTN/Real Clear Opinion Research poll conducted this July, for example, showed that 38% of Catholic likely voters do not believe in the Real Presence of the Eucharist. The same poll also found that 35% never go to confession – a sacrament required by Church law at least annually.

Overall, the poll found that only 20% of Catholics accept all Church teachings.

Identifying and solving the problem of catechesis 

The Assessment of Religious Knowledge, or the ARK test, is meant to be a step forward in remedying the catechesis problem in K-12 schools.

Developed by the Sophia Institute – a Catholic non-profit dedicated to serving Catholic education and teachers – the ARK tool helps measure the effectiveness of religious education programs in parishes and schools across the country.

It does this through a survey that faculty, catechists, and students take, split up by grade. Each test includes questions about knowledge and belief and behaviors that cover six categories: Sacraments & Liturgy; The Creed & Salvation History; Morality; Prayer; Virtue; and Living Discipleship.

After the assessment is completed, the platform allows school administrators and faculty to see important results about the religious formation of their students and faculty. This includes problem areas so that schools can identify and start to bridge gaps in their religious education programs.

Rob Kenney, the Executive Director of ARK, said in a statement to CNA that the tool “helps schools and parishes easily identify successes and opportunities for both students and faculty, review individual knowledge growth, and compare against national averages.”

More than an assessment 

But it’s not just only about the children, Kenney explained: “We also recognize the importance of forming the teacher, so ARK helps guide professional development at an individual, school and parish, or even diocese level.”

ARK also offers teachers free, curated resources based on their school’s results to supplement teachers’ own learning and supply free resources for their class.

Kenney sees the ARK test as more than an assessment tool, but a part of a broader evangelization effort.

“All this ties into engaging in continuous improvement for religious education that will help all of us not only know more, but also have a greater love for our faith; and best of all, help direct us toward Heaven,” he said.

With the help of ARK, CNA put together a sample version of the assessment so that you can test your own knowledge. Take the quiz below. 

How well do you know your catechesis? Take the ARK test for 8th graders. 

What is conscience?

  1. God’s voice in our hearts
  2. Moral feelings which form to support cultural customs
  3. The source of the moral law for every individual
  4. The urge for self-preservation

Which is a reason a person should not receive Communion at Mass?

  1. They have committed venial sins
  2. They have unconfessed mortal sins
  3. They have fasted for an hour beforehand
  4. They felt distracted during the homily

Who knows when the Last Judgment will occur?

  1. The pope
  2. The angels
  3. God the Father
  4. None of these.

Which of the following people should receive Anointing of the Sick?

  1. A person who has been sick with a sinus infection for over a month
  2. An elderly person facing a grave illness
  3. A college student who is feeling homesick
  4. A person who has recovered from a life-threatening virus

St. Paul wrote an epistle to the churches in all the following places EXCEPT:

  1. Ephesus
  2. Thessalonica
  3. Samaria
  4. Rome

Which of the following is a capital sin?

  1. Envy
  2. Disobedience
  3. Presumption
  4. Curiosity

Which of the following is a sacrament of healing?

  1. Penance
  2. Baptism
  3. Holy Orders
  4. Eucharist

Who is called to chastity?

  1. Priests and religious
  2. Married people
  3. Single people
  4. All of these

Correct answers: Conscience 1; Communion 2; Last Judgement 3; Anointing of the Sick 2; Paul 3; capital sin 1; sacrament of healing 1; chastity 4.

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News Briefs

Culture is about ‘creating, not destroying’ says sculptor

July 12, 2020 CNA Daily News 1

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 12, 2020 / 08:00 am (CNA).- Tired and heartbroken at seeing statues get pulled down and vandalized, Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz wracked his brain to come up with a compromise that would both preserve the artwork, and acknowledge the flawed nature of many historical figures. 

Schmalz has been a sculptor for 30 years and is perhaps best known for his “Homeless Jesus” sculpture and the “Angels Unaware” statue dedicated to migrants in St. Peter’s square. He told CNA that he believes sculpture is a unique and powerful method of preaching. 

He said it made him upset “beyond belief” watching the news and seeing statues of figures such as Christopher Columbus and St. Junipero Serra be torn down. 

“I know the amount of time that is spent working on each sculpture and a lot of these sculptures were done a century ago and the skill level, the time that it’s been put into that–just on a simple work ethic and good craftsmanship and time and love that is put into it,” he said. 

“To see that being pulled down and destroyed just really breaks my heart,” Schmalz added. 

Sculpture, he said, is different from other art forms, as unlike a play or a piece of music, it is intended to be permanent.

“Its basic presence is that of time enduring,” he said. He told CNA that seeing what he called “a random mob” destroy statue after statue felt like watching “wanton violence against our culture.” 

The statues, Schmalz said, are  works of art being used as scapegoats for the country’s perceived historical sins.

“They’re visual ambassadors of that history, and to destroy it–[its] absolute arrogance.” 

Instead of destruction, Schmalz is advocating for more creation.

“I’m a sculptor, I’m a creative, I create, I do not destroy, and I wish more people would follow the role model of creating rather than destroying,” he said. 

Creation, Schmalz explained, is far more difficult than destruction. Some of the statues that were destroyed took years to make, “and they’re toppled in 15 minutes.” 

“I want to be in a culture that is one of creating, not one of destroying. And, and what I say is that if you have a problem with that sculpture, let’s create more sculptures, let’s create more stuff.”

And creating “more stuff” is just what Schmalz is doing. 

He sculpted what he has dubbed the “Monument of Oppression”–a sculpture of two arms extending outward behind a barred window–which he says he hopes could be installed as a “supplementary sculpture” beside controversial works of art, offering it as a compromise that could save more works of art from destruction. 

The Monument of Oppression would be “a layer of art on top of a layer of art,” and would serve as a reminder that there is a complicated history behind many notable persons which should be marked. 

As a sculptor, and as one who concentrates on religious-inspired art, Schmalz rejected the idea that statues of a European-styled Jesus should be taken down, but did say that there should be a wider embrace of images of Christ as various ethnicities, saying he has himself made many African-styled images of Christ and the Holy Family, including an African-American crucifix for the Archdiocese of Atlanta. 

“Jesus does not have a color. Jesus doesn’t necessarily care,” he said. “Artwork is a bridge for people. And so if I have the opportunity to make a Jesus for a European place, fine. And an African-American Corpus should be in Atlanta, Georgia, because there’s so many people of African descent there.” 

The depiction of Jesus as various ethnicities “has nothing to do with anything, but making artwork that fits the audience and you have the painters doing the same,” he said, noting that Jesus was often depicted in the clothing of the Middle Ages or Renaissance, and that the actual Last Supper “probably wouldn’t have had a European table and chairs.” 

“It doesn’t matter,” he said. 

“Artwork is a communication, and that has to be spoken in a language that people could understand.” 

[…]

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