Columban College Inc. Olongapo City

Columban College Catechetical Center

VISION:
The Catechetical Center envisions professionally trained catechists who are actively involved in the evangelizing mission of the local Church.
MISSION:
The Catechetical Center is committed to the integral formation in faith of student catechists who are willing to serve the community with special preference for the poor.
GOALS:
True to its commitment to develop professional catechists, the Catechetical Center hopes to carry the following goals:

1. To provide students with adequate knowledge and understanding about the saving event of Christ and skills to handle properly fundamental problems of human existence.
2. To foster maturity in the Christian faith centered on the Eucharist.
3. To transform the world through the Gospel values and lead them to an authentic witnessing to Christ.

PERSONAL/COMMUNAL ASPECT:
The program is concerned with God’s call and man’s response which is manifested in the gradual growth in the acceptance and living out of  Christ’s message and values.  Activities    which   may   develop  a  deeper  awareness  and growth  in  the call  and response  relationship include the following: liturgical and sacramental   celebrations,  personal / Communal prayers,   retreat/recollection, morning prayer,  reflective reading of the  Scripture and guidance sessions.
ACADEMIC ASPECT:
The   academic   aspect   is   intended   to   develop the   scholastic   potential   of  the students.  In    keeping with  the  mind  of  the Church,  enculturation/indigenization and education for justice receive an emphasis in all Theology subjects/classes.  In order   to   maintain   quality education as  a  service  to   others,   it   is   expected   that   the   grade point   average  be  in   keeping   with   the   academic potentials of   each student.  This is subject to on-going  evaluation.
CATECHETICAL/PASTORAL ASPECT:
The  Center is   oriented to   developing  awareness of the  social  realities with a  view to the  formation of the whole  man  and  everyman (Populorum   Progressio   # 14). Activities are    provided    which  a) deepen awareness of the existing realities      b)   explore  and  evaluate  these realities  in  the  light  of  the  Scriptures    c)    involve  the  students  in  their Christian   responsibility  as  spelled  out  b  the Synod of Bishops…“ action  in  behalf  of  justice  and the   transformation  of the world is a constitutive dimension of   the   gospel message”   as  concretized in  the  building  of Basic Ecclesial Communities    and    d)   further   involve  the  students   in   the non -  formal   services  of  Columban  College,  to  the    different  parishes  of Olongapo  -  Zambales,  and  other civic institutions.  

HISTORY OF THE CENTER
The Catechetical Center is located at Columban College in Olongapo City.  It began in 1972 in order to train catechists who would be professionally competent to teach in schools and parishes of Olongapo and Zambales.  It is a diocesan project and answerable to the Bishop of Iba, Zambales.  The Catechetical Center is financed by the German Bishops.  Thus qualified students are admitted on scholarship basis.  In response, the graduates of the Center devote themselves to the Catechetical Apostolate of the diocese as coordinators, teachers, or parish workers on the provincial and parochial levels.
The program was drawn up in a meeting attended by the late Bishop Henry Byrne, Fr. William Sullivan, Fr. Teodoro Bacani, Fr. O’brien, Sr. Mary Moylan, Sr. Nora, Sr. Maura Dillon, and Mr. Gerardo de Guzman.
The curriculum for B.S.E. major in Religious Education was approved by the Department of Education.  The German Bishops agreed to finance the project.  As its counterpart, Columban College agreed to provide the rooms and facilities of the Center.
In 1976, the Catechetical Center has its first graduates.  Nine graduating students from the Center received Apostolic Mission from the late Bishop Henry Byrne.
In 1979, the organization of the Catechetical Center has remained stable and both Sr. Maura Dillon, SSC, the director of the Catechetical Center and Mr. Gerardo de Guzman, the Dean of the Center worked together as a team in all areas for the past years.  This year also, Sr. Priscilla Ysaac, DC has come to the Center with a view of taking over the administration of the Center the following year.
In 1980, Sr. Priscilla took over the administration as the Director of the Center, and in 1981, through the inspiration of Dra. Socorro Espiritu, the Department of Religious Affairs was created.  This was to implement Columban College’s Philosophy of education and school objectives with regard to the Spiritual Formation of the academic community.  With Dra. Espiritu’s advice, there was a change in the organizational set up of the Catechetical Center in order to avoid overlapping of functions between the general college administration and the Center.  This was approved by the Director of Columban College and Bishop Henry Byrne.  With the new the structure, the Director and Staff of the Center take charge of all formational activities namely:  Theological Studies, Spiritual Formation, Catechetical Ministries, Pastoral Activities, Religious Education and Alumni Affairs.
In 1982, The Ministry of education and Culture approved the Revised Curriculum of Bachelor of Science major in Religious Education.  The New Organizational Chart of the Center was formulated.  The fourth thrust of the Center was created in response to the needs expressed by the parish priests of Zambales regarding the involvement of the students in the different parish activities.  This is the Catechetical Ministry Program.  As an outreach project of the Integration Class, the graduating students rendered their apostolic service to the tribal minorities of Cabalan.  This exposure/immersion activity was the pre-requisite activity before Missio Canonica.