Monica and Giorgio Rosatti have been married for 22 years and live in Trento with their four children: Pietro (17), Elisabetta (15), Maria (13) and Giovanni (9). Monica was born in Rome in 1962 and Giorgio in Trento in 1965. Giorgio is professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, University of Trento, while Monica, as well as having a degree in physics, received her Master in Religious Studies with a thesis on accompanying parents through the processes of the Christian initiation of their children; she is currently a homemaker.
Both were formed in the world of scouting, they collaborate with the Center for Family Ministry of the Diocese of Trento, and are now particularly engaged in the studies and animation of the Diocesan House of Marital and Family Spirituality. For over a decade, they have been active in the Family Catechesis of both their Parish and the Diocese. They are co-authors of “Avventure in Avvento” (Effatà, 2006) and have written three books of Giocatechismo: “Io sono con voi”, “Il Vangelo”, “La Messa” (ElleDiCi, 2009).
1) How has the Giocatechismo evolved? Have there been any innovations?
«Yes, there have been innovations. The evolution has happened mainly in four directions: the first concerns the expansion of the collection, with the creation of new innovative games, realized thanks to the imagination and originality of the successive groups of families; groups that have participated in our itinerary and have not just been satisfied with trying what already exists. Some very beautiful games have been produced, that reflect different sensitivities. Really, one can’t help but continue to be amazed by the wealth of charismas present among the parents!
A second very interesting line of development regards the suggestion of a single day for various itineraries of the Giocatechismo. Some parishes, who don’t want to organize a course like ours, have decided instead to offer two or three Sundays during the year structured according to the idea of the Giocatechismo and invite the families of the children who go to catechesis. There have opportunities for greatly appreciated retreats, with many participants, in preparation for the sacraments of First Reconciliation and First Communion, where it was possible to involve some parents in preparing various aspects of the day. In fact, in every parish there are certainly at least a few couples who can take the responsibility for some aspect of the meeting, especially for such limited periods of time.
The third path of evolution has as its object material past that has been readopted and revised for the animation of groups of children who attend more traditional catechism (i.e., animated only by the catechist with an afternoon meeting each week or every two weeks). In this case as well, the result was positive, since the children do indeed learn much from what they live. However, in these cases the effects are, of course, limited to children and also to their parents.
There is finally a last evolution in some parishes that have started similar itineraries. The transmission has always occurred by direct contact, also because it was necessary to give extended support to couples willing to facilitate a group of families in accordance with what the Giocatechismo proposes. Even in these cases, the experience was very positive, even beyond all expectation. We did however realize that in order to extend the sphere of influence of the proposal, it is useful to invent a strategy for supporting those who want to start: the booklets alone are not enough. For this we have two dreams: the first one is to collect the material and put it on-line, along with a support forum and distance guidance for those who would like to embark on this experience; the second one, on the other hand, stimulated the idea of the parishes that have proposed single day, would like to make some of these games spirituality into opportunities for families at the Diocesan House of Family Spirituality».
2) What was the meeting where the “thematic game” gave the best results? Can you describe it?
«It's actually really hard to answer this question, because over the years there have been many games that have borne amazing fruit, even much later and not only during the of catechetical meeting. Among the latest additions: the Eucariston Cup, intended to introduce the meaning of the Eucharist in one’s own life, set in a motor circuit representing of the path of life, with its obstacles and its beauty, and to show how our experience is changed when “Jesus is in the engine,” if we eat of Him; or Reconciliation Park, which was much more than just a game: in fact, the moments in which this special park was articulated, in fact guided the examination of conscience in preparation for Reconciliation. So, it’s difficult to choose.
Perhaps we could tell you about one of the most tested games, like “The parable of the merciful Father”. This game has, in fact, been used by many different groups, including groups of families from parishes that have offered it as a retreat in preparation for First Confession, groups of more traditional catechesis — in short, very different ones —, but it has always marked the participants.
Everything is born with the idea of making children grasp the exaggeration of this Father’s mercy Father, the disproportion of his loving gesture. For this reason it was decided to experiment with them the situation experienced by the youngest son on his return, but staging other possible endings. By experiencing the different endings, the children came to realize that the Father’s reaction was not the most expected one. How did we do this? An old woman on rocking chair gathers the children around her and begins to tell a story written in a big book. The story that the old lady tells is precisely the parable of the merciful Father, but … at the peak of the story she can’t go on because the last page of the book is missing. That’s where the game starts: the children have to go and look for the final page of that big book. They do this by entering physically into 4 different endings, that is they go into 4 rooms, thus passing through an imagined page of a book; a curtain placed at the door entrance depicts the father with one of his possible reactions. Once they’re in the room, they experience the depicted situation. We have imagined these four reactions: a father who doesn’t forgive, but on the contrary is furious and gives his son a beating (do not worry: we used one of those carnival sticks and the children tried to escape his blows!); an indifferent father before whom the children have to attempt different things in order gain his compassion, but to no avail; a father who forgives in exchange for a penance for which the children have to peel a heap of potatoes before being forgiven (potatoes we then cooked for lunch); and, finally, the merciful Father, who is happy to see them, runs to meet them and gives each one a precious ring that children looked, with amusement, in a box full of confetti.
To discover the right ending, in each room they find a torn page containing the corresponding end to the experienced situation; but when they try to attach these pages to the old big book, only one matches exactly. In this way, it turns out that the father of the parable is the merciful one and that he even organized a feast to celebrate his son’s homecoming. The game therefore ends with everyone sharing a meal as festive as the one in the story, to which the merciful Father in person invites them. The interesting thing is that during the time between the experiences and the discovery of the right ending, the children spontaneously made some assumptions: they were all convinced that the correct answer was conditional forgiveness. In fact, some didn’t want to accept that the right ending was a different one. They began to discuss spontaneously among themselves and with adults (parents and catechists). Now, certainly the stage was set for the announcement of a God who surprises and surpasses us from all sides. What else could be done to make them understand with the same effectiveness the great difference of the ruler God uses to measure? One last note: the game is also an incentive for adults, on the one hand because of the fact that God acts in this way also surprises us, and on the other, when compared with this Father, parents naturally ask the question of how to educate their children and wonder how they would behave in the same situation».
3) Have you ever considered increasing the interaction between the catechists and children through technological devices? Do you think adopting them would lead to decreased interaction, experience, or on the contrary strengthen it?
«We have experienced directly the use of various technological devices, especially when we had to deal with older children (teenagers). Among other things, we also created an open forum and a catechetical group on Facebook. A greater variety of languages is being used and more channels for interaction are opening, especially since these are channels that the children visit regularly. That being said we must, however, also make a clarification: these channels should be used to complement an already strong relationship that must already exist and that can’t be created virtually. The heart of the relationship between the catechist and the children is different: it consists of shared experiences. This is true for both teenagers and for young children. Today even more than in the past, our children have a great need to do share concrete, lived experiences with their teachers, and to get out of the virtual world. The educational relationship opens precisely through these experiences. Moreover, if this relationship has not been built, the proclamation doesn’t find the ground where it can sprout. Of course, the experiences must be very different, depending on the age of the recipients; be that as it may, the important thing is that they are tangible, shared with the adults who educate them, whether they are parents, catechists and facilitators. This is also the so for the youngest children. It struck us that certain games have been effective precisely because they require the children to carry out concrete activities that they had never had the opportunity to do before: planning, sawing, hammering nails, using a loom, making butter, bread and cheese, going into the woods, lighting a fire … all these activities, which in and of themselves would not be games, do become real games for those who are so accustomed to living among abstract images and virtual worlds. These activities fascinate and affect them; their mark remains in them as a sign. And so, this is the ideal context in which to build a real relationship where better education and the proclamation of faith can take shape».
4) Such an original experience could be a good example for others. In your opinion, which are the basic elements for creating new ones?
«This experience is very beautiful, but there is no doubt that for the group facilitator it is also demanding. And the commitment can be frightening. For trying to imagine what elements could help to launch other experiences like this one, we can look at the new ones that we know about.
First, there was a couple or a catechist, or a priest, who had been fascinated by the idea. They realized that could be a good experience to propose to the families of their own Parish and they got to work. So the first element is to make the initiative known, to attract and then sustain the motivation of those who could launch it. For this reason, if Diocesan Offices fell in love with the idea, there is the web, there are publications and our willingness (it’s a small thing, as we know) to go around telling about it or inviting those who want to get an idea to experience one of our days.
A second key element was the function of accompaniment to support initiators. We’re willing offer this support on a larger scale through the network. However, neighboring supportive communities need to be constituted and self-formation organized among the leaders of the various groups. Also in individual parishes. Working in teams and creating communities, rather than leaving people alone, of course, helps. Facilitators have to be comfortable with this way of working. They must be people who believe that serious things can be done through play. This means that it’s easier to find facilitators those who have already educational experiences in youth groups, in prayer groups or scout troops.
Finally, it’s necessary to have a lot of confidence in the surrounding parents and try to consider them in the perspective of the future. One should be guided by this question: “But how does God see them?” The ability, evident or hidden, to make them emerge, to appreciate them, is needed. Once a good partnership with parents has been created, the boat really does start sailing and one must only be able to keep up with it.This is challenging, but it is an investment. It's really worth it!».
