After seven weeks of catechesis, silly skits, and shaving cream fights in the heat of June, July, and August, the Diocese of Madison’s Totus Tuus team completed another summer of sharing fun and faith with kids.
This year marked the 10th anniversary of Totus Tuus in the Diocese of Madison, originally beginning in the summer of 2014.
And this summer, more than 500 kids, ranging from kindergarteners to seniors in high school, participated, with the final week held at the end of July into the first few days of August at St. Philomena Church in Belmont, part of St. Isidore the Farmer Pastorate.
Other churches hosting Totus Tuus this summer included: the churches of Holy Ghost-Immaculate Conception Parish in Dickeyville and Kieler, part of St. Dominic Pastorate; St. Joseph Church in East Bristol, part of Nativity of the Lord Parish; St. Peter Church in Ashton, part of Holy Cross Pastorate; and St. John the Evangelist Church in Waunakee, part of St. Maximilian Kolbe Pastorate.
Totus Tuus, which originated in Kansas during the summer of 1987, is a nationally popular Catholic summer program that supplements parish youth formation during busy summer months.
‘I’ve received so much’
The Totus Tuus team this year consisted of Noah Anason, Seth Hakes, Michael Milbrath, Geneva Welsh, and Birgitta Wogerman.
Of the five, Wogerman was the only returning member from last year’s team, saying that “it’s very beautiful to see the differences” between the two teams she’s been a part of, and said that “One of the biggest reasons I came back this summer is because of how much I received and how much I grew through last summer, and so, again — definitely this summer — I’ve received so much.”
Wogerman also talked about the children.
She said, “There are a lot of instances of seeing how these beautiful and innocent little children are so unassuming, how they give so much love.
“It’s really beautiful in that way, just to interact with them.”
Totus Tuus, or “totally yours” in Latin, also has a special focus on Mary, stemming from Pope St. John Paul II’s devotion to her.
For the Totus Tuus team, a part of each week is focused on teaching a Mystery of the Rosary to the children.
The Mysteries change from year-to-year, and Wogerman shared that “This year, we’re teaching the Glorious Mysteries and the Apostles Creed from the Catechism.”
In Totus Tuus, teaching the Rosary takes a hands-on approach.
Each day, the children work together to build a Rosary made out of paper beads.
As the children prayed a decade, the child leading the Hail Mary would tape a paper bead to the wall.
By the end of the week, the whole Rosary would be proudly on display, and this day-by-day growth helped kids learn how to pray the Rosary and what was happening in each Mystery.
On teaching the Glorious Mysteries, Wogerman shared that “the Resurrection is one of the most important things about our Faith, but I also really love meditating on the Assumption of Mary, her intercession, and how beautiful that is,” and she hopes the children who attend Totus Tuus also understand these same truths.
‘To wonder about God’
Seth Hakes, lead catechist of this year’s Totus Tuus team and a Diocese of Madison seminarian, explained a connection between his time in seminary and teaching with Totus Tuus.
He said, “As a seminarian, a lot of times I’m asking questions about basic beliefs I’ve had [since childhood].
“You obviously believe them, but you’re asking, ‘Okay, why exactly?’ or ‘Why is it that?’”
And through Totus Tuus, Hakes is able to share that same curiosity with the children.
In particular, he said, “My favorite topic to talk about is God the Father because since growing up, I’ve had a sense — a big sense — of Divine Providence.
“I’m always amazed looking at nature, looking at the world, just clouds each day.
“God’s always making them for me to look at, to marvel at, and so, His power and His transcendence has always been pretty evident to me.”
“Because the Apostles Creed starts with, ‘I believe in God, the Father Almighty,’” the next question Hakes is able to ask is, “Okay, who’s God the Father?” he continued.
And that’s what Hakes hopes kids walk away with, “to wonder about God”.
“I’ve found a lot of fruit from just wondering about things and taking them slow, which then you’re drawn to ponder God and wonder more, especially the simplest things.
“Especially when you’re really young, you don’t know many things. A lot of things are mysteries to you.
So, applying that to God and realizing how all of those mysteries are things God made — how awesome must God be?
“That’s what I’d like for them to take away,” said Hakes.
As this year of Totus Tuus has wrapped up — and with it a full decade of learning — it’s not too early to contact the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis about hosting Totus Tuus at your church next year or to show interest in being a part of the Totus Tuus team.
You may contact the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis at oec@madisondiocese.org or visit madiondiocese.org/totustuus to learn more.