Message from our Publisher
Ed DeStefano, STB, M. Div
RCL Benziger welcomes Peter Esposito as our new president. Peter brings 25 years of experience and leadership in both the development and delivery of K–12 curriculum resources.
Peter joins RCL Benziger at a pivotal time in the life of the Catholic Church in the United States. The changing face of the Church and of her evangelization and catechetical ministries provide a significant opportunity and challenge to RCL Benziger in our development of resources that will support you to effectively meet the responsibilities of those ministries.
Everyone at RCL Benziger cherishes our 200-year tradition of service to the Church. This service began with Benziger in the 1800s and was joined to the tradition of Silver Burdett Ginn Religion and of Tabor Publishing/Resources for Christian Living (RCL) in 2007. We hold this tradition as a sacred trust, and we are committed to building upon it as we move into the future.
For the past twenty-years I have served RCL Benziger in the development of resources to assist you, our partners in ministry, to effectively meet the responsibilities of your ministry. I reaffirm RCL Benziger’s commitment to continue and build on our tradition of providing you with resources and services of the highest standards.
RCL Benziger’s resources will continue to pass on the faith of the Church accurately, both in conformity to the Catechism of the Catholic Church and other documents of the Church. Our resources will continue to respect the diversity of cultural backgrounds and learning styles of all learners. They will continue to be constructed around sound pedagogy that includes both the six tasks of catechesis and the methodologies named in the National Directory for Catechesis. The design and delivery of our resources whether in print or through other electronic media will continue to be appealing and attractive to today’s learner.
RCL Benziger looks forward to journey with you as we move forward together into the second decade of the twenty-first century—and beyond.
Fr. Gerard Weber Dies in Los Angeles
Fr. Gerard Weber, for many years the General Editor of Benziger curriculum materials, passed away recently in Los Angeles at the age of 91. His obituary from the Chicago diocesan newspaper, New Catholic World, may be reached through this link. In addition to his many contributions listed in the obituary, we at RCL Benziger also know that Fr. Weber was the heart and soul of Benziger for many years. He developed the In Christ Jesus and Come, Follow Me K-8 programs and was a consultant on Christ Jesus, the Way. Fr. Weber was also the one who brought the Family Life program to Benziger. He had purchased the program from a local priest in Chicago and saw that it reflected his insights and values. Fr. Weber also served as the advisor on all the Benziger sacrament series over the years.
Fr. Weber contributed his royalty income to the ACTA Foundation in Chicago, which supported, created, and sold adult religious educational materials, and offered grants to help people create new materials. Contrary to the information stated in the attached Chicago obituary, the ACTA Foundation is still active today. Only its book line was sold in recent years, and is now known as ACTA Publishing.
We at RCL Benziger join all Fr. Weber’s friends and family in mourning the loss of this great catechetical leader, and in celebrating his life and the many gifts he brought to the U.S. Church.
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