Hearts Burning, Not So Much

In 1999 the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), produced the wonderful pastoral plan, Our Hearts Were Burning within Us, for adult faith formation. Yet their plan lacked actionable steps for clear implementation. Sure their hearts were in the right place, but apparently their hearts weren't burning that much.
What good is a shepherd who calls from a distance his sheep who keep wandering off into the distance? The shepherd can keep using his words, but until he starts taking action toward his sheep, the words fall on deaf ears or eventually his words can no longer reach his sheep because they've gone too far. And for those few sheep still nearby, if the shepherd just keeps calling his sheep and not feed them as well, eventually his sheep leave to look for food elsewhere.
This past Sunday's Gospel (Third Sunday of Easter; Lectionary 48; John 21:1-19) is quite poignant for us. Jesus said to Peter, "Write to my sheep." Oh wait, nope. He said to Peter, "Talk to my sheep." Um, not really. The Lord told Peter to "Feed my sheep" and then he said, "Tend my sheep," and then a second time said, "Feed my sheep." That's one tending and two feedings.
Now my criticism of our bishops might be harsh, but the stakes are too high to be laissez-faire about the salvation of souls and spreading the Gospel. As teachers, our bishops do well on telling us about the doctrines of the Church, whether we understand their explanations and descriptions or not. Yet how to live the truth of the Church's teachings, our shepherds struggle dearly to feed us. There are, of course, exceptions to this norm. But the norm is far too common, and we are called to newly evangelize one another.
So in that spirit of evangelization, I offer this outline of a plan of action:
The heart of adult faith formation must be sacramental preparation, because each of us is a sacrament (small s).
We begin this Sac-Prep with the Sacrament of Matrimony, not because all adults are called to the married life, but because every human being deserves to be brought into this world by a husband and wife. The core of human existence is the family, but the heart of the family is the married couple; not as father and mother, but as husband and wife.
A baptized man and a baptized woman who desire to be married ought to go through nine months of preparation. If they can endure the gestation of their new life together, then they will better prepared for the birth of their new married life. This nine months of preparing for the married life is about healthy and holy abiding love, the love necessary for human relationships,  especially between spouses. So the stages of development during these nine months ought to be as follows:
MIND: 3 months of financial learning (eg Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University)
BODY: 3 months of ballroom dance lessons (any professional dance studio beginner series should do)
SPIRIT: 3 months of nutritional and spiritual discernment (eg Joe Reboot meets Ignatian Exercises)
The engaged couple will need to commit a minimum of 2 hours per week for 9 months to their marriage preparation before taking their vows in the Rite. If they can't commit to 2 hours a week together for 9 months, how can they commit to 24 hours a day for a lifetime? Such an investment in preparing during their engagement is small compared to the wealth building they will be capable of in the marriage. The key ingredient to this action plan at each step of the way is their focus on their relationship in these three key areas. The continued development of their minds, bodies, and spirits in preparing to live as "one flesh" is essential to a healthy and holy family life.
This action plan ought to be the heart (cor) of every parish's adult faith formation. Those adults not preparing for marriage or who are already married, ought to be feed by this same core, eventually.
If today's Peters hear not just Jesus' call but heed his commend to feed and tend his sheep, then I can imagine many sheep returning, and all of our hearts burning within us.