Katechismus: Finding Meaning in Grandma's Artifact

 

 

One of my favorite things to research are—well—things. Objects, books, crafts, memorabilia, and items owned by my parents, grandparents, and others, which have been passed down to me or that I chose to keep after that person passed away. Often, I have inherited items that belonged to my mother, who kept items that belonged to her mother, etc.

One such item that piques my curiosity is a small booklet that belonged to my maternal grandmother, Margaret Katherine Simonik (1913-1988), who was Roman Catholic. It has the title Katechismus.¹ Since it is written half in Slovak and half in English, I wondered about its purpose, when she used it, and perhaps why she kept it.

This is what we call a material culture study, which “centers upon objects, their properties, and the materials that they are made of, and the ways in which these material facets are central to an understanding of culture and social relations.”² And what I want to know is: How can I understand my grandmother better by understanding this booklet that she left behind? Over the next few posts, I will share some of what I’ve learned about this booklet and about my grandmother in the process.

In Gena Philibert-Ortega’s class in material culture which I attended in January, we learned that looking at an object through a material culture lens begins with examining it, looking in detail at what it is made of, how it is made, who made it and when, and describing all its characteristics. So, I sat down and really studied this booklet.

Physical Characteristics

The booklet:

• Measures 3-1/2” wide x 5-1/2” tall.
  
• It has 110 pages.
• It is a soft-bound booklet.
• The cover is a tan color with text printed in black ink. 
• The cover shows signs of wear, with worn corners, creasing, and ink that is worn off in places.
• The inside pages are shiny stock, likely coated. They are an off-white color, and the text is printed in black ink.
• The binding appears to be both glued and stapled. The glue has deteriorated and spread a dark brown stain to a portion of the cover. It appears that part of the cover stuck to the first inside page and tore some of the page.
• The inside pages are worn and there is some dogearing apparent on the page corners.

Booklet Contents

• The cover of the booklet is written entirely in Slovak. Using the Deepl online translation tool I translated the cover title and text:

• The booklet includes text written in both English and Slovak. The English text is on the left-hand pages, while the corresponding Slovak text is on the right-hand pages. 

Beginning of text with English on left page and Slovak on right page.

•  While there is no table of contents, the sections of the booklet are denoted by boldface, capitalized titles:
• Abridged Catechism, in the form of questions and answers, numbered 1-36
• Devotions for Confession
• First Communion Day prayers and instructions written in the form of a priest’s questions and prayers and the children’s responses
• Act of Faith 
• Act of Hope 
• Act of Love 
• Act of Desire 
• Act of Humility 
• Prayers after First Communion
• Continuation of catechism in form of a priest’s questions and prayers and the children’s responses, numbered 37-109
• Manner of Serving a Priest at Mass, instructions written in English and Slovak; the prayers offered by the priest at Mass are written in Latin as are the expected responses of the children in attendance
• Various general prayers and intercessions (or prayers on behalf of others)
• Sign of cross 
• Our Father
• Hail Mary
• Apostle’s Creed 
• Ten Commandments 
• Six Commandments of the Church 
• Six Truths We Must Believe
  

 

Inscriptions in Booklet

There are two sets of inscriptions in the booklet:

• The inside front cover includes an inscription written in red ink in Slovak, translated here from Slovak to English:

 

Inside front cover inscription.

 

• On the back of the last page of the booklet are two lists written in pencil. 
• The first lists various parts of church architecture such as vestibule, nave, pew, rail, etc. 
• The second lists various pieces of a priest’s vestments, such as the alb, cincture, maniple, chasuble, etc.
• Both lists are written in my grandmother’s hand, which I recognize.

Initial Thoughts

• Grandma received the Catholic sacraments of confession, communion, and confirmation prior to the reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965).³ Before then, the Mass was delivered in Latin; this explains why there are some Latin terms in sections of the booklet.
• When I looked at this booklet during the January material culture class, I concluded that Grandma used this catechism before her confirmation. She noted the purchase date of November 1925 on the inside cover and this was the year preceding her confirmation date, which was on 11 July 1926.⁴ On reading through this again more closely, I now realize that it was a catechism used in preparation before a child’s First Confession and First Communion. 

Herein lies a mystery, however: Grandma made her First Communion on 14 August 1921, five years before the date of her Confirmation.⁵ 

 

Why did she buy this booklet? Was it for herself or for someone else, perhaps a younger sibling?

It’s a good thing I’m doing this series!

Until next time…

© Nancy Gilbride Casey, 2025. All rights reserved.

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NOTES

 

¹ Rev. A. Houst, Katechismus (Middletown, Pennsylvania: Unity Printers, n.d.), catechism booklet; privately held by Nancy Gilbride Casey, [address for private use,] Tioga, Texas, 2025. This booklet was passed from Margaret Simonik Kozlina to her daughter, Anna Margaret Kozlina Gilbride, from whom the author inherited it.

² Oxford Bibliographies (https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/display/document/obo-9780199766567/obo-9780199766567-0085.xml : accessed 28 April 2025), "Material Culture."

³ Lisa Zengarini, "An Overview of the Second Vatican Countil," Vatican News (https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2022-10/vatican-ii-council-60th-anniversary-video-history-background.html : accessed 28 April 2025).

⁴ St. Polycarp Catholic Church, W. Leisenring, Pennsylvania, commemorative Confirmation certificate dated 11 July 1926 to Margita Katarina Semanik; privately held by Nancy Gilbride Casey, [address for private use,] Tioga, Texas, 2025. This certificate was passed from Margaret Simonik Kozlina to her daughter, Anna Margaret Kozlina Gilbride, from whom the author inherited it.

⁵ St. Polycarp Catholic Church, W. Leisenring, Pennsylvania, commemorative First Communion certificate issued 14 August 1921 to Margita Semanik; privately held by Nancy Gilbride Casey, [address for private use,] Tioga, Texas, 2025. This certificate was passed from Margaret Simonik Kozlina to her daughter, Anna Margaret Kozlina Gilbride, from whom the author inherited it.