Your kids know Bluey and Cocomelon, but do they know Bishop Frank? For the first time, a Catholic bishop hosts an animated show for kids.
Your kids probably know Bluey, Daniel Tiger, Paw Patrol and Cocomelon — but do they know Bishop Frank? That’s right. For the first time, a Catholic bishop is the host of an animated television show for young children. And the result is unbelievably cute.
Bishop Frank Teaches the Faith is a delightful new series for children and families, starring an animated version of Bishop Frank J. Caggiano from the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Each episode introduces young children and their families to a different topic of the Catholic faith in a fun, colorful and engaging way. Topics so far include the Rosary, the Holy Family, the Bible, and God’s love, among many others.
The weekly three-minute episodes began streaming on Friday, September 18. You can watch them at Start with Sunday, an initiative of the diocese’s Institute for Catholic Formation.
Why create a new Catholic kids’ show, and one starring a bishop, no less? Bishop Frank Caggiano believes it’s important to use the newest available technology to share the Gospel, saying in a press release:
Every generation of the Church is called to find new and creative ways to proclaim the Gospel. Our children are growing up in a world shaped by digital media, and we have an extraordinary opportunity to enter that world with them and introduce them more deeply to Jesus Christ and the beauty of our Catholic faith.
The goal of the show “is to help children recognize that the faith is an invitation into a relationship with Jesus Christ and a way of living each day.”
A year to make; fun-filled toolkits
Creating the show was no small undertaking. The first 52 episodes took more than a year to produce, with seminarians and teachers from diocesan Catholic schools writing the scripts. Families previewed several early episodes at a screening last March.
Catechists, Catholic school teachers, parents, and faith formation leaders are being encouraged to make use of the episodes for lessons and parish gatherings. Coloring sheets, challenge questions, word searches, and other free resources are available online alongside each episode to promote hands-on learning and fun.
Parishes and schools can request a toolkit from the Institute for Catholic Formation that comes complete with magnets, stickers, pencils, crayons, and a mug for the teacher or catechist. More than 225 toolkits were delivered to parishes and schools in early September to celebrate the show’s launch.
Vatican praises the new show
Monsignor Lucio Adrian Ruiz, Secretary of the Vatican's Dicastery for Communication, attended the family screening and praised the project for meeting children in the digital world that so many inhabit.
“Anything we can do to help parents raise faith-filled children is a win,” said Dr. Patrick Donovan, Executive Director of the Institute for Catholic Formation.
Bishop Frank Teaches the Faith takes the truths of our faith and presents them through a medium children already understand and enjoy. Our hope is that these short episodes will spark conversations at home, reinforce what children are learning in their parishes and schools, and, most importantly, help them grow closer to Jesus.
Bishop Frank Teaches the Faith is part of Start with Sunday, an Institute for Catholic Formation initiative supported by a $1.23 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.
