They are not my “glory stories.” They are the children that I think about at 3:17 a.m. The faces of children that, to the best of my knowledge, I failed to reach. In the middle of the night things I said and did—sometimes with the best of intentions and sometimes from a place of absolute frustration and desperation—replay in my head. What had I done that seemed to completely close a child off to the message of Christ that I desperately wanted to share with them? Hope and the Sacrament of Confession mercifully keeps me from dwelling on these moments... Read more
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Articles Under: Catechizing Children
La familia tiene un lugar privilegiado en la catequesis. El Catecismo declara que “los padres han recibido la responsabilidad y el privilegio de evangelizar a sus hijos”, refiriéndose a ellos como los “primeros heraldos de la fe” (2225). La familia es llamada “iglesia doméstica” – la iglesia del hogar (CEC 2224). Por esta razón, los padres son los primeros y más importantes maestros de la fe para sus hijos. En décadas recientes, sin embargo, ha sido difícil para las parroquias y escuelas católicas cambiarse a prácticas consistentes con esta comprensión. Los padres de familia han llegado a pensar en la... Read more
The family has a privileged place in catechesis. The Catechism states that “parents receive the responsibility of evangelizing their children” and calls them the “first heralds” of the faith (2225). The family is called “domestic church”—the church of the home ( CCC 2224). For this reason, parents are the first and most important teachers of the faith for their children. In recent decades, however, it has been difficult for parishes and Catholic schools to make the shift to practices that are consistent with this understanding. Parents have come to think of the parish and school as the places where children... Read more
Recently, I spoke with a graduate student in one of my courses on Catholic schools. Because she is not a religion teacher, she struggled to understand how she could carry out the mission of Catholic education. This faith-filled woman knew she was serving the Lord by fulfilling her duties conscientiously, but she did not recognize how her work could foster her students’ spiritual lives. She needed a vision for carrying out her educational activities in a way that leads her students to God. I illustrated for her how she could teach her subject area so that her students learned from... Read more
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Trusting God to Take the Lead A couple years ago, I volunteered as a first-grade catechist for my parish’s religious education program. This was before I was taking any classes or working in ministry, and I often struggled with how to present material to such a young age. The program we followed wasn’t much help; the kids I taught did not seem to connect to the content at all. I modified what I could and tried to make it fun, but often I felt my efforts were inadequate. One Sunday morning, I was teaching on the parable of the workers... Read more
A few months past, I had the rare privilege of observing our three youngest grandchildren at play in a Houston park burying treasure (rocks) and marking the spot with a flag made of a stick and a carefully curated large leaf. Their lively play, contagious joy, and the delightful way they encouraged one another in their imaginative play made for one of those transcendent experiences we wish would never end. These moments drew me to think more deeply about what I was witnessing. What was it that made their play so compelling? The components were simple and rooted in ordinary... Read more
Aun cuando los documentos del Magisterio sobre la catequesis se refieren a los padres como los educadores primarios en religión, muchos padres y educadores religiosos en nuestras parroquias, no comprenden la importancia de esta afirmación. No se espera de los padres que hagan una catequesis formal, de tipo escolar. En cambio, el rol de los padres es uno que solamente ellos están llamados a cumplir: su responsabilidad vocacional para inculcar la Fe en un plano cotidiano, a través de la oración, la celebración litúrgica y la formación moral. A diferencia de los catequistas, que suelen tener solamente una hora por... Read more
Can a businessperson aspire to contemplation? A parent? A teenager? A young child? Don’t we usually see it as a privilege reserved for monks and cloistered nuns? Father Marie Eugene of the Child Jesus would say that each of us is capable of genuine contact with God, including the young child. Blessed Marie-Eugene was a French Carmelite priest born in 1894. He discovered in Carmel the treasure of intimacy with God—not only through a daily two hours of silent prayer but throughout the day—thanks to St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Therese of the Child, and... Read more
This is a paid advertisement in the January-March 2020 issue. Advertisements should not be viewed as endorsements from the publisher. To order these books at special discounts from Ignatius Press click here. Or call 1-800-651-1531. Let them know you saw the ad here.Read more