Christmas Blessings to All!

I’d like to take this opportunity, before signing off for the holidays, to wish each and everyone of you a very blessed Christmas! May Jesus be born again in each of our hearts and, as catechists, may we help others to experience the birth of Christ in their lives. Here are a few words from our Holy Father that we can all take to heart: “Today, as in the time of Jesus, Christmas is not […]

My Latest Contribution to Busted Halo

Here is my latest contribution to The Busted Halo Question Box: Why are the non-canonical gospels not considered valid? Also, here’s the link to my radio interview yesterday with Relevant Radio…click on Hour 2.

What's Your Catholic IQ?

Of the many hats that I wear, one of them is as the author of the regular feature What’s Your Catholic IQ? in Catechist Magazine. Lots of catechists enjoy this regular feature and I enjoy writing it because I learn a lot in my research! Check it out: What’s Your Catholic IQ? January, 2010.

The "O" Antiphons – No Oprah Here

This is one “O” that Oprah has nothing to do with! 🙂 The “O” Antiphons are part of the great climax of the final days of Advent leading up to the celebration of the Incarnation on Christmas Day. Here’s a link to a very nice reflection on the “O” Antiphons and what they mean to us today. It is from my friend and colleague Joyce Donahue, Catechetical Associate in the Diocese of Joliet Religious Education […]

On the Other Hand…

Yesterday, I provided a rather glowing summary of Monday evening’s Confirmation Intensive. Indeed, the evening overall went very well and was a positive experience. On the other hand, there are always a few moments that provide sobering reminders of the troubles that some of these kids have. The Confirmation Intensives allows me the opportunity to catch a glimpse, so to speak, of each of the five 8th grade classes. For the most part, each of […]

My Crystal Ball

I began class last night by inviting the kids to join me in another room that I had set up with my “crystal ball!” I have a light fixture – a globe – that is tinted white and I placed a battery operated flickering candle inside of it and wrapped a purple cloth around the base of it. All of the lights in the room were turned off and I had a CD playing in […]

Images of the Holy Spirit

Tonight, as we begin our first of five Confirmation Intensives (class will be for two hours instead of 75 minutes, comprised of five different mini-sessions), I will be teaching about images of the Holy Spirit: water, anointing, fire, and a dove. To introduce this concept, I am bringing in a blank red octagon that I cut out of construction paper and afixed to a stick. I plan to show it to the kids and to […]

Thanks to All and Congratulations to Sue!

Thanks to all of you who sent in such heartfelt congratulations on the occasion of my 3rd “blogiversary!” It means a lot to me to read about the many ways that my blog has touched the lives of catechists! Congratulations to Sue who sent in the following comment and is the winner of the drawing for an autographed set of my Loyola Press books! “Well done,my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in […]

Happy Blogiversary to ME! To US!

December 12 is the 3rd anniversary of my blog, Catechist’s Journey! We’ve come a long way in those 3 years. Take a look at the post that started it all! December 12, 2006 Over these past 3 years, we have covered a lot of ground! During that time, I have completed 670 posts and you have sent in 2269 comments! (Keep those comments coming…I’m thinking about a nice prize for the 3000th comment!) We have […]

Las Posadas, the Augustinians, the Jesuits, and Las Pastorelas

I made mention in my post yesterday that my initial research into the history of Las Posadas indicates some Jesuit origins. Well, you can’t believe everything you read on the Internet! Two of my colleagues – Santiago Cortés-Sjöberg and Miguel Arias – set me straight on the matter. It seems that it was the Augustinians who introduced Las Posadas as a way to evangelize the Aztecs in the 16th century. The Augustinians requested and received […]

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