This coming Monday, December 20, 2010, is our last class before the Christmas break. I’m going to use this session to teach the four remaining sacraments: the Sacraments of Healing (Reconciliation and Anointing of the Sick) and the Sacraments of Service (Matrimony and Holy Orders). I plan to do 4 simple “demonstrations” to introduce each of the 4 sacraments before we read the text and discuss them. Here’s my plan in detail:
Liturgy and Sacraments
Why Confess? Ideas for the Sacrament of Reconciliation Parent Meeting
“But why do I have to tell my sins to a priest? Can’t I just go directly to God?” This time it’s the Confirmation students asking the question. And yes, you can pray directly to God, and God has already forgiven our sins through the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. But perhaps we have missed the point of sacramental Reconciliation. As catechetical leaders, it is our responsibility to meet people where they are and […]
Intermediate Grades
Keeping it Simple
I plan on keeping things very simple for today’s class for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, we are experiencing brutally cold weather with wind chills of -20 so I have a feeling I’ll be missing a few students tonight. Secondly, we need time to process last weeks’ learning stations on the Sacraments of Initiation, so I intend to just gather with them on the floor and talk through each of the sacraments, asking […]
Leading a Parish Program
From Marriage Prep to Accompanying Young Families
One of my favorite suggestions from the new Directory for Catechesis is that we drop the phrase “marriage prep.” In essence, this phrase has come to refer to a few “hoops” that an engaged couple has to go through in order to “qualify” for the Sacrament of Matrimony. The new Directory is urging us to move away from a programmatic approach to an approach that is characterized by true accompaniment. Too often, after a perfunctory […]
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