Pop-Up Catechesis: Exploring the Value of Optimism

It’s funny how so many people think of the Ten Commandments solely as prohibitions—rules that say no to everything. While the majority of the Commandments are indeed phrased in the “Thou shall not…” form—prohibiting actions from which we should refrain—the Third Commandment is unique in that it doesn’t tell us to avoid a specific behavior nor does it tell us to perform a specific action. In fact, the Third Commandment, “Remember to keep holy the […]

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I have long asserted that if some “Grinch” came along and stole all of our Catholic faith formation textbooks and copies of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and left us with only a hymnal, we would still be able to teach the Catholic faith! Catholic hymns are catechetical; in other words, they teach us about our faith. One great way to teach children about their Catholic faith is to introduce them to Catholic hymns—the […]

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I remember once while waiting for a flight at the airport, a small child was doing some simple gymnastics in the terminal and repeatedly saying, “Mommy, look! Mommy, look!” The child wanted nothing more than for her mom to look upon her with approval. That’s what a blessing is: to look upon (or be looked upon) with approval. We bless our children and all other people when we let our gaze fall upon them with […]

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