Miscellaneous

Last night, we had our final catechist meeting for the program year and it was a delightful and enriching experience. We gathered in a large circle and began with an opening prayer that including a meditation led by Arlene, our DRE. The entire focus was on being called by name.  We each had a few moments to reflect on our own name, what we like/dislike about it, and how/when we feel we have been called […]

Since last Monday was our last class, tonight is my first Monday evening off in a long, long time! Believe me, as much as I like being a catechist, the time to be at home and resting is much appreciated! Between now and next Monday, I need to complete my report cards. They are to be turned in at a catechist’s meeting next Monday.

For tonight’s class, which is our last, we will celebrate the Eucharist followed by a pizza party. In between, I will gather my troops one last time for a few last words and then will present them with a small gift that I purchased at a Catholic church goods store named Heaven Sent. They are small flat stones (about the size of a half-dollar) with a dove symbol on one side and the following inscription […]

Sorry I’ve not updated for a few days but one of life’s curve balls came my way when our college daughter came home sick and we unexpectedly had to take her to the hospital. She will be fine but your prayers are appreciated. As a result of this, I was unable to teach class last night which would have been the last real class of the year. Next week, we have a closing Mass. So […]

For class tonight, I am going to show the final scenes of Zefferelli’s Jesus of Nazareth focusing on the death and resurrection of Jesus. (I had planned to do this a couple of weeks ago, but that night we were invited to attend a special presentation by the 6th graders). I’ve always thought that Jesus of Nazareth was a very good portrayal and is very educational for the young people without the uneccessarily extreme graphic […]

Maybe I’ll see some of you at the NCEA conference in Indianapolis! See you back here Friday!

I always found it interesting that society as a whole embraces the Christmas story…creche scenes abound and the story is told and sung of a child being born in humble surroundings. For Easter, we have bunnies, jellybeans, colored eggs, and flowers! And yet, the reason we celebrate Christmas in the first place is because it is the birth of the one who died and rose from the dead. Without Easter – the Resurrection – there […]

Tonight, we enter into the post-confirmation era which begins with the big question: will they be back? Last year, all of the confirmandi returned for religious education classes after the sacrament was celebrated. Our DRE does a good job of communicating to parents that confirmation is NOT the end of the the religious education program. Let’s hope the message got through again this year. Even so, tonight’s class will be somewhat smaller than usual because […]

Of course, you probably didn’t know that I was gone! I was at the L.A. Religious Education Congress from Friday through Sunday. It was a wonderful experience. One of the things that I like about the L.A. Congress is that it is a very “large tent.” By that I mean that it fully reflects the unity and diversity of the Church at a time when some are seeking to make the tent smaller by emphasizing […]

Looking forward to Monday, it will be the first time in a while that I’ve had an entire period with my students! It’ll be nice to have a solid block of time with them again. This Monday is the confirmation assessment that I’ve alluded to before. It will be very interesting to see how well the young people can recall basic information about their faith. I also look forward to talking with them about their […]