9 Advent Attitudes – #7: Staying on Message

Advent is, above all else, a season of hope – a virtue that is all too rare in our world. To live as a person of hope is to behave in such a manner as to draw suspicion that we are behaving somewhat erratically as far as worldly norms go. This new type of behavior – what some may even call erratic behavior (the behavior that led people to conclude that the Apostles were “under […]

9 Advent Attitudes – #5: Kindness

Advent is, above all else, a season of hope – a virtue that is all too rare in our world. To live as a person of hope is to behave in such a manner as to draw suspicion that we are behaving somewhat erratically as far as worldly norms go. This new type of behavior – what some may even call erratic behavior (the behavior that led people to conclude that the Apostles were “under […]

Using Current Events – Rescue in Chile

A very effective way to begin any religious education class is to focus on some current event and use it as an opportunity to segue into your lesson. The current story of the amazing rescue of trapped miners in Chile is a perfect example. I had no class this week because of Columbus Day however I have no doubt that I will find a way to use this story in my class for this upcoming […]

A Mighty Wind!

This past Monday evening, Chicago lived up to its name as the “windy city” (although that name originated not as a description of the climate in Chicago but of the politics!) with wind gusts reaching 40-50 mph. A good night to be teaching about the Holy Spirit! Sure enough, just as I told the young people that we would be learning about the Holy Spirit, a huge gust of wind blew through an open window, […]