Damien High School (Pomona, CA) theology teacher Gary Sullivan has compiled a valuable and sizable collection of resources including worksheets, videos, , slide presentations, vocabulary lists and much more around core courses and topics in a high school theology curriculum. These catechetical resources can be found at Apex Catechetics (searh: http://apexcatechetics.com/) .
Gary also has written many thought-provoking religiously-themed articles at Catholic365. Check out this months article, “The Biblical Meaning of Blood.”
Also, Gary’s collection of videos have been paired with Ave Maria Press’s high school textbooks and can be viewed by registered Catholic high school theology teachers* by clicking on any book on our Classroom Resource page.
*To register for full catalog of Classroom Resources, please email your name and school information to Heather Glenn at hglenn@nd.edu.
Use this famous short story by Hans Christian Andersen to recount the victimization of children that existed in Europe at the end of the nineteenth century. The victimization of defenseless children continues to this day.
The Little Match Girl
It was very, very cold; it snowed and it grew dark; it was the last evening of the year, New Year’s Eve. In the cold and dark a poor little girl, with bare head and bare feet, was walking through the streets. When she left her own house she certainly had had slippers on; but what could they do? They were very big slippers, and her mother had used them till then, so big were they. The little maid lost them as she slipped across the road, where two carriages were rattling by terribly fast. One slipper was not to be found again, and a boy ran away with the other. He said he could use it for a cradle when he had children of his own.
So now the little girl went with her little naked feet, which were quite red and blue with the cold. In an old apron she carried a number of matches, and a bundle of them in her hand. No one had bought anything of her all day; no one had given her a copper. Hungry and cold she went, and drew herself together, poor little thing! The snowflakes fell on her long yellow hair, which curled prettily over her neck; but she did not think of that now. In all the windows lights were shining, and there was a glorious smell of roast goose out there in the street; it was no doubt New Year’s Eve. Yes, she thought of that!
In a corner formed by two houses, one of which was a little farther from the street than the other, she sat down and crept close. She had drawn up her little feet, but she was still colder, and she did not dare to go home, for she had sold no matches, and she had not a single cent; her father would beat her; and besides, it was cold at home, for they had nothing over the them but a roof through which the wind whistled, though straw and rags stopped the largest holes.
Her small hands were quite numb with the cold. Ah! a little match might do her good if she only dared draw one from the bundle, and strike it against the wall, and warm her fingers at it. She drew one out. R-r-atch! how it spluttered and burned! It was a warm bright flame, like a little candle, when she held her hands over it; it was a wonderful little light! It really seemed to the little girl as if she sat before a great polished stove, with bright brass feet and a brass cover. The fire burned so nicely; it warmed her so well,—the little girl was just putting out her feet to warm these, too, when out went the flame; the stove was gone; she sat with only the end of the burned match in her hand.
She struck another; it burned; it gave a light; and where it shone on the wall, the wall became thin like a veil, and she could see through it into the room where a table stood, spread with a white cloth, and with china on it; and the roast goose smoked gloriously, stuffed with apples and dried plums. And what was still more splendid to behold, the goose hopped down from the dish, and waddled along the floor, with a knife and fork in its breast; straight to the little girl he came. Then the match went out, and only the thick, damp, cold wall was before her.
She lighted another. Then she was sitting under a beautiful Christmas tree; it was greater and finer than the one she had seen through the glass door at the rich merchant’s. Thousands of candles burned upon the green branches, and colored pictures like those in the shop windows looked down upon them. The little girl stretched forth both hands toward them; then the match went out. The Christmas lights went higher and higher. She saw that now they were stars in the sky: one of them fell and made a long line of fire.
“Now someone is dying,” said the little girl, for her old grandmother, the only person who had been good to her, but who was now dead, had said: “When a star falls a soul mounts up to God.”
She rubbed another match against the wall; it became bright again, and in the light there stood the old grandmother clear and shining, mild and lovely.
“Grandmother!” cried the child. “Oh, take me with you! I know you will go when the match is burned out. You will go away like the warm stove, the nice roast goose, and the great glorious Christmas tree!”
And she hastily rubbed the whole bundle of matches, for she wished to hold her grandmother fast. And the matches burned with such a glow that it became brighter than in the middle of the day; grandmother had never been so large or so beautiful. She took the little girl up in her arms, and both flew in the light and the joy so high, so high! and up there was no cold, nor hunger, nor care—they were with God.
But in the corner by the house sat the little girl, with red cheeks and smiling mouth, frozen to death on the last evening of the Old Year. The New Year’s sun rose upon the little body, that sat there with the matches, of which one bundle was burned. She wanted to warm herself, the people said. No one knew what fine things she had seen, and in what glory she had gone in with her grandmother to the New Year’s Day.
Comprehension Questions
1. What happened to the little girl’s slippers?
2. How many matchsticks had the little girl sold that day?
3. Why was the little girl afraid to go home?
4. What did the little girl’s grandmother say about the meaning of a falling star?
5. What happens to the little girl at the conclusion of the story?
Discussion or Journal Questions
1. What was the last thing that the Little Match Girl saw? Was this vision a reality or fantasy?
2. Who are children today who live like the Little Match Girl in misery?
Activity
“The Little Match Girl” has been adapted several times, including onto video and film. Look up the adaptations of the story. Choose and view one of the videos or films that illustrate the story. Summarize: How was the version different than how you imagined the story? How was it similar to your imagination?
Catholic adolescents are no different than Catholic adults: Both groups of Catholics often find it difficult to tell their own personal stories of faiths. Leonard DeLorenzo has taught thousands of teens and young adults to think about and share their moments of grace from their personal lives in a way that is compelling, convincing, and free of clichés and vague generalizations. In Witness: Learning to Tell the Stories of Grace That Illumine Our Lives, DeLorenzo shares seven guiding principles for doing so. They are:
Tell it as a story
Begin with what happened
Express it in style
Modify it for your audience
Ensure there is sufficient closure
Embrace natural emotions and
Pray and practice
How might the approach offered in Witness be applied first-hand to a Catholic high school theology course? Eric Buell, religious studies chairperson at Presentation High School in San Jose, California, has attempted the process within coverage of a typical course curriculum. He offers some reflections here:
Imagine seeing your life full of grace. What is needed however is the correct lens to parse through the triumphs, the challenges, and the mundane to discover this light. The first introduction I had to the concept of “stories of grace” was my junior year at the University of Notre Dame as a part of the Notre Dame Vision program. If you have had the opportunity to spend some time at this program or have spent some time with Dr. DeLorenzo’s book, the concept is at once familiar yet unique. Personal narratives have taken center stage in online news and entertainment media. This text provides a practical guideline of how to tap into this type of personal narrative, not as a therapeutic catharsis, but as a way to understand the movement of God’s grace in a person’s life and, the ultimate goal, to come to see ourselves in the light of and through the eyes of God. This text provides practical steps and serves as a good supplemental resource for teachers wishing to bring their students into a more personal, narrative driven reflection that digs past the clichés that a secondary theology teacher can often encounter.
Over the past decade teaching high school, I have sought for ways to bring my students into a deeper engagement with the course material (most of which is now outlined by the USCCB Doctrinal Elements for Curriculum). In the context of my course on prayer and spirituality we have developed what I call “Chapel Fridays.” No matter where we are in the course curriculum, the class moves to the chapel whenever we happen to have class that day (this is normally between 7-9 times a semester). Using chapter 2 (“Bending Light”) as a guide, students use a variety of the seven principles laid out by DeLorenzo to open up the course material (primarily focused on sacrifice, grace, redemption, and sin) to bridge the gap between the academic and the formative. Allowing students the freedom to choose which of her their stories to engage with is a tremendous opportunity to discover what is important to them, what has formed them into the person they are today, and how they grapple with understanding the presence of God in their lives.
The most challenging academic concept I have had to teach throughout my high school’s curriculum is grace. It is easy to memorize the definition, fill in the blanks, or apply it to the seven sacraments; but how can students be given the opportunity to hang on to a more concrete notion of grace? The stories that my students have been able to produce in a variety of media (poetry, film, essay) have been inspiring. Allowing students to share their stories (after a semester’s worth of editing, adapting, and discussing) is the most meaningful experience of the semester. Instead of hearing about “grace” from the teacher, students encounter the variety of ways God has been present to their peers; this type of witness is what is needed to evangelize students in the classroom.
This text is most useful for the upper division classroom that has room in the curriculum to carve out space for storytelling. If schools are providing a sacraments course in the Junior year, there is a prime opportunity to develop a secondary track of looking at the stages of a student’s life in terms of where they have been initiated, healed, or in the context of service, and have them develop a way of looking at these various experiences in the context of God’s grace. In this respect, teachers can focus on the primary stages of sacramental theology while also developing student narratives that correspond to the respective stage. This type of essay could serve as a capstone assessment for the course in conjunction with a semester review; students could share their personal stories of grace alongside the review of material. There is opportunity to make a more formal essay alongside this story by having the students use sacramental imagery or a thoughtful understanding of symbol within their personal narrative.
This text might also serve as a great resource for teachers engaged in Catholic Morality, Social Justice, or Vocations courses. Having the students use DeLorenzo’s seven steps while developing thoughtful reflections in these previous areas provides a more robust experience with the curriculum. If schools require service hours with these courses, there is an opportunity to engage students in more thoughtful theological and Christological reflection by allowing class time to consider the people they were serving and how God not only provided an experience for them to reflect on the dignity of the human person in the context of direct service, but how they see grace emanating and illuminating the organization or person they served. If your school is requiring service hours, carve out some space for students to think seriously about the presence of God in their local community. This text will provide a concrete and practical overview of how to structure a meaningful theological reflection for your students.
Eric Buell
MA Theology, University of Notre Dame
MA Educational Leadership, Santa Clara University
If you are interested in a copy of Witness: Learning to Tell the Stories of Grace That Illumine Our Lives, ordering information is available here. If you would like more information or to dialogue on how to use this book in a high school theology course you may contact Eric Buell at ebuell@presentationhs.org
Here are two activities you can do with your students to help them to critique their own faith history and better answer the question “Why do I believe in Jesus”?
In Class
Help students reflect on their most strongly held beliefs about Jesus. Begin by inviting students to make a quick list of every person or source from which they have learned something about Jesus. Then, setting this first list aside, challenge them to list the twenty most important things they believe about Jesus. At this point, you might even offer them time to compare lists with a classmate and revise as they feel necessary, based on new ideas from their discussions. Once they feel confident about their lists of twenty, have them evaluate which ten of the twenty are the most important. Finally, have them evaluate which three of those ten are the very most important. Direct them to look back at their lists of sources of information that they first brainstormed, and pose the question: Which of these teachers or sources have contributed to your top three beliefs? Students may find that their most closely held beliefs were those influenced by the largest number of teachers, or conversely, by those teachers whose relationship or example they value most. Discuss student reactions to the exercise as a class.
At Home
Have students interview a faith mentor. Invite students to spend time talking with someone who has helped shape their faith—perhaps a parent or other relative, a friend, a teacher, or a Church leader. Students should ask their mentors who they believe Jesus is and for what reasons they believe in his divine nature. They should report back about their interviews, using a format of their choosing. If time allows, students might, for instance, create a poster, a video, a written reflection, a prayer service, or any other creative “product” that shares the wisdom of their faith mentor with others.
Ask students to say aloud words or phrases that come immediately to them when you say the word “patriotism.” List the words on the board.
Distribute a handout with the following quotations and questions. Read the first quotation and have the students write their reflections on the questions that follow. Repeat the format for sections 2 and 3.
Finally, ask the students to answer in writing the two “Final Items.” To conclude, ask the students to share their reflections either in small groups or with the whole class.
1.
Quotation:
“The virtue of patriotism means that as citizens we respect and honor our country, but our very love and loyalty make us examine carefully and regularly its role in world affairs asking that it live up to is full potential as an agent of peace with justice for all people” (U.S. Catholic Bishops, The Challenge of Peace, 1983, #327).
What does it mean to “respect and honor our country”? to show “love and loyalty”?
How do you do these things concretely?
What specifically do you think we should be asking our country to do in order to “live up to its full potential as an agent of peace with justice for all people”?
Is this constructive criticism a patriotic or unpatriotic act and why?
2.
Quotation:
“To teach the ways of peace is not to weaken the nation’s will but to be concerned
for the nation’s soul” (U.S. Catholic Bishops, The Challenge of Peace, 1983, #304).
What do you think the bishops mean? Why are they concerned for our nation’s soul?
Is it unpatriotic to have such concerns? Why or why not?
3.
Quotation:
Martin Luther King, Jr., was concerned about our nation’s soul at a similar time in our nation’s history (1956-1968). He helped to create the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, whose motto was “We have come to redeem the soul of America.” In 1967, he broke his silence about the Vietnam war and boldly proclaimed: “Never again will I be silent on an issue that is destroying the soul of our nation and destroying thousands and thousands of little children in Vietnam. . . . The time has come for a real prophecy, and I’m willing to go that road”(quoted in Road to Redemption).
Do you think the soul of our nation is in jeopardy today? Why or why not?
Final Items
What do you think you are being called to by these statements and questions?
After thinking about all of this, briefly define your own understanding of Christian patriotism:
The annual Catholic Schools Week, sponsored by the National Catholic Educational Association, begins on Monday January 29 and runs until Saturday, Feburary 4. This year's theme is “Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service.”
Listed below are some resources that can help facilitate your planning:
Explanatoin of the Theme
Daily Themes
1000 Ideas for Catholic Schools Week from Pinterest
Catholic Schools Week Logos
Here’s a short discussion activity you can lead prior to a fuller lesson on the Sacrament of Penance and, perhaps, participation by your students in the sacrament itself.
Directions
Hang four wall posters with the following words at equal intervals along the wall (or place in equal intervals in an open space on the floor): 1) strongly agree; 2) agree; 3) disagree; 4) strongly disagree.
Say:
I am going to read several statements. For each one, register your opinion by standing near the sign that corresponds with how you feel. For example, if you strongly agree with the statement, “I have to go to Confession before receiving Communion” you should stand as close as possible to the “I Strongly Agree” sign. If you are not sure about your opinion, you might stand somewhere in between “I Agree” and “I Disagree.” No matter where you choose to stand, however, be prepared to explain your position. We will spend time discussing each of the statements before moving on.
Read the following statements one at a time. After the students have positioned themselves according to their response, randomly call on one person and question his or her response. You may pick more than one person to discuss each statement. Repeat the process for the other statements.
Statements
Confession is scary.
I never know what to say when I go to Confession.
It’s just as good to confess my sins to God without going through a priest.
I prefer to confess “face to face.”
I can recite an Act of Contrition from memory.
Catholics are required to confess serious sins at least once a year.
I’m worried that the priest will think less of me if I tell my worst sins.
I believe that Jesus acts through the priest in the Sacrament of Penance.
Add your own statements if you wish.
Continue with a fuller presentation on the Sacrament of Penance, including addressing explanations and answers to the open-ended questions from the discussion. If possible, invite a priest to participate in all or part of this lesson.
Here’s a refresher on the role of saints in the Church, in lieu of the coming of All Saints’ Day on November 1.
Saints are those who cooperate with Christ and allow him to work through him. Saints are not themselves mediators, but they share in the mediation of Jesus. Without Jesus they can do nothing, but because of their relationship with Jesus, they are able to help make God’s presence visible to others. Because death no longer has the power to completely remove someone from the Christian community, saints are able to continue sharing in the mediating work of Jesus after they died. Through the power of prayer they continue to touch other members of the church and thus encourage the work of God.
The Church is the eschatological community—the community of the end times. Even now it has a share in the divine glory. This divine glory is most clearly seen in the actions of the saints while they were on earth and continues through their intercession in heaven. We ask the saints to intercede for us just as we ask for the prayers of those we live with today. We believe that the prayers of the faithful do make a difference and that the faithful are most frequently used by God as channels of divine grace. It is through the saints that God “manifests his holiness and the work of salvation” (CCC, 688).
Our relationship with the saints in heaven is a testimony to our belief in the power of the resurrection and in the powerlessness of death. It is also a testimony to our belief that the Church is the Body of Christ. All of the members of the Church together make up the Body of Christ; therefore, when we are in communion with the other members of the Church, we are in communion with Christ. Our communion with Christ would be incomplete if our communion with the Church did not include both the Church on earth and the Church in heaven. We need both to experience the fullness of Christ’s love.
Assignment
Think about someone you know who has died. Spend some time praying for this person. Consider one or more of the following ways:
Lighting a votive candle for the person.
Wiring a journal entry with memories about the person.
Remembering the person while at Mass.
Doing something the person enjoyed while on earth.
Thinking about the person while sitting before the Blessed Sacrament.
While praying for this person, ask him or her to pray for you and your intentions as well.
