An interesting piece of information you may wish to share with your students is Walt Disney's inclusion of Schubert's classic Ave Maria in the full-length animated motion picture Fantasia. The idea of a popular, secular film containing explicitly religious music may seem foreign to their sensibilities today. However, as this article explains, Disney's decision to use the Ave Maria was not without some controversy when it was released in 1940.
During Jesus’ ministry many would-be friends and enemies did not recognize him or his mission as the Son of God. But several people did. Give the following list to the students and ask them to name some of the people who met and recognized Jesus. Have them write their answers before looking up the Scripture reference to check if they were right This person said, “Come see a man who told me everything I have done. Could he possibly be the Messiah?” (Jn 4:29) This man said, “Who are you, sir?” After Jesus revealed himself to the man, he found out that he was blinded. (Acts 9:5–9) They traveled with Jesus for seven miles without knowing who he was, but came to realize who he was when they had dinner with him. (Lk 24:13–31) He said, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Mt 16:16) This man thought Jesus was the Son of God because Jesus told him, “I saw you under the fig tree.” (Jn 1:48–50) They recognized Jesus as a king when they gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. (Mt 2:1–11) Some thought this man was the Messiah but he said, “One mightier than I is coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.” (Lk 3:16) This person said, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus answered him, “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” (Jn 20:28–29) When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him; in a loud voice he shouted, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me!” (Lk 8:28–30) Jesus refused to perform miracles for this person. In talking with him, Jesus quoted some passages from the Old Testament including, “You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.” (Mt 4:1–11) Journal Assignment If you met Jesus face-to-face, what would you say to him?
Recently the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments published a Letter to Bishops on the bread and wine for Eucharist. The letter became the stir of the internet as it was promoted as "The Church Bans Glutton-Free Hosts." In fact, the letter was a reiteration of current Church teaching. In any case, this issue may have an impact on liturgies at your school. This is a good opportunity to review with your students the importance of the matter and form of the sacraments. The host, made of unleavened wheat bread, and the natural grape wine are the "matter" of the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. More, in the sacraments, the Church uses elements from creation (such as water, bread, and wine) and human culture (such as washing or anointing) to make God’s grace available to us. The traditional physical element(s) and/or gesture(s) used in each sacrament are called the matter of the sacrament. The celebration of each sacrament also involves solemnity. The traditional words said for each sacrament are called the form of the sacrament. When you hear these words, you know that the sacrament is taking place. God is truly present, filling you and others with his love and grace. As far as the current announcement from the Vatican, this article "The Matter Matters: Unpacking the Vatican Guidelines on Bread and Wine for the Eucharist" is an excellent resource.
St. Kateri Tekakwitha, the daughter of a Mohawk warrior, was born in 1656 in what is now upstate New York. “Tekakwitha” was her Native American name. It means “she who bumps into things”! Her feast day in the United States is on July 14. Check the events being celebrated at her national shrine in Fonda, New York. When European settlers arrived in North America in the sixteenth century, they inadvertently brought with them deadly diseases, including small pox. These diseases often spread among Native American populations, killing countless people. Tekakwitha’s parents were among those killed by small pox, when she was just four years old. Tekakwitha also contracted the disease. Although she survived small pox, she was left badly disfigured and with impaired eyesight. Orphaned and sickly, she was taken in by relatives who tended to her care. In 1667, when Tekakwitha was around eleven years old, Jesuit missionaries arrived in her village. Tekakwitha’s uncle forbade her to have any contact with them. He did not want her to convert to Christianity. Over time, however, as she learned more about Jesus and his message of compassion and love, she was drawn to the Catholic faith. On Easter Sunday, in 1676, when she was twenty years old, Tekakwitha was baptized and received into the Church. It was then that she took the name Kateri, Mohawk for Catherine. More members of Kateri’s tribe opposed her conversion and treated her with cruelty. Kateri faced this treatment with patience and courage. Eventually, Kateri left her village and went to live among other Christians, where she could freely practice her faith. She lived a life dedicated to prayer and to the care of the sick and aged, and had an intense devotion to the Eucharist. When Kateri was twenty-four years old, she became ill and soon died. Moments after her death, her body was transformed. The scarred complexion was replaced by beautiful radiance. There were many witnesses to this occurrence. After her death, Kateri became known as the “Lily of the Mohawks.” Because of her example, many Native Americans were baptized. Kateri was beatified in 1980 and canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012. Activities Share this video reflection on her life. Research and name five hardships faced by St. Kateri and how she handled them. Read and report on the events of St. Kateri's canonization.
Named “the man of the eight Beatitudes” by Pope John Paul II at his beatification ceremony in Rome in 1990, Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati was a joy-filled man who lived only to age twenty-four, but who remains a model for bountiful love and service today. Bl. Pier Giorgio’s feast day is on July 4. St. John Paul II noted that Bl. Pier Giorgio “bears in himself the grace of the Gospel, the Good News, the joy of Salvation offered to us Christians.” His sister said of him: “He represented the finest in Christian youth: pure, happy, enthusiastic about everything that is good and beautiful.” Pier Giorgio was born on April 6, 1901, to a wealthy and politically connected family in Turin, Italy. He was an average student but a great athlete and mountain climber. His peers adored him and called him “Terror” because of the practical jokes he played. After high school, he studied mineralogy in an engineering program. He participated in Catholic groups like the Apostleship of Prayer and the Company of the Most Blessed Sacrament. Both of these groups were known for helping poor people and for promoting Eucharistic adoration, Marian devotion, and personal chastity. Pier Giorgio also became active in political groups—like the Young Catholic Workers, Catholic Action, and Milites Mariae—that ministered to poor people, fought fascism, and put into practice the Church’s social teachings. He gave his money to needy people and visited the sick. It was while ministering to the sick that he contracted an acute case of polio that took his life. He died at age twenty-four on July 4, 1925. Bl. Pier Giorgio offers these words of advice on how to grow in holiness: With all the strength of my soul I urge you young people to approach the Communion table as often as you can. Feed on this bread of angels whence you will draw all the energy you need to fight inner battles. Because true happiness, dear friends, does not consist in the pleasures of the world or in earthly things, but in peace of conscience, which you have only if you are pure in heart and mind. Assignment: Summarize Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati’s advice for how to grow in holiness. Conclude with a sentence that begins, “My personal plan for growing in holiness involves . . .” Read “10 Reasons to Love Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati.” Choose five of the reasons listed and tell how you model them in your own life.
This is an activity that is appropriate for a group of teenagers originating at a parish in a youth ministry setting. Description This is a progressive meal in which the teens travel by bikes (or in-line skates) to several different restaurants in your area. Divide the meal into at least four courses. Start out with something healthy like a green salad or fruit salad at a health store or coffee shop. Next, move to bakery for a slice of fresh bread. (Send one person into the bakery to buy the bread and bring it outside. Have the group sit on a curb or nearby bench to eat the bread.) Then, move to a popular pizza place for the main course: pizza! Finally, have dessert at a local frozen yogurt or ice cream shop. Prayer Begin each part of the meal with a blessing over the food. Choose different teens to lead the blessing at each stop. Grace Before Meals Bless us, O Lord, and these your gifts which we are about to receive from your bounty, through Christ our Lord. Amen. Grace After Meals We give you thanks, Almighty God, for these and all your blessings; you live and reign for ever and ever. Amen.
Ave Maria Press is a ministry of the United States Province of Holy Cross and carries on the tradition of the order’s founder, Bl. Basil Moreau, as “educators in the faith.” Our textbooks seek to form the “heart, minds, and hands” of students to know, love, and serve Christ in his Church. Inspired by the National Directory for Catechesis, Ave Maria Press uses “God’s own methodology as the paradigm, and with that divine pedagogy as the reference point, chooses diverse methods that are in accord with the Gospel” (NDC 29). Following the pattern of Divine Revelation, our textbooks seek to communicate the Word of God and the beliefs of the Church, leading students “on the journey toward the Father in the footsteps of Christ under the guidance of the Holy Spirit” (NDC 28). As they progress through their high school years, we seek to both evangelize and catechize them, to strengthen their faith and encourage an ongoing change of heart to follow Christ more closely. This process of formation involves four key dimensions: knowledge of their Faith, participation in the Church community, especially through her liturgy and the sacraments; the Christian moral life of service to others and the promotion of justice; and growth in prayer and reflection (NDC 28). Our textbooks employ two complementary methods: the experiential or inductive method and the kerygmatic or deductive method. Because “human experience is a constitutive element in catechesis” (NDC 28), our method regularly asks students to consider concrete personal experiences: their own and those of people they know, people of faith, saints, and other heroes. Our texts build on this foundation by helping students understand how the principles and truths of the faith give meaning and purpose to their lives. Through the study of Scripture, the Creed, the Church, the liturgy, the sacraments, and Christian morality, they are led progressively to a deeper understanding and practice of their faith. Our goal is not only to prepare students for further study of theology in college, should that opportunity be possible for them, but more importantly to form them in the faith that will guide and strengthen them in the next stage of their lives, whatever that may be. For more information on Ave Maria Press Catholic High School Textbooks visit: https://www.avemariapress.com/category/HS10/Catholic-Textbooks/
Pentecost Sunday is approaching. Create a worksheet with the following Scripture passages. Pass out one worksheet and one Bible to each student. For each passage, have them write a sentence telling what it says about the Holy Spirit. When completed, discuss and check their answers. Passages Genesis 1:1—2 Genesis 2:7 Exodus 19:16-19 Exodus 37:1-14 Luke 1:26-35 John 14:14-17 John 20:21-23 Answers Genesis 1:1–2: The Hebrew word for “wind” is ruah. From the time of creation, the Spirit’s creative powers were active and present in the world. Genesis 2:7: The Spirit also gives life to humans. Exodus 19:16–19: The Spirit—and God’s power—is revealed in thunder, lightning, and fire. Ezekiel 37:1–14: In the well-known story of “dry bones,” it is the Spirit who brings life from death. Luke 1:26–35: Jesus’ conception is brought about by the Holy Spirit who overshadows his mother, Mary. John 14:16–17: At the Last Supper, Jesus tells his Apostles not to be afraid for he is sending them the Holy Spirit. John 20:21–23: Just as the Spirit brought life to the first humans in Genesis, Jesus brings new spiritual life on the Apostles by breathing on them.
