Invite students to participate in an imaginary Church Council to discuss what they consider the needs and challenges facing the Church today. Depending on the size of your class, divide the students into small groups (at least three total groups).Make a handout of the following material and distribute a copy to each person. Ask a volunteer to read th opening paragraph aloud. Then go through the directions for completing the inventory, pointing out how the students can add concerns of their own.Once the inventories are complete, the students should share results, then decide as a group on major concerns they would like to see addressed by the Church and for which they are willing to add a personal effort. Then the small group members should work together to draft a joint statement (see the bottom of the handout below) that addresses their commitment toward addressing their concerns.Afterward, invite small groups to share their statements. If time allows, you may wish to have the class work to consensus on one class statement that can be posted in the classroom or wherever they meet.“We exhort you to open your hearts to the dimensions of the world, to heed the appeal of your brothers, to place your youthful energies at their service . . . . Fight against all egoism. Refuse to give free course to the instincts of violence and hatred which beget wars and all their train of miseries. Be generous, pure, respectful, and sincere; build in enthusiasm a better world than your elders had.” Closing words of the Fathers of Vatican—addressed to young people—as the Council closed in 1965The inventory below is designed to help you gather thoughts and make decisions about what you believe to be the pressing concerns the Church needs to consider. Fill out the inventory on your own by rating each of the following statements: N for No Concern; G for Great Concern, or U for Urgent.
The Church must work harder on accepting non-Christian religions. The Church needs to do more to accept and learn from the traditions and rituals of Third-World cultures. The Church should stay out of governmental affairs. The Church should work harder at converting non-Christians. Since Scripture tells us that the poor will always be with us, the Church should help the poor be content with their lot in life. The Church should allow more room (opportunities) for young people to work and have a say in the life of the Church. We have too few priests. The Church should stop changing the liturgy once and for all. Bishops need to do a better job of listening to the concerns and needs of the people. The pope needs to have a tighter control over what goes on in the Church throughout the world. Other: ________ Other: ________
Now join with others in your group to share opinions and to draft a joint (collegial) statement that shows your resolve to work toward addressing (changing, easing, etc.) your concerns. Use the following format to get started.We, the youth members of the Church, concur that some of greatest needs and challenges facing us are_______. To meet those needs and confront those challenges, we propose that the Church undertake the following _________. Toward these goals we join hands in the name of Christ Jesus, the Lord.
How have you integrated technology into religious education this year? In a Webinar presented in May 2010, Ave Maria Press’s Adolescent Catechetical Specialist, Jared Dees, offered numerous examples of ways theology teachers can implement technology into their religious instruction. His hypothesis is that even though the tools have changed, the way people learn has not changed. Technology offers some great opportunities to engage students using teaching strategies that teachers have been using for years before the Internet was available. Presentation Outline: Examination of tools and technology for:1. Direct Instruction (Lecture) 2. Individual Assignments (Handouts) 3. Graphic Organizers 4. Videos 5. Student Research Projects 6. Collaborative Learning Projects
Teaching theology with technology
Prior to the presentation, participants were asked to share their most effective activity using technology. Those activities are listed here: 1. Interactive discussions using Edmodo, a Facebook-like classroom tool.2. teaching Plato's Allegory of the Cave to an IB Theory of Knowledge class using an animated version on smartboard3. assigning projects to my students using Microsoft Publisher; the students must integrate content and creativity into a brochure, newsletter, etc depending on the topic4. Same as above... PowerPoint (through the SmartBoard) is a powerful tool and becomes more potent when engaged with other weblinks.5. Classroom discussion and lesson are the most effective way that I use technology. Notes can be turned into a lesson review. Hyperlinks in powerpoints can take advantage of video clips. Teaching a lesson on Baptismal symbols for example, can link to the uses of water in the world and the social justice issue of clean water today. It can also make the lesson more global by showing students the way people from other countries in other parts of the world see water as sacred and use it their religious ceremonies.6. Getting students involved in creating presentations using technology has some benefits for our students, but perhaps not as many benefits as schools that have smartboards in every room or laptops for every student. It's not that our students don't have home access to computers and other things like ipods, or kindle, it's that availability at school is limited.7. Webquests8. Using the internet to access online videos of shows or movies or topical Youtube. ALso being able to put PPT presentations or assignments on line for student use and review.9. When teaching about heresy - I often find popular songs and some older songs where when you listen to the song, it sounds completely different than what is actually said - making a connection to heretical and Church teaching, and why the heresy's popped up in the first place.10. Powerpoints11. My favorite activity of the past year was a feature on Edline called "discussion." I use it to pose thought-provoking questions for my students to which they post replies. I find the students are much more inclined to participate in these on-line discussions than to respond in class. Although I took many of the questions from my text, I also had the freedom to have them respond to articles from our Catholic newspaper (We receive copies for each senior.), to give feedback on speakers, and to address various topics in the general secular news that related to the topics of our synthesis course. I posted a new discussion question each week.12. Power Point Review Jeopardy Game13. Power point presentations14. One recent activity that seemed to work well. During a viewing of Dead Man Walking students were on the website TodaysMeet, which is basically just chat intended for backchanneling. As they watched the movie, they were able to type questions about things they did not understand and get them cleared up right away. Often I did not have to respond because classmates would answer the questions. Students also commented on what they were watching, and raised their own issues regarding capital punishment based on what they were seeing. 15. Each of the first two evenings, I posted questions for discussion on Moodle related to what they had seen during the day. These two procedures allowed us to get into conversation about the video without waiting until after the three class periods it took to show the whole movie.16. reflective notes on qualities of human nature I designed17. When introducing students to Christology, I created a blog for the class. They interviewed three people, asking them questions about the theme, "Who do you say that I am?" The students blogged about their findings and then commented on their peers' posts. It was an easy, effective, and manageable way for students to see and reflect on the work other students had completed. 18. I have the students go to a Darfur website and play an online game about life there.19. I also have students create 5 slide powerpoint presentations on Poverty which must include audio-visuals20. Frontline PBS The Undertaking21. Teaching values by the use of Youtube.22. Students write journals on laptops and submit them via e-amil. Journal question is on smartboard.23. Powerpoint meditation on images of Jesus, accompanied by music24. I think this would be using games such as Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Jeopardy and Are You Smarter than Your Parish Priest?25. NONE. Everytime I attempt to use technology I literally loose 10-15 minutes of my 39 minutes of class time. 26. I had my students redo Psalm 139 into modern day message and many of them chose the smart board & powerpoint to display thier psalms. They were beautiful.27. Also, I had my students do a values activity where they could choose teen ads, commercials, or music and they made use of commercials and music from youtube.28. Catholic videos form YouTube and other sites with discussion and interpretation of the message afterwards, tying it back to the lesson of the day.29. Watching some videos from God Tube or You Tube (The Last Lecture, Inspirational Videos as prayers,) Kids love the visuals instead of just talking!!30. I sometimes throw a film clip into a lesson, otherwise I am not terribly techno-savvy31. Communication and evangelization through Facebook, emails, webpages, etc. Texting is also used in some areas. Without being able to reach them to communicate, all of the technology in the world couldn't work. 32. With my senior Grief and Loss class I use our Moodle to create a series of forums around the bioethics of end of life decisions. Along with the forum, I also use the wiki aspect of Moodle - which invovles the students working in groups to create a wiki page on a specific aspect of euthanasia. Both the forums and the wiki lead into classroom discussions on the topic. In the past I have used Blogger for this project, but my school currently created our Moodle and I found this to be easier to use with 100+ students.33. student prepared projects—especially a 'perfect world" video assignment.
The following excerpt is from the recently published The Catholic Spirit: An Anthology for Discovering Faith Through Literature, Art, Film, and Music. This selection quotes author John Fante's "stream of consciousness" writing in praise and prayer of the Blessed Mother. John Fante (1909-1983) was an Italian-American who produced a large variety of work that included short stories, novels, and screenplays. Share this reading with your students. Use the questions that follow to facilitate understanding and discussion.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O Holy Mother Mary, I am now in Hollywood, California, on the corner of Franklin and Argyle, in a house where I rent a room at six a week. Remember, O Blessed Virgin, remember the night twenty years ago in Colorado when my father went to the hospital for his operation, and I got all my brothers and sisters down on the floor in our bedroom, and I said: “Now by gosh—pray! Papa’s sick, so you kids pray.” Ah, boy, we prayed, you Virgin Mary, you Honey, we prayed and my blood sang, and I felt big feelings in my chest, the ripple of electricity, the power of cold faith, and we all got up and walked to different parts of the house. I sat in the kitchen and smirked. They had said at the hospital that Papa was going to die, and nobody knew it but me and Mamma and you, you Honey, but we had prayed and I sat smirking, pooh-poohing at death because we had prayed and I knew we had done our share for Papa, and that he would live.
The rest of them wouldn’t go to bed that night, they were afraid Papa would die, and they all waited, and already Grandma planned the funeral, but I smirked and went to bed and slept very happy, with your beads in my fingers, kissing the cross a few times and then dozing off because Papa could not die after my prayers, because you were my girl, my queen, and there was no doubt in my heart.
And in the morning there was wild joy to wake me, because Papa had lived and would live some more, a lot of years to come, and there was Mamma back from the hospital, beaming and sticky when she kissed us for joy, and I heard her say to Grandma: “He lived because he has an iron constitution. He is a strong man. You can’t kill that man.” And when I heard that, I snickered. They didn’t know, these people, they didn’t know about you and me, you Honey, and I thought of your pale face, your dark hair, your feet on the serpent at the side-altar, and I said, she’s wonderful, she’s sure wonderful.
Oh, those were the days! Oh, I loved you then! You were the celestial blue, and I looked up at you when I walked to school with books under my arms, and my ecstasy was simple and smashing, crushing and mad and whirling, all these things across my chest, sensations, and you in the blue sky, in my blue shirt, in the covers of my blue-covered book. You were the color blue and I saw you everywhere and then I saw the statue in the church, at the side-altar, with your feet on the serpent, and I said and said a thousand times, I said, oh, you Honey, and I wasn’t afraid of anything. . . .
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O Holy Mother Mary, I want to ask a favor of you, but first I want to remind you of something I once did for you.
You will say that I am bragging again, and that you have heard this story before, but I am proud of it, and my heart is beating wildly and there is the rustle of a bird in my throat, and I could cry, and I am crying because I loved you, oh, I loved you so. That hot flash on my cheek is the course of my tears, and I flick it off with the point of my finger, and the finger comes away warm and wet, and I sit here and I am of the living, I am saying this is a dream.
His name was Willie Cox, and he went to Grover Cleveland. He was always razzing me because I was a Catholic. O you Mary! I have told you this before, I admit the braggadocio, but tonight, one day removed from Christmas Eve, I am in Hollywood, California, on the corner of Franklin and Argyle, and the rent is six a week, and I want to ask you a favor, and I cannot ask until I tell you once more about this Willie Cox.
He chewed tobacco, this Willie Cox. He went to Grover Cleveland, and he chewed tobacco, and I went to St. Catherine’s and we used to pass one another on the corner, and he used to squirt tobacco juice on my shoes and legs and say: “That for the Catholics. They stink.”
Willie Cox, where are you tonight? I am on the corner of Franklin and Argyle, and this is Hollywood, so it is quite possible that you are two blocks away, but wherever you are, Mr. Willie Cox, I call upon you to bear witness to the truth of my narrative. Willie Cox, I took a hell of a lot of your guff that spring. When you said the priests ate the nuns’ babies, and then spat on my shoes, I took it. When you said we had human sacrifices at Mass, and the priest drank the blood of young girls, and you spat across my knees, I took that. The truth is, Willie, and tonight I admit, you scared me. You were very tough, and I decided to do as the martyrs did—to do nothing. To take it.
Hail Mary, full of grace! I was a boy then, and there was no love like my love. And there was no tougher boy than Willie Cox, and I feared him. Ah, but my days were celestial blues and my eyes had only to lift and there was my love, and I was not afraid. And yet, in spite of it all, I was afraid of Willie Cox.
How is your nose today, Willie Cox? Did your front teeth grow out again? He was on his way to Grover Cleveland and I was on my way to St. Catherine’s and it was eight o’clock in the morning. He shifted the wad in his jaw, and I held my breath.
“Hi, Red Neck.”
“Hello, Willie.”
“What’s your hurry, Catholic?”
“Gotta, Willie. I’m late.”
“What’sa matter? Scared of the nunnies?”
“Don’t, Willie. You’re choking me.”
“Scared of the nunnies?”
“Don’t, Willie! I can’t hardly breathe!”
“I heard somethin’, Red Neck. My old man, he tells me you Catlickers think Jesus was borned without his mother having kids like other people have kids. Is that right?”
“It’s the Immaculate Conception. Ouch!”
“Immaculate, crap! I bet she was a whore like all Catlickers.”
“Willie Cox, you dirty dog!”
Mr. Thomas Holyoke, you are dead now, you died two years later, but even in death you may speak out tonight and tell what you saw from your window, there on the lawn, fourteen years ago one morning in the spring. You may say what you said to the policeman who ran from the courthouse steps, you may say again:
“I saw the dark lad here struggling to get free. The Cox boy was choking him. I thought he’d hurt the boy, and I was about to intervene. All at once the dark lad here swung his fist, and the Cox boy went sprawling across my new spring lawn. I thought they were playing, until I saw the Cox boy didn’t move. When I ran out his nose was bleeding and his front teeth were missing.”
Hail Mary, full of grace! Here in Hollywood, on the corner of Franklin and Argyle, I look through my window and gaze and gaze at an unending pattern of celestial blue. I wait and I remember. O you Honey, where are you now? Oh, endless blue, you have not changed!
In her room next to mine, my landlady sits before the radio. Willie Cox, I know now that you are in Hollywood. Willie Cox, you are the woman in the next room playing the radio. You have given up the vulgar habit of chewing tobacco, but, oh, Willie, you had charm in those days, and you were not nearly so monstrous as you are now, slipping little pieces of paper under my door, telling me over and over that I owe you eighteen dollars.
Hail Mary, full of grace! Today when I talked to my agent he said there was a slump in Hollywood, that the condition was serious. I went down the stairs of his office and into the big, late afternoon. Such a blue sky! Such riotous blue in the Santa Monica mountains! I looked everywhere above, and I sighed, and I said, well, it won’t rain tonight, anyway. That was this afternoon. Willie Cox, you are my landlady and you are a Slump in Hollywood.
Mary in the Sky, what has happened to me? O tall queen standing on the serpent at the side-altar, O sweet girl with waxen fingers, there is a Slump in Hollywood, my landlady slips little pieces of paper under my door, and when I gaze at the sky it is to form an opinion about the weather. This is funny. It is probably goddamn funny to the world and it is funny to me, but this gathering dust in my throat, this quiet in my chest where once there was whirling, this cigarette-clenching mouth that once bore a smirk of faith and joy in destiny—there is no laughter in these things. Willie Cox has got me by the throat again.
Willie Cox, I am not afraid of you. I know that I cannot bloody the nose of a Slump in Hollywood or knock the teeth out of my landlady’s mouth, but, Willie Cox, remember that I still look to the sky. Remember that there are nights like these when I pause to listen, to search, to feel, to grope.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, and blessed art thou among women. Holy Mary, Mother of God, I was going to ask a favor, I was going to ask boldly about that rent. I see it is not necessary now. I see that you have not deserted me. For in a little while I shall slip this into an envelope and send it off. There is a Slump in Hollywood, and my landlady slips little pieces of paper under my door, and once more I sit in the kitchen of my world, a smirk on my lips.
Reading for Comprehension
1. For whom did the family pray at the beginning of the story?
2. How does Willie Cox harass the boy?
3. What blasphemy does Willie Cox state in his insults against the Blessed Virgin Mary?
4. What does the narrator do to Willie Cox?
5. What is the current status of the narrator?
6. Why does the narrator feel no need to pray to the Blessed Virgin for the money to pay his rent?
Reading for Understanding
1. Who was Willie Cox when the narrator was a boy? Who is Willie Cox for the narrator now?
2. What color does the narrator associate with the Blessed Virgin? Describe three places he sees this color.
3. Why does the narrator have a smirk on his lips at the end of the story?
4. What are your feelings about the familiar way the narrator continually addresses the Blessed Virgin by the name, “Honey?”
Exercise
Write your own free-flowing "stream of consciousness" prayer in honor of Mary, the Mother of God, and her month of May.
Win a free trip to World Youth Day 2011 in Madrid, Spain! It’s simple: make a movie about the Catholic faith and share it at www.goodnessreigns.com.About Goodness ReignsTheir mission is to “ignite the imagination of youth and young adults through the art of filmmaking and through other technologies” for personal development as Catholics and to spread the Gospel. Goodness Reigns is a ministry of Outside da Box whose mission is “creating short films that help the young church know, love, and serve Jesus Christ.”Short Film CompetitionThe winners of the Goodness Reigns short film competition may choose to receive either video equipment packages or travel packages to World Youth Day 2011, August 14-23 in Madrid, Spain. Goodness Reigns will collect all submitted videos to be shared on their website and used by catechists, youth ministers, and everyday Catholics interested in learning about the Catholic faith. The video categories include: church history (including Bible stories, Jesus’ life/mission, saint’s lives), Sacraments of the Church, Church teachings, and present-day missionary spirit of the Church.Important Dates and Information:
Register at www.goodnessreigns.com/contest-rules.php by December 1, 2010.
Submit all videos by January 10, 2011.
April 1, 2011 all winners will be announced; People’s Choice Award begins.
May 6, 2011 People’s Choice Award winner announced
August 14-23, 2011 Winners attend WYD in Spain!
For more information, visit www.goodnessreigns.com!
Don’t be intimidated by the technology. Effective teaching/catechesis never changes, but the tools do. Ave Maria Press will be hosting a Webinar that will provide a brief survey of some of the latest tools and resources online and in many of your classrooms.
Date: May 11, 2010
Time: 4:00pm EDT
Duration: 30 minutesTo register click here: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/304302721 How does a Webinar work? For the full experience, all you need is a computer and internet connection. You will also be able to call in by telephone to listen to the presentation. Just register, save the link, and join the Webinar on May 11th, 4:00pm EDT. Due to the number of people registering for this Webinar, all participants will be muted so no microphone or headset is required. However, communication through text-chat is encouraged.
A topical discussion for your class may be the Church's teaching on the call to priesthood and requirements for ordination, specifically the male-only priesthood and the gift of celibacy. The following material is reprinted from Marriage and Holy Orders: Your Call to Love and Serve. Understanding the Call to Priesthood Think ahead to your high school graduation. Let’s say that you imagine yourself to be a pretty fair public speaker. You enjoy getting up before large groups of people and persuading them to your point of view, telling a few jokes, or making some very cogent points on a number of topics of interest. You decide you are the one to give your class’ valedictorian address. What would happen if you approached your school principal or dean in charge of determining the valedictorian and other speakers for graduation day? How would your demand be received? More than likely, you would be told that the right to choose the valedictorian belongs to the school, not you. The school officials might then list for you all of the established criteria for selecting the class valedictorian; i.e., leadership skills, grade point average, participation in school activities. Your desire to be valedictorian may or may not end right at that point. In fact, the principal may tell you, “Don’t call us, we’ll call you!” Apply this analogy to the priesthood. Just because a person desires for himself to be a priest, does not mean one has a right to receive the sacrament of Holy Orders. Rather, a person is first called to the priesthood by God. Next,
Anyone who thinks he recognizes the signs of God’s call to the ordained ministry must humbly submit his desire to the authority of the Church, who has the responsibility and right to call someone to receive orders. Like every grace this sacrament can only be received as an unmerited gift (CCC, 1578).
To be considered a candidate for ordination, a man must be called to this special vocation by Christ. Therefore, ordination is not a right that anyone can demand but a privilege for those who have been called by God. Why Only Men Can Be Priests
Pope John Paul II addressed the Catholic practice of ordaining only men to the priesthood in a 1995 Apostolic Letter to the Catholic bishops. The pope, quoting Pope Paul VI, explained that there are very fundamental reasons why the Church holds that it is not admissible to ordain women to the priesthood. The reasons for this teaching form part of the Church’s “deposit of faith,” which it has received from Christ. First, when Jesus chose the twelve Apostles to carry on his work he only chose men. Christ made this choice in union with the will of God the Father: These men received from Christ very specific instructions regarding their mission and ministry: “He appointed twelve [whom he also named Apostles] that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach and to have the authority to drive out demons” (Mk 3:14–15). Christ chose the Apostles to a role of leadership and as the foundation for his Church. Likewise, when it was the turn of the twelve Apostles to pass on the mission they were given by Christ, they too chose only men to be their successors. See 1 Timothy 3:1–13,2 Timothy 1:6, and Titus 1:5–9 for examples from Scripture in which the Apostles, including Saint Paul, chose men to be bishops or presbyters. Even when the Apostles had the chance to replace Judas, they did not replace him with a woman, though many women disciples, including the Blessed Virgin Mary, were often present with them in the time surrounding Pentecost.
That Mary herself did not receive the specific mission of the Apostles nor the call to ministerial priesthood is not only a sign that Christ intended only men to be ordained, but it also, according to Pope John Paul II, demonstrates clearly that the non-admission of women to priestly ordination cannot mean that women are of lesser dignity, nor can it be construed as discrimination against them. Rather, it is to be seen as the faithful observance of a plan to be ascribed to the wisdom of the Lord of the universe.
Jesus certainly could have ordained women if he chose. Jesus regularly interacted with a group of women and had several women disciples during a period and place in history in which women and men typically were not friends, especially in public. He taught women “at his feet.” In his society women were not usually allowed to learn directly from a rabbi at the synagogue or any other forum. The gospels record that a group of women disciples were the first to attest to Jesus’ resurrection and were counted on to proclaim the resurrection to others. Nevertheless, Jesus still did not count them among the twelve Apostles. This deposit of faith is often questioned today when the fundamental equality and dignity of women is stressed. But the Church responds that the gift of a vocation to the priesthood for men can be compared to the vocation of motherhood for women. Like ordination, motherhood can only be received as an unmerited gift. A woman cannot will herself to be a mother. Also, as Holy Orders is a sacrament for the service of others, motherhood is not primarily for the benefit of the mother, but for the good of the child. Finally, though they are not called to ordination, the presence and role of women in the life and mission of the Church remains invaluable. Women can hold many leadership positions in the Church. Many of the ministries that were once traditionally done exclusively by priests are done by the laity now and do not require ordination. Under the direction of the bishop and pastors, these ministries are now undertaken by lay people, both men and women. The Gift of Celibacy and Other Spiritual Requirements for Priests
While the presence of married priests in the early history of the Church and in the Eastern Church still today shows that celibacy is not demanded of priests by the nature of the sacrament of Holy Orders, it is also clear that a commitment to chastity or celibacy for the sake of the kingdom of heaven was recommended by Christ by his own example (he did not marry) and in his own words:
Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so; some, because they were made so by others; some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it (Mt 19:12).
Also, Saint Paul in his letters expressed that remaining celibate for the sake of the kingdom was the preferred or superior state of life for those who were able to keep it:
Indeed, I wish everyone to be as I am, but each has a particular gift from God, one of one kind and one of another. Now to the unmarried and to widows, I say: It is a good thing for them to remain as they are, as I do (1 Cor 7:7–8).
Celibacy for the ordained in the Catholic Church is a discipline, not a doctrine. While the practice of celibacy in the Latin Rite for priests dates from the time of Christ, it was not made mandatory for priests until the Second Lateran Council declared that any marriage entered into by a priest was to be considered invalid. The Second Vatican Council reconfirmed the Church’s mandatory imposition of celibacy for the priesthood “provided those who share Christ’s priesthood through the sacrament of order, and indeed the whole church, ask for that gift humbly and earnestly.” There are practical reasons that celibacy is a wonderful gift for the ordained and an enhancement of their ministry. For example:
Jesus is the model for chastity for all people according to their particular stages in life. The commitment of a priest to celibacy is in imitation of Christ who himself was celibate.
Remaining celibate allows priests to more easily dedicate themselves to Christ and to the service of God. Celibacy frees a person from family obligations and therefore allows priests or bishops to give themselves totally to the Lord.
By not marrying, a priest is a living sign of the future when there will be no marriage and when Christ will be the Church’s only spouse.
Jesus spoke of the requirements of discipleship along with the willingness to give up one’s life for his sake and the sake of the gospel. Forsaking the blessings of a spouse and a family is a dramatic example of a person’s acceptance of the path of a disciple. Jesus said, “And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life” (Mt 19:29).
The Eastern Churches have practiced a different discipline regarding married clergy for many centuries. Married men can be ordained priests and deacons while bishops are chosen solely from among celibate men. There are also some married priests in the Latin Rite Church. Since the Second Vatican Council exceptions have been made for some Anglican priests and other Protestant ministers who have later converted to Catholicism and wish to be priests in the Catholic Church. The Council also restored a permanent diaconate to which married men are ordained. In union with the pledge to celibacy, a priest also makes a pledge to the spiritual gifts of humility and obedience and, particularly in the case of religious order priests, voluntary poverty of worldly goods.
April 29th is the feast of St. Catherine of Siena, Doctor of the Church. She is one of the greatest female saints of the Catholic Church. She was born in 1347 in the Italian city of Siena. As a young girl – the youngest of twenty-five children – Catherine was a very joyful person. When she was six, she had vision of God and the saints that inspired her to persist in her vocation to join the Dominican sisters despite her parents’ wishes for her to marry as a young woman.
St. Catherine of Siena is best known for her influence on Gregory XI during a period that is known as the Babylonian Captivity or Avignon Papacy. During this time the Papacy had become highly politicized. Due to external political influence, Pope Clement V and the next seven popes lived in Avignon, France instead of the downtrodden city of Rome. As a result, the papacy lost a lot of respect including the respect of a Dominican sister, Catherine of Siena. Catherine was not afraid to stand up to the Pope or to let the many European leaders of her time know her mind. In 1376 she traveled to Avignon to convince the Pope to return to the Holy See in Rome and reform the curia’s abuse of power.
Primary Source Activity
Distribute excerpts from Catherine’s letter to Pope Gregory XI (see pages 134-135 of This is Our Church by Michael Pennock or the full letter here)
Provide students with the following discussion questions:
1. Who are the wolf, the sheep, the shepherd, and the lamb?
2. How does Catherine describe the Pope? What is his relationship to Peter? To Christ?
3. Why do you think Gregory XI was so convinced by Catherine’s arguments (assuming she was the main reason for returning to Rome)?
4. How does this relate to today’s Church? Do you think there are women or have been women that could hold the ear of the Pope in this way?
5. Have you ever had to call someone out for doing something you knew was wrong? How did you approach the situation? Did you have the same kind of success as Catherine of Sieana?
St. Catherine of Siena Prayers
Prayer for the Gifts of Saint Catherine of Siena
God of Wisdom you made our sister Catherine burn with divine love in contemplating the Lord's passion and in serving your Church. With the help of her prayers may your people, united in the mystery of Christ, rejoice forever in the revelation of his glory, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Litany of St. Catherine of Siena
Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, have mercy on us. Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us. Christ graciously hear us.
God the Father of heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, our mother, pray for us.
St. Dominic, glorious Patriarch, pray for us.
St. Catherine of Siena, pray for us.
St. Catherine benevolent mother of the poor, pray for us.
St. Catherine, kind mother of the suffering, pray for us.
St. Catherine, merciful mother of the sick, pray for us.
St. Catherine, refuge of the sorrowful, pray for us.
St. Catherine, intercessor for sinners, pray for us.
St. Catherine, rose pf patience, pray for us.
St. Catherine, model of humility, pray for us.
St. Catherine, lily of chastity, pray for us.
St. Catherine, vessel of graces, pray for us.
St. Catherine, zealous promoter of the honor of God, pray for us.
St. Catherine, luster of holiness, pray for us.
St. Catherine, example of mildness, pray for us.
St. Catherine, glory of the Order of Preachers, pray for us.
St. Catherine, fruitful mother of spiritual children, pray for us.
St. Catherine, promoter of peace, pray for us.
St. Catherine, terror of the evil spirits, pray for us.
St. Catherine, follower of Jesus, pray for us.
St. Catherine, who didst give the blossoms of thy innocent youth to the service of thy Heavenly Spouse, pray for us.
St. Catherine, who didst lead an angelic life in human flesh, pray for us.
St. Catherine, who didst tear thy virginal flesh with scourges, pray for us.
St. Catherine, whom Jesus, Himself, did feed with His Body and Blood, pray for us.
St. Catherine, who didst exchange thy heart with the Heart of Jesus, pray for us.
St. Catherine, who was blest with His Holy Wounds, pray for us.
St. Catherine, who was taken to Heaven to the celestial nuptials, pray for us
St. Catherine, who didst receive a hundredfold, reward for all thy labors and merits, pray for us.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Pray for us, O glorious Virgin, St. Catherine
that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us Pray: O God, who didst enable Blessed Catherine, graced with the special privilege of virginity, and patience, to overcome the assault of evil spirits, and to stand unshaken in the love of Thy Name, grant we beseech Thee, that after her example treading under foot the wickedness of the world, and overcoming the wiles of all enemies, we may safely pass onward to Thy glory.Through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
For other prayers, visit:
http://www.st-catherine-medal.com/prayers-to-saint-catherine.htm
Gather the students in chairs around a large candle. Light the candle and dim the lights. Present a centering meditation based on the following prayer script. If you wish, softly play some reflective music during the meditation.
Prayer Script
We are physical beings. The position of our bodies makes a difference in all that we do, including when we pray. So pay attention to how you are sitting. Try this:
Sit with your back straight, but resting against the back of your chair. Put both feet on the floor about six inches apart and directly under your knees. You want to feel the floor with your whole foot, heel to toe. Let your hand rest, palms up, in your lap.
Now close your eyes. Listen to my voice and try not to concentrate on anything else. If a stray thought pops into your mind, just put it aside and return to the sound of my voice.
There is tension in your body. Feel it. Feel it in your head, just above your ears, at your temples. All the stress and worries of your day are represented by that tension. Name the primary worry that is causing your tension. Focus on that worry. Feel the tension again and let it go. Feel it drain away, and follow it down.
The tension is now in your neck. Let your head fall forward until you feel the stretch in the back of your neck. Gently pull the tension out of those muscles, then slowly raise your head.
The tension is caused by the worry of your day has slipped down now to your shoulders. It is resting there, and it is a heavy burden. Shrug your shoulders just once. Feel your shoulders relax. Shrug off your burden. Send that stress and tension down your arms until in pools in your hands.
All the worries of your day, all the troubles you is there in your hands. Grip it tightly. There is some comfort in your worry. It is, after all, your very own. It is important to you. But the time has come to let it go. Open your hands as you can to let your worry slide out into your lap.
Now there is nothing to stop it. Imagine it moving, into your legs, into your feet. It has gathered there, but all it takes is one little wiggle of your toes in your shoes and it will be gone. Let your worry go. You don't need it. Let it go.
When you finish call on student to read Matthew 6:25–34. Then say:
When I finish giving these directions, gather somewhere in this room in your small groups. Form a close circle with your partners. When everyone has been grouped, I will give one lighted candle to a person in each group. Pass the candle around the circle twice. The first time you pass it, share the worry you named in the centering meditation. The second time, pass the candle in silence. Hold it quietly for a few moments. Everyone in the circle is to pray silently for the person holding the candle. Pray that God removes this worry from this person's life.
When everyone has been prayed for, hold the candle in the center of your group. Then reach out and touch the candle with one hand to symbolize our unity in Christ and his constant loving presence in our midst. Pray together the Our Father and Hail Mary, asking for removal of all unnecessary worries in our lives.
