Engaging Faith

Practical Lesson Ideas and Activities for Catholic Educators

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The Latest

Thursday, June 19, 2025

Dorothy Day, the Sermon on the Mount, and Radical Living

The following lesson serves as an introduction to Dorothy Day, an American born social activist who is currently undergoing the canonization process. This plan could also be used to supplement topics such as the canonization process, social justice, and the Sermon on the Mount. Background on Dorothy Day (Share with your students) Dorothy Day was born in 1897 in New York City. Day had a special concern for the poor and vulnerable of society, but it wasn’t until her conversion to the Catholic faith in 1927 that this concern evolved into something greater. In 1933 Day published her first journal, The Catholic Worker, which aimed to give hope to the working-class poor in the midst of the Great Depression. This journal experienced great success and her writing eventually led to the establishment of what is known today at the Catholic Worker Movement. The Catholic Worker Movement is a “revolution of the heart”. It is a call for Catholics everywhere to radically follow the Gospel message - even when what it asks of us is challenging. Dorothy Day saw her concern for social justice as something that was inherently linked to a serious interpretation of Scripture. In her lifetime, Day worked to make the Gospel’s call to holiness a reality in her life and the lives of others. Introductory Video (Play this three-minute video.) Revolution of the Heart: the Dorothy Day Story Student Assignment (Create a handout from the following for a Student Assignment. ) Read this passage from the Sermon on the Mount: “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.” (Mt 5: 38-42) When you have finished reading, answer the following questions: List three main lessons found in this passage: What do you think Jesus is trying to teach his followers in this passage? How does this passage apply to the life of Dorothy Day? If you were going to act on this passage in a “radical” as Dorothy Day might have, what actions would you undertake today? In the coming year? In ten years? Be specific. Katy WylieCurriculum Intern

Tuesday, June 10, 2025

The Daughters of the Capital Sins

*Read and discuss the information below with your students. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that the capital sins "engender other sins, other vices. They are pride, avarice, envy, wrath, lust, gluttony, and sloth or acedia." (1866). The capital or "deadly” sins are often the root cause of many other sins we commit in our lives. These sins are serious because they hurt our soul, lead us deeper into sinfulness, and continue to separate us from God. These sins are serious but through our own recognition of the evil done and God's grace given in the sacrament of reconciliation we can be forgiven! The capital sins are broad terms that are often associated with many actions, thoughts, and behaviors committed on a daily basis. It can be hard to pinpoint what sin those associations are rooted or linked to in our minds and hearts. To better understand the capital sins, it helps to understand the "daughters” of these sins. The daughters are not real "offspring" but the noticeable manifestations of these sins in our lives (i.e. actions, thoughts, and behaviors). Knowing the daughters of the capital sins can help us become conscious of the patterns of sinfulness in our lives; this allows us to take actionable steps to overcome these vices, cultivate virtue, and deepen our relationship with Christ. *Take a look at the table below with your students. Analyze and discuss the capital sins, their daughters, and their opposing virtues. Assignment Ideas: Have your students pick one of the capital sins in the table and write a short reflection on how they’ve seen the daughters of that sin, and its opposing virtue(s) play out in their life or community. As a bonus you can have them create a "spiritual prescription" as a way to practically respond to that capital sin and grow towards more virtuous habits. Have your students pick one of the capital sins and create a "one-pager" for that sin. One-pagers are a creative and open-ended outlet for students to express their knowledge and retainment of material learned in class. The idea is for students to explain a main idea/central topic by surrounding it with creative details such as colors, writing, symbols, and illustrations. One-pagers can be created online (through PowerPoint, Google Slides, Canva) or created with just a piece of copy paper and colored pencils. For an idea of what a one-pager looks like, click here for a link on how these are designed. This makes for a great opportunity for a class collage and/or a gallery walk later on to review this concept. Jessica Schultz Curriculum Intern

Wednesday, May 07, 2025

Marian Consecration

Marian consecration involves handing one’s life over to Jesus through his Mother, Mary. St. Louis de Montfort (1673–1716), a French priest who was well-known as a preacher and for his study of and devotion to the Blessed Mother, is well-known for a thirty-three-day program that leads to a person consecrating himself or herself to Jesus through Mary. St. Louis once compared the baptismal font to the womb of Mary. The Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary, and by the Spirit, she bore in her body the Son of God. The same Holy Spirit overshadows the Church, whose womb is symbolized in the baptismal font. This means that when a person enters the font in Baptism, the Church bears him or her sacramentally. In other words, through Baptism, we become sons and daughters of God in grace; we become Christians, people who are “like Christ.” St. Louis de Montfort called the baptized “other Christs. Read about St. Louis de Montfort’s thirty-three-day preparation for consecration to Mary. Then complete a chart like the following for your own seven-day preparation for consecration by filling in the following sections for each day: Day Name and Describe a Marian Feast Name and Explain a Title for Mary Name, Date, and Explain a Marian Apparition Write a Marian Prayer 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 After reading several examples of Marian prayers of consecration (including one by St. Louis de Montfort), write your own Marian prayer of consecration below your chart.

Wednesday, February 12, 2025

Contemplating the Contemplative Life

Use a class period to introduce your students to the beauty of the contemplative vocation to which our Lord calls some men and women. 1. The contemplative life has origins in the life of the Blessed Mother. According to tradition, Mary was consecrated in the temple as a young girl, where she lived, studied, and prayed until her betrothal to Joseph. Just as Mary lived hidden within the temple, entirely devoted to God, so too do monastic religious live “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3), separated from the world so that they can intercede and fast for the needs of the world day and night. In a uniquely beautiful way, cloistered nuns live as Christ’s Brides, providing an icon of the intimacy we are all called to enjoy with Christ in heaven. 2. To give students an introduction to cloistered life, watch these two trailers for documentaries that have been made about men’s and women’s monasteries: Official Into Great Silence US Trailer (youtube.com) Cloistered:God's Women of Steel-A Life of Adoration and Prayer (youtube.com) 3. Divide students into groups (separate guys and girls) and have them use their laptops to open cloisteredlife.com. 4. Have each group pick a different religious order to explore on the website. Boys should look at male monasteries and girls should look at female monasteries. They should be able to answer these questions: Which saint founded the religious order? What is their charism (special focus in prayer and way of life)? What does their habit look like? What are the closest monastery of this order to your school or diocese? 5. Regather the groups and have them share about their community with the class. 6. Discuss the following questions as a class: Do you know anyone who has entered a monastery? Why did he or she enter? What seems beautiful and appealing about the cloister? What seems difficult and frightening? What are ways that we can grow in openness to our personal Vocations? Do we actually believe that the Lord is still calling souls to be His hidden spouses here on earth? How can we support those with a contemplative vocation? (Donating to monasteries, writing to loved ones in the monastery, writing to monasteries asking for them to pray for specific intentions, discussing cloistered religious life as an actual possibility for ourselves or our peers who are not yet in their permanent Vocation) 6. Conclude with praying the following prayer for the World Day of Cloistered Life from cloisteredlife.com: Eternal Father, We praise and thank you for those sisters and brothers who have embraced the gift of the cloistered and monastic life. Their prayerful presence is indispensable to the Church’s life and mission, and is the foundation of the New Evangelization. As we celebrate World Day of Cloistered Life, let us honor the holiness and glory of the Blessed Virgin. May she, who was presented in the Temple, intercede so that many young people might dedicate themselves entirely to Your divine service by hidden lives of contemplative prayer and selfless sacrifice. May all of us be mindful of the spiritual and material needs of those who commit their lives to seeking God by fixing their gaze on those things which are eternal. We ask this through Our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen. Larisa Tuttle University of Dallas Senior

Thursday, January 02, 2025

Reflecting on the Wounds of Christ

Use this reflection to help students prayerfully meditate on the wounds of Christ and to enter deeper into his Passion, Death, and Resurrection. This exercise will encourage students to grow in their personal relationship with Christ as they reflect upon his infinite love. First, invite students to pull out their notebooks or journals. Explain that during this activity, they are to enter into personal, individual prayer. This can look different for everyone. Some people prefer to pray by journaling while some prefer internal prayer. Some like to close their eyes while others prefer to keep their eyes open. Some bow their heads and fold their hands while others prefer a different posture. Encourage students to find a posture of prayer that is reverent, comfortable, and allows them to focus on their prayer. Next, project the following image, which was painted by Matthias Grunwald, in a slideshow, or pass out the following image to each student. Read the following meditation out loud, giving students time to reflect and meditate on the image. Look at the image before you. Where are your eyes drawn first? What do you notice first? Stay there for a moment. Observe what first caught your eye. What strikes you? What emotions do you feel? What do you see? Now, allow your eyes to slowly scan Jesus on the cross. Begin at His head and move to His feet. Notice his hand, pierced for your sake. Notice his had, crowned with thorns. See his precious face. Look at the bones in his rib cage and torso, and imagine the suffering he endured for you. Look at his feet, which were nailed to the cross for you. Now, look at the people surrounding him. Notice St. John and how he holds Mother Mary, who is stricken by grief. Do you think that our Mother holds you in this way when you are suffering? Do you think she understands the pain you experience since she, too, has a wounded heart? What do you think she felt as she watched her Son be crucified and die upon the cross? How can you console her heart by being her child today? Look at the other people in the image and the lamb that stands by the cross. Who stands out to you among them? Why? How do you think you would respond if you were at the foot of the cross, gazing upon your Savior? Would you fall to your knees, or would you stand? Would you bow in reverence? Would you kiss His bloodied feet? Would you be silent, or would you speak to him? How do you imagine Christ would look at you from the cross? Do you believe he would gaze at you with love? Do you believe that his blood and water would wash over you as a beautiful cleansing and a sign of his mercy? If Christ had to be crucified again and go through his suffering all over again just for you, He would. His love for you is endless, unconditional, and unfailing. There is no length to which he would not go to know you and to love you. Take a moment to talk to Jesus – the One who gave everything to save you. Amen. Megan Neuman is an Editorial Curriculum intern at Ave Maria Press. She is a senior English major at Franciscan University.

Friday, December 06, 2024

Learn More about Our New High School Textbook Series

We are happy to introduce a new Ave Maria Press High School Textbook Series. Check out some below with more information! Introducing the Series Schedule a Live Meeting to Hear an Overview of What’s New Join Our Ave Theology Teaches Facebook Page Sign Up for Classroom Resources* Must be a theology teacher at a Catholic high school

Thursday, November 21, 2024

Announcing Our New High School Textbooks!

We are pleased to premier our new high school textbooks. We invite you to read about each new text and watch a short introductory video. If you and/or your theology department would like to set up a Zoom meeting with me in the coming weeks to run through the features and elements in both the Student Texts and Teacher's Manual, please sign up here! I look forward to hearing from you! Michael Amodei Curriculum Manager Executive Editor

Friday, October 11, 2024

Learning to Live in the Moment: A Prayer Exercise from the Diary of St. Faustina Kowalska

Use this prayer from the diary of St. Faustina Kowalska to encourage students to meditate on their past, present, and future. This exercise can help students to learn to appreciate the blessings that surround them, to surrender the past to Jesus, and to entrust the future to his will. Begin by passing out handouts with the prayer printed on it. O My God, when I look into the future, I am frightened, but why plunge into the future? Only the present moment is precious to me, as the future may never enter my soul at all. It is no longer in my power to change, correct or add to the past; for neither sages nor prophets could do that. And so, what the past has embraced, I must entrust to God. O present moment, you belong to me, whole and entire. I desire to use you as best I can. And although I am weak and small, You grant me the grace of Your omnipotence. And so, trusting in your mercy, I walk through life like a little child, offering You each day this heart, burning with love for Your greater glory.” Excerpt from the Diary of St. Faustina Kowalska, Notebook 1, Section 2 Invite students to close their eyes and find a posture of prayer. Then read the prayer aloud, slowly and intentionally. Next, tell the students to silently read through the prayer a few more times, praying with the words and contemplating what they mean to them. Encourage them to think about the following questions (write on board): How does this prayer relate to your life today? What do you struggle to surrender to Jesus the most? Have you ever struggled to live in the present moment and to appreciate the blessings around you? Perhaps you find yourself constantly thinking about your past, weighed down by your wounds or regrets. Maybe you find that you are always looking ahead and waiting for what is to come, and this distracts you from the ways God is working in your life today. What are some practical ways you can learn to be grateful for this day? Maybe consider starting a gratitude journal, or documenting your blessings and joys through pictures on your phone. What does it mean to “walk through life like a little child?” Optional: Have the students meet in small groups to discuss the questions, write answers to the questions in their journals, or write a short essay on one or two of the questions. Megan Neuman is an Editorial Curriculum intern at Ave Maria Press. She is a senior English major at Franciscan University.