This Issue

• Living the Word
• For Principals and School Boards
• For Educators
• For Parents
• Forming Adult Faith
• Compendium Corner

Living the Word

The letter to the Hebrews tells us, “Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.” (4:12).

Indeed the Word is alive and active in each follower and believer of Christ. It is the Word that often sustains us, helps guide us and direct our lives.  The Living Word of Christ empowers us and enables us to strive to live a life of service and a life of love.

This issue of To Teach provides ideas and strategies for living a life focused and centered on the Word of God.

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For Principals and School Boards

• Add a copy of The African Bible to your school library. This Bible serves as a source of inspiration and nourishment for all people of Africa and for those who minister to them.
• Create a link on your school websites to the online version of the New American Bible. Encourage students and teachers to use the NAB to do homework or prepare lessons.
• Use the daily video reflection once a week for morning or afternoon prayer. Each day, a priest, deacon, or lay person from around the country shares a reflection on the today's daily readings.
• As a sign of appreciation for the volunteers at your school, purchase and distribute a CCHD Bookmark to each person. Each brass bookmark comes in its own gift envelope and is mounted on a gift card with space for your personal note. Navy blue and burgundy enameled with the Scripture passage from Daniel 12:3, "Those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever."
• Help ease teachers’ end-of-year stress and make them feel supported by providing each teacher and student with a copy of the Prayer for Teachers. Invite parents to pray with their children at morning or night.
• In honor of Mother’s Day and the month dedicated to Mary, schedule a morning or evening of prayer for the moms of the school. Use text and images in A Rosary for Peace or the Rosary for the Church in Need as a source of reflection and prayer during the gathering.
• The week before Mother’s Day, invite faculty and students to offer the prayers of the faithful in honor of women.

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For Educators

• Proclaim Acts 2:1-11 (Pentecost) with your students, and review that Pentecost is considered the birthday of the Church. Invite some students to prepare a short history of the birth of your parish, and share that, too. Create birthday cards or plan and host a birthday celebration for the children in your class.
• Use the Sunday readings (online or as a podcast) in Easter as a starting point to brainstorm one way that the children can live a life focused and centerd on the Word of God.
• Using the frequently asked questions about the Bible, create a fun quiz for students to take to test their knowledge of Scripture.
• During the week of Memorial Day, print copies of Questions and Answers on the War in Iraq. Invite your students to read and review it, then discuss the Church’s position on war and violence. Conclude the discussion by inviting the students to pray the Prayer for Troop.
• Choose one or two of the activities to incorporate into this month’s lessons as a way to encourage students to embrace the call to service and justice.
• Provide Confirmandi’s with a copy of A Justice Prayer Book as a small gesture of the parishes support and affirmation of their participation in the sacrament. This resource can help Catholics find guidance on how to more fully realize their identity as followers of Jesus Christ through service, advocacy, and solidarity for and with the poor.
• Consider including Scripture Guide as a core text for any Scripture study course or class. This well-organized resource provides references to numerous Scriptural themes and topics.
• Lead a session on the role of women in the lives of our faith using the Guided Reflection on Women in Scripture.

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For Parents

• Download or listen to the daily readings and reflection podcasts on your computer. Use the readings and reflections as topics for discussion during family dinners.
• During the Memorial Day weekend, take time as a family to pray a few of the Prayers for Peace.
• Provide family members and friends who are not Catholic but will attend a First Communion, wedding, or Confirmation with a copy of Introduction to the Order of Mass. This book offers a detailed guide to the celebration of Mass, from introductory to concluding rites. Schedule some time to review the part of the liturgy with them before the Mass begins.
• Teach your children prayers and devotions to Mary during the month of May using the Book of Mary.
• Print out a copy of The Beatitudes for Women. Invite the children of the family to transfer the reflection onto a card or poster board and decorate it as a gift for Mother’s Day. Then pray the prayer together.
• With your children, find objects in your household that can be used as symbols for the mysteries of the rosary—a wine bottle for the wedding feast at Cana (the second of the Luminous Mysteries) or an olive branch for the agony in the garden (the first of the Sorrowful Mysteries). Place these objects near or around your statue or picture of Mary as you pray the rosary with your children.
• Review the common prayers that are recited during the rosary—Our Father, Glory Be, Hail Mary, and Hail, Holy Queen—with your children.
• As the month begins, read “Chapter 12. Mary: The Church’s First and Most Perfect Member” in the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults. Reflect on discussion questions 2 and 3 from the perspective of a parent.
• In celebration of Mother’s Day, invite your children to affirm Mom as someone who imitates Mary very well. Look at the prayers to and scripture stories about Mary for ideas as well as Chapter 12 on Mary in the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults. Write these affirmations on a big card, on pieces of ribbon, or on a banner made.

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Forming Adult Faith

"Forming Adult Faith" includes suggestions from the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults (USCCA) on how to promote ongoing faith formation among the adults in your school community.

There are three chapters from the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults that address the mysteries of the Church.

• Chapter 1. My Soul Longs for You, O God
• Chapter 2. God Comes to Meet Us
• Chapter 3. Proclaim the Gospel to Every Creature

Ideas and suggestions on how to use these chapters for your individual and group reflection can be found online and in the Reader's Journal for the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults.

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Compendium Corner

"Compendium Corner" provides a list of questions and answers in the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church that are related to this month’s topic. (The number before the question is the question number in the Compendium.)

• Review the questions and answers in preparation for your class.
• Consider how to use appropriate questions and answers as part of your lesson plan.
• Develop learning activities that help youths and young adults learn this information by heart (memorization).
  

18.     Why does Sacred Scripture teach the truth?
19.     How is Sacred Scripture to be read?
20.     What is the Canon of Scripture?
21.     What is the importance of the Old Testament for Christians?
22.     What importance does the New Testament have for Christians?
23.     What is the unity that exists between the Old and the New Testaments?
24.     What role does Sacred Scripture play in the life of the Church?

To obtain a copy of the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, visit www.usccbpublishing.org or call 800-235-8722.

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