This Issue

• What is Truth?
• For Principals and School Boards
• For Educators
• For Parents
• Forming Adult Faith
• Compendium Corner

What is Truth?

In his third and most recent encyclical, Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate), Pope Benedict XVI teaches about charity. He laments how easily charity can be misunderstood and "emptied of meaning" in our contemporary world. The Holy Father states that "charity in its turn needs to be understood, confirmed and practised in the light of truth."

The Pope continues to teach about several issues that impact all of us. He discusses our modern problems of economic inequalities, a lack of respect for the dignity of human life, the persistent problem of hunger, the environment, and access to energy resources, not to mention the global economic recession. He calls Christians to play an important role in contributing to international development and assistance to those in need by practicing charity in truth as a gift from God.

The Catholic Church has many teachings she holds to be true that can help demonstrate how Pope Benedict XVI's teaching can be put into action. This issue of To Teach explores many of the truths in Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate) and offers practical suggestions for converting them into action in our schools, classrooms, and homes in concrete and practical ways.

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For Principals and School Boards

• Distribute a copy of Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate) to each faculty and staff member for reflection throughout the School Year.
• Create a campaign for putting Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate) in action throughout the School Year. Encourage staff, faculty, and students to take advantage of the many opportunities they have to practice charity in truth.
• Organize a volunteer study group to meet periodically and discuss ways your school can convert the Pope's teachings into action.
• Have your librarian replenish your supply of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church and encourage staff, faculty, and students to use it as a reference as they ponder the Pope's teaching.
• Set aside one day in September for a schoolwide symposium on Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate). Invite clergy, teachers, and Catholic experts to dig deeper into the encyclical's meaning.
• Use the Prayer for Charity in Truth for the symposium and on other appropriate occasions.
• In light of the Pope's call to be good stewards of the environment, at staff meetings, discuss ways your school can be more environmentally-friendly. Use Renewing the Earth as a guide for your discussions.
• Sponsor an essay contest for students to write about how Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate) can be put into action in your local community.
• Encourage faculty and staff to use the free study guides as they read Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate).

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For Educators

• The Pope teaches about God's love as the source of all charity. Use his first encyclical, God Is Love (Deus Caritas Est) to explain to students how God is the source of all love, including love for one's neighbor.
• The Pope emphasizes the need to respect life. Present the Church's teachings on contemporary issues by reading The Dignity of a Person (Dignitas Personae) to show how respect for human life intersects with issues like stem cell research and treatment of infertility.
  • Compose a letter from your class defending the dignity of human life and opposing funding of destructive embryonic stem cell research.
• Pope Benedict XVI writes at length about the consequences of the global economy on poor and underdeveloped countries. Devote one class session to reading A Decade After Economic Justice for All together in class, and lead a discussion brainstorming ideas for distributing food and clothing to the poor in your community based on the principles discussed in class.
  • Adopt one of the action suggestions from PovertyUSA and use it as a class project to help reduce poverty.
• The Pope calls for a reform of the United Nations. Social studies and civics teachers can assign a special project to students for proposing reformed United Nations models based on the Pope's teaching in Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate). Have students present their completed models to the class.
• The Pope says that "charity is at the heart of the Church's social doctrine." Assign each student a section from the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church for study. Have each student prepare a five-minute presentation on their subject and how it expresses charity for the rest of the class.
• The Pope expresses concern for the environment. Present models of Catholic projects for the environment to your class and invite students to brainstorm a project for the school on the theme of caring for God's creation.
• The Pope frequently refers to humanity as the "human family." Learn more about the family from the Pope in his new book on the family from the Spiritual Thoughts Series.
  • Have a brief discussion during which students brainstorm actions families can take to practice charity truthfully.
• Begin and end one class a week with the Prayer for Charity in Truth and ask God to guide your teaching, study, and actions.
• Introduce students to the practice of faith-sharing. Use some class time one day a week for a thematic session of prayer, Scripture, reflection, and discussion with Sharing the Tradition, Shaping the Future.

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For Parents

• Reflect on Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate) as a family with these free study guides from the USCCB.
• Take time to consider: 1) How well are we practicing charity toward others in our family and local community? 2) What changes might we make in how we spend time and money to engage regularly in charity and action for justice?
• In Catholic teaching work is a way to support one’s family, express one’s dignity, and promote the common
  good. Take time to consider: Does my work allow me to use the gifts God has given me for the good of
  others? How can I apply the values of my Catholic faith and promote justice and charity in the work place?
• Grow closer as a family by studing the Pope's teaching on the family with this book from the Spiritual Thoughts Series.
• The Pope calls all Christians to be good stewards of God's creation and take care of the environment. Make a list of ways your family can protect the environment at home, work, and school. Then say the Stewardship Prayer in Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers together as a family.
• How does charity work in a marriage? Read about the vocation of marriage in For Your Marriage.
• The Pope expresses special concern for the poor during these challenging times. Discover the many ways you can help fight poverty in the USA as a family. Then add the Prayer for Social Justice from Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers to your regular rule of prayer.
• Remember to attend Mass together as a family. In September, participate in liturgy for the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (September 8) and the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (September 14).

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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 discuss the life and mission of the Church.

• Chapter 1. My Soul Longs for You, o God
• Chapter 10: The Church: Reflecting the Light of Christ
• Chapter 32. The Eighth Commandment: Tell the Truth

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" usually 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 following questions relate to this month's topic.

41. In what way is God the Truth?
42. In what way does God reveal that he is love?
54. How did God create the universe?
358. What is th root of human dignity?
373. What does the dignity of the human person imply for the moral conscience?
388. What is charity?
403. What is the principle of subsidiarity?
414. How is human solidarity manifested?

The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church summarizes the foundations of Catholic faith. So, focus your attention on two or three questions this month. Choose questions on topics that are of great interest, that you struggle with and want to understand better, or that you find arise in your classroom repeatedly.

• Review the questions and answers.
• Consider how to use them in the coming year as part of your lesson plan.
• Develop learning activities that will encourage you and your students to learn the teaching by heart (memorization)

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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