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As you enter the big box retail stores, you see the “back to school” displays filled with pencils, notebooks, crayons, and everything that is needed to return to school. I remember when I was young, the excitement of getting new crayons, a brand new pink eraser, and other new school supplies.
These lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer! How can you inspire and help families keep faith alive during the summer months?
Many years ago, as a young child, my husband sat at his small desk and listened to his teacher tell his classmates and him not everyone receives God’s Grace. Given his often unruly behavior and the fact the teacher’s eyes were intent on his uneasy face, he was certain those words were meant for him.
As we prepare for Lent each year, we think about prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. We want to open our hearts to Jesus on our 40-Days Lenten Journey. This year during Lent let us also help our children focus on silence, prayer, and devotions. Perhaps when we find special ways to help our students deepen their prayer during the Lenten season, those prayerful experiences may become regular methods of prayer throughout the year helping children deepen their relationships with Jesus.
It is just about that time again. Soon it will be Lent, and it will be time for prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. I do not know about anyone else, but when I reflect on my attempts to grow spiritually during Lent, I probably have had more misses than hits.
As a child, I would always try to convince my parents that I would fast by giving up watermelon. Unfortunately, my parents were quite aware that watermelon was not readily available in Wisconsin during the late winter and early spring months. They also knew that I did not like watermelon.
“Almsgiving” is a word that most of us rarely hear in normal, everyday conversation, yet the concept is an ancient one. It is deeply rooted in the Christian, Judaic, and Islamic Faith Traditions, and is most often associated with the concept of justice and charity.
Within the Christian Tradition, almsgiving is viewed as an act of love and justice. A look at the worldwide view of almsgiving shows that Muslims approach almsgiving as a necessary action of Faith; (one of the five pillars of their tradition) and in Judaism it is looked upon as “righteousness” – the recognition that all we have is “gift” and the obligation to reach out to others as a form of justice and accountability.
Each year, in January, we celebrate Catholic Schools for the gifts they bring to our parish communities, and to the lives of children and families throughout our nation.
Catholic schools provide a safe and secure learning environment within a community of faith. Growing up in a Catholic community provides children with a lived experience of Christian discipleship. Children learn what it means to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, they practice living the values of the Catholic religion, and share the journey of faith. The faculty, pastoral staff, parents, and parishioners all become models of what it means to live as Catholic Christians in today’s world.
As Catholics, we seem to shy away from evangelizing. We tend not to use the word evangelize in our vocabulary. This is bewildering because evangelization is actually a beautiful part of our faith and our mission as followers of Jesus. Simply put, evangelization is sharing the Good News. We are called to share the Word with everyone we meet.
Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20). This is a very clear statement and a considerable responsibility. When we reflect on the words of Jesus, he is asking us to bring the Good News—what we have learned about Jesus—and share it with others. We can invite friends, family, and neighbors—those who are Catholic and those who are not—to take small steps and join us on our faith journey in the hope that they will strengthen or begin their own relationships with Jesus.
The children were gathered in the narthex of the local church. The air was filled with excitement. Something very special was about to occur. Was it Christmas? No. Was it First Communion time? No. It was Epiphany! Epiphany, which comes from the Greek word epiphainen, means “to shine upon; to manifest; and to make known or reveal.” What the children and the entire congregation were about to do would help bring all these definitions to life.