Rerun (Children & Catholic Education)
Father Mateo (76776.306@compuserve.com)
20 Jan 96 01:17:13 EST
3 I would like to get your opinion on what you feel children who attend a
3 Catholic school religion program (this is K through 8) should learn.
[MO=>FM]
Dear Mike,
I have never been a parish priest nor have I worked in a grammar
school. I have no experience with K-8 children.
All I dare say is this: the first priority at any age is Jesus Christ.
Tell them about Christ, explain Christ first, last and always. That is
teaching them the Word. "In the beginning was the Word and the Word
was with God and the Word was God . . . . and the Word was made flesh."
Teach them the gospels.
Secondly, teach them Mary. Never separate the Mother from the Son.
Teach them and lead them in the Rosary.
Thirdly, teach them about themselves, that they are the Body of Christ,
the Church. Don't be gaseous - - the Church has structure. As they
serve God by obeying their parents, so in God's Family, we all serve
God by obeying our Bishops and the Pope, learning and following their
teaching.
Fourthly, teach them doctrine and how to express what they believe.
Help them trace these beliefs in the Bible and Sacred Tradition.
Lastly, teach them morality and base it on love. Love is the two
commandments: 1) love God, 2) love others as oneself. All the law
depends on these.
Obviously (I should think), this all has to go on at the same time,
and be accommodated to the age group.
No, religion is NOT a "way of life rather than a collection of facts".
It is and must be BOTH. And unless we hold the factual and know how to
explain and defend it, we have no sure guidelines for living a good life.
No one, repeat, no one, ever goes to heaven because he just "lives a
good life". He must believe in Jesus Christ and adhere to His teaching
as preached by His Church, the pillar and ground of truth. This is
non-negotiable.
By refusing to grade the children's religious KNOWLEDGE, a school
refuses to use a powerful TOOL to convey and consolidate that
knowledge. Consider the child's later years: as an adult, if he is
perfectly convinced that marriage is a sacrament and a symbol of
Christ's union with His Church, and if he knows the Scriptures which
teach this, will he not work harder at his marriage and refuse to
consider divorce? And if he knows the doctrine and Scripture of the
Real Presence, will he be tempted to miss Mass or wobble off into
other forms of Christianity that reject the Mass and the Real
Presence?
See, I was going to write a short message, begging off, and see what
I've done!
Don't undervalue children. Young as they are, they UNDERSTAND very
much and they REMEMBER. I remember when I was a very young child. I
played with Catholic children. I was IMPRESSED! They KNEW something
and could EXPLAIN it, and I was tongue-tied. The Sisters at their
school must have been fearsome!
Sincerely in Christ,
Father Mateo
##MMR 2.38a. !link MO 10-10-91 12:21
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