Archive for the 'Understanding Kids' Category
Showing a segment of the DVD Jesus of Nazareth worked out beautifully last night.
As I mentioned yesterday, I showed the segment beginning with the Way of the Cross, leading up to the end of the film as the Risen Christ assures his apostles (and us) that he will be with us always. This is about 40 minutes.
I paused the video frequently, pointing out information and asking questions and inviting the young people to ask questions. They indeed had a number of very good questions about Jesus’ death and Resurrection. It made for a very good educational and formative experience. We talked about Nicodemus, Mary Magdelene, the act of crucifixion, the Pharisees, Mary the Mother of Jesus, Veronica who wiped the face of Jesus, the “good thief” (”Dismas”), Jesus crying out “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani,” the apostle John, Peter’s denial, the Jewish burial customs, and the question of whether or not Jesus could have been “spared” this gruesome death. Kids can get into some heavy stuff, eh?
From there, we went right into a reflective prayer, focusing on the story of the 2 disciples on the road to Emmaus. The young people were extremely well-behaved (it helps when 2 of the usual trouble-makers are not present) and prayerful.
Back to Jesus of Nazareth, this is a good way to use video in religious education. Be sure to preview the DVD ahead of time and find points at which to pause it and ask and invite questions. It transforms the young people’s mindset from one of being passively entertained to one of being actively engaged in learning. Jesus of Nazareth is a good resource for catechesis because it is quite faithful to Scripture for the most part and, where it isn’t, it allows you the opportunity to point out what Scripture actually does teach. Our young people are so visually-oriented, it is good to provide them with visuals of the Gospel.
I had the pleasure of listening to Bishop Blase Cupich (pronounced soopich) of Rapid City, South Dakota, speak at the NCEA convention in Indianapolis the other day. He spoke about exploring “proven pathways” for facing the challenges that we face in the catechetical ministry in our culture and times. In particular, he presented an Augustinian model of passing on the faith, grounded in St. Augustine’s communications to Deogratias (A.D. 403) titled “On the Catechizing of the Unistructed.”
Deogratias, a deacon, was having a hard time teaching the faith. He felt that his teaching was being perceived as “boring.” Sound familiar? Augustine responded with his advice for catechetical instruction. Bishop Cupich mined this tradition to speak to today’s catechists. He emphasized the following:
- the need for the catechist to know his or her subject which means that we each need to strive to know Jesus more deeply
- the need to know (really know) one’s students and to adapt catechetical methodology as needed
- the need to recognize prayer as the first duty of teaching the faith and for that prayer to be rich in sign and symbol
- the need to connect the present to the story of salvation history
- the need to teach with cheerfulness which he (Augustine) called hilaritas - an enthusiasm for teaching and a love for what we teach and who we teach.
Here is a good article written by Paul Turner about Augustine’s catechetical advice.
Thanks, Bishop Cupich, for offering these “proven pathways” for meeting today’s challenges!
Here are some interesting facts about how the Internet has influenced kids’ traditional viewing habits:
- 64% of kids report going online while watching TV, with 49% of Teens doing the same from three times a week to several times a day.
- 73% of kids are actively multitasking, which is up by +33% since 2002.
- 50% of 9 to 17-year-olds visit websites they see on TV even as they continue to watch
- 45% of teens have sent instant messages or e-mail to others they knew were watching the same TV show
- 33% of 9 to 17-year-olds say they have participated in online polls, entered contests, played online games or other online activities that TV programs have directed them to while they are watching.
- While TV/internet multitasking, 47% of kids report their attention focused primarily online, with 42% saying they focus equally on the two, while 11% report TV holds their primary attending.
The US study (The Kids’ Social Networking Study by the research firm Grunwald Associates) was conducted online with 1,277 9-17-year-olds, 1,039 parents, and telephone interviews with 250 school district leaders in charge of internet policy.
Implication: kids are into multi-tasking, meaning that content in one medium is influencing a concurrent behavior in another medium. In other words, it’s not enough to just watch a TV program or read a book, nowadays - you also need to be online or connected by cell phone while doing so. An example: you just don’t watch American Idol, you also go online (or on a cell phone) and vote people off of the show. This means that, if Jesus had a TV program today on which he was telling parables, there would be an accompanying Website where viewers could log on and express their opinion, select an option, ask a question, or indicate their level of understanding!
How often do we hear kids say, either about Mass or about religious education class, “It’s boring”? Too often, I’m sure.
Kids (and most of us in general) are engaged when there is drama involved. That’s why sports is so big…we don’t know how the game is going to turn out and so we are engaged. Movies and video games are big because we don’t know how they will end.
One of the challenges we face as catechists is to present the drama of the Christian story. This can be particularly challenging because, on the surface, we know how the story ends. During Holy Week, we enter into the dramatic events of Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection. And yet, we know “how the story ends.” Where’s the drama?
The drama is, in fact, discovered in how the death and resurrection of Christ intersects with our own lives.WE DO NOT KNOW HOW OUR OWN PERSONAL STORY “ENDS.” We do not know how the Paschal Mystery will “play out” in our own lives.
The only way that the Christian story, and Mass, and religious education can be perceived as boring is if we in general find life to be boring. Granted, we do experience redundancy in our lives, but there is nothing boring about the human experience. Our challenge is to tap into the drama of the human experience and show our young people how the death and resurrection of Jesus is found in that experience and how the paschal mystery of Jesus can transform our experience.
One way we can bring our young people to this realization is to be sure that we are always addressing the profound issues of life going on around us. We need to invite our young people to pray for and keep in mind those people who are sick, suffering, oppressed, enduring hardships, experiencing the loss of a loved one, or a relationship, or of a job, and so on. We need to invite the young people to share prayers for people in their own lives who are experiencing these things, as well as the great joys of life…births, accomplishments, victories, vacations, engagements and marriages, and so on.
Life is not boring. It is full of turns and twists that can make our heads spin. We need to invite our young people to plunge headlong into the mystery of life and help them to see how God is found in the midst of it. We do our young people no favors by suggesting that following Jesus is fun or that it will take away all of our problems. The biggest favor we can offer our young people is to recognize the profound complexities of life within the context of the death and Resurrection of Jesus.
My thanks to Fr. J. Glenn Murray, S.J. for touching on this topic in his workshop at the L.A. Congress this past weekend. It obviously made me think!
After a tough night last night with my 8th graders, just 5 days before their Confirmation, I felt very much in need of some words of encouragement this morning. Thankfully, our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI offered the following words a few days ago speaking to parents, teachers, priests, and catechists about the importance of education:
VATICAN CITY, FEB. 25, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Although it is difficult to educate the children and youth of today in goodness, it is not impossible, says Benedict XVI.
The Pope said this Saturday during a ceremony held in St. Peter’s Square to present families, teachers and young people with the letter he wrote Jan. 21 to the Diocese of Rome concerning the vital importance of education.
In his remarks the Holy Father recalled how “education has never been easy, and today it seems to be becoming more difficult than ever.”
This means, he continued, that a lot of parents and teachers “renounce their duty and do not even manage to understand the true nature of the mission entrusted to them. There are, in fact, too may uncertainties, too many doubts circulating in our society and in our culture, too many distorted images propagated by the social communications media.”
Nonetheless, the Pontiff said, “we feel supported by a great hope, a deep trust,” that even in modern times “it is possible to educate in goodness.”
Addressing parents, teachers, priests and catechists, Benedict XVI encouraged them “to joyfully shoulder the responsibility with which the Lord entrusts you, so that the great heritage of faith and culture — which is the most authentic treasure of this our beloved city — may not be lost in the passage from one generation to another, but rather be renewed and strengthened, and become a guide and a stimulus on our journey toward the future.”
The Pope called on parents to remain firm in their love for one another and to show “a coherent witness of life” in order to help new generations “clearly distinguish good from evil and, in their turn, to build solid rules for life that may support them through future trials. Thus you will make your children rich with that most precious and lasting inheritance which consists in the example of the daily practice of faith.”
“Your task,” the Holy Father told teachers, cannot “be limited to supplying notions and information while ignoring the great question of truth, especially of the truth that can be a guide in life.”
He added, “In close association with parents, you are entrusted with the noble art of forming the individual.”
Witnesses
The Pontiff then encouraged priests, religious and catechists of Roman parishes “to be trustworthy friends in whom [children and young people] can reach out and touch Jesus’ friendship with them. At the same time, be sincere and courageous witnesses of the truth that makes people free and that shows the new generations the way that leads to life.”
Pointing out how education is not just the responsibility of educators, Benedict XVI reminded children and young people that they too are called “to be participants in your own moral, cultural and spiritual development. It is up to you, then, freely to welcome in your hearts, minds and lives the heritage of truth, goodness and beauty that has accumulated over the centuries and that has its cornerstone in Jesus Christ.
“It is up to you to renew and develop this heritage, freeing it from the many lies and distortions that often make it unrecognizable and provoke diffidence and disillusionment in you.”
On this difficult journey, the Holy Father told young people, “you are never alone. Not only are your parents, teachers, priests and friends near you, but above all is that God who created us and who is the secret guest of our hearts.
“He enlightens from within our intelligence, he orients our freedom to the good, which we often feel to be fragile and inconstant. He is the true hope and the solid foundation of our lives. To him, most of all, can we entrust ourselves.”
The Holy Father was speaking about education in general, but certainly his words can be applied to religious education. Indeed, educating young people today “seems more difficult than ever.” I know last night seemed “more difficult than ever” and I left as many of us catechists do from time to time, wondering whether I have gotten through to them about the importance of faith in Jesus. On the “eve” of their Confirmation, I trust in the power of the Holy Spirit to ignite the flame of faith within them and to open their eyes to the presence of Jesus in their lives.
Last night, we took our classes to church for the Lenten Sacrament of Reconciliation. For the most part, they behaved very well and it was a very nice service (it includes individual confessions which means the kids need to behave for a long stretch of time). My aide, Kris, and I were talking afterwards about how funny the kids can be. While some of the behavior can be a bit maddening, most of it makes me laugh on the inside. Here are just a few tidbits from last night.
- Kris and I both received one Valentine’s gift each…a small package of Fannie May chocolate hearts. One young man (he’s a tall 8th grader…about 5′ 10″) came into class before we headed to church and handed Kris her gift which I thought was very sweet. Then he handed me my gift without missing a step as though it was the most natural thing on earth to do for a boy to give his teacher a Valentine gift. I was impressed that there was no razzing from the other students standing around. It was so completely innocent and sincere that I had to chuckle to myself.
- Before heading to Church, one of the girls said, “we just went to confession in Advent.” I explained why Lent was so early this year and that, yes, it seems like we had just gone to confession. She responded, “Yeah, but I haven’t done anything wrong since then!”
- In Church, the DRE used the time while kids were going to confession to sign up some of them for roles at the Confirmation Mass. One of the girls then called me over in a good-natured panic and said, “I just signed up to be a reader at Confirmation! I’m gonna make a fool of myself. I gonna mess up! I’m gonna fall down the stairs! I don’t know what to wear!” The kids around her started to laugh as I tried to calm her down (laughing quietly to myself) and one of the priests actually came over and reminded us to quiet down! I assured her that the DRE was going to work with her and that she would be fine.
- After confessing to the priest, each student was to go to the altar, say their prayer of penance, and then write down on a piece of paper what they would do during Lent as acts of penance. Then, they drop the paper in a bowl in the middle aisle as they return to their seats. One of the boys came back and told Kris, “I think I wrote the wrong thing on the paper. I wrote down my sins! Can I go back and change it?” She assured him that God knew what was in his heart and that no one would dig out his paper to read his list of sins.
- After the prayer service, we distributed a study sheet in preparation for their Confirmation test (assessment) coming up in 2 weeks. Immediately, the big question was, “What if I fail?!!! Will I be held back?!!!” Kris and I calmed their fears and told them that if they don’t do well, we will personally work with them to make sure they know their faith in preparation for celebrating Confirmation. We had to remind them that we were not “weeding them out” but assessing their progress and responding as needed.
- One of the young men (whose behavior has been less then stellar all year) asked me if I had gone up to one of the priests to confess my sins! I told him that I had not on this night but that I went during the Advent service and hope to go again before Lent is over. I got a kick out of being checked up on.
- Apparently, this same boy commented to Kris last week (I was not present last week) about his less-than-favorable R.E. report card saying, “Thanks for getting me in trouble with that report card.” Without missing a beat, Kris said, “You wanna see who was responsible for that?” and took him around the corner of the room where there is a mirror on the wall and had him stand in front of it! She said, “I didn’t write your report card, Mr. Paprocki did, but here’s who’s really responsible.” He apparently reacted fine to that. Way to go, Kris!
Oh, these kids are something else, aren’t they! Gotta love em.
One of the most frustrating things that I experience as a catechist is young people who are fully capable of reading but are reluctant to read. I’m not talking about reading aloud…I understand that some people don’t like to read aloud in front of others. I’m just talking about following along in the book as someone else reads aloud.
I especially notice this in the boys. As we read, some of them will just stare straight ahead, look around, doodle on the page, or fiddle with their pen, pencil, or other distraction. As we read, I’ll walk around and direct them to pay attention to the place on the page where we are, and they will “pretend” to read along for a while and then go back to the above mentioned behaviors.
I can only think that they are so conditioned to being entertained by images on video screens that they idea of reading words on a page is becoming foreign to them.
To top it all off, we don’t read out of the book for more than a few minutes at a time. We are constantly doing activities that embellish what we are reading. For example, on Monday, we read about the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, one gift at a time. The text described each gift in 2 or 3 short paragraphs. After each gift was read, the young people thought of someone in their life who is an example of that gift. They wrote the initials of that person on a small tag and got up from their desks to hang the tags on small “trees” (branches) labeled with that gift of the Spirit.
One would think that this activity, moving back and forth between reading and moving about, would prevent the kind of boredom that reading alone might cause. Even so, getting them to focus on the reading for each gift of the Spirit was a task.
I experience the most success in keeping them focused on reading when they have to simultaneously (or immediately after reading) fill in a worksheet based on the text.
I’d be interested in hearing if others experience this phenomenon and what you do to respond to it.
I’m always suspicious of people who tell me that when they were in Vegas, they won X amount of money playing a certain game or machine. They never tell you how much they lost along the way!
In the same way, I’m about to tell you about a moment I had last night at religious education that was like hitting the jackpot. I’ll follow that, however, with a little disclaimer that shows it wasn’t all roses.
Anyway, last night I led a guided meditation on the Corporal Works of Mercy. In this meditation, Jesus enters the room and sits down next to the young person and they engage in conversation about what it means to follow Jesus. Jesus then slowly lays out the works of mercy that his disciples are called to do. In all, the meditation lasted about 15 minutes and I did it for 4 separate groups of 8th graders.
The “jackpot” moment was after one of the meditations, when I was explaining to the group that they had just meditated and that they key is to use their imaginations to engage in conversation with Jesus. A young man then said, “Yeah, it’s like he was sitting right next to me.”
WOW! Isn’t that what we catechists live for? I was thrilled to hear him say this, especially in front of his peers. I told the group that this is something they can practice at home: go to their room, get in a comfortable position, pay attention to their breathing until they slow it down, and then imagine Jesus entering the room to sit and talk with them.
Now, before you think that I had them eating out of my hand all night, here’s what else I dealt with:
- a cell phone going off in the middle of one meditation
- 3 young people who just couldn’t stop chatting with one another
- one young person who felt compelled to just blurt out a comment every few minutes during the meditation despite my directions for quiet
- a mysterious laser pointer whose source I was never able to determine
- 2 young people with the giggles during a meditation
- 1 young person who fell asleep during the meditation
Out of the 4 meditations, I would say 2 went extremely well, 1 was OK, and 1 was a struggle. The bottom line is that we have to let the weeds and the wheat grow together (Matthew 13:24-30). We need patience and endurance to put up with the frustrating part of our ministry, knowing that God’s grace can, does, and will penetrate and make an impact on some who are ready.
Here’s the text of the meditation. Feel free to use it.
Meditation on the Corporal Works of Mercy
Today, we’re learning about what it is that Catholics believe and do. During the next 20 minutes, we’re going to focus on some very specific things that Catholics do. They’re called works of mercy because, when we perform these works, we share God’s merciful love with others.
Let’s take a moment to get comfortable now.
Make sure you’re in a position where you can be comfortable and still for the next 20 minutes.
Let’s quiet ourselves. Slowly and quietly breathe in to the count of 5. (1,2,3,4,5)
Hold your breath for 1 second.
Now slowly and quietly breathe out to the count of 5 (1,2,3,4,5)
Let’s do that again. (repeat)
Now, imagine that everyone else in this room just vanished and that you are all alone, enjoying the quiet.
Before long, Jesus walks in and sits next to you.
He asks how you are doing. Talk to him.
He explains that he is here today to ask you to be one of his followers.
You ask him, “Jesus, what do I have to do to be one of your followers?”
Jesus says, “the most important thing to do is to care for the needs of others. I want you to show mercy to others by tending to their needs whenever you can.”
You ask Jesus, “what do you mean? What kind of needs?”
Jesus says, “let me tell you about the needs that people have and how you can help them:
I want you to recognize when people are hungry and thirsty. Start in your own home. People don’t have to be starving to be hungry. Think about how you can help at meal time in your family. Help set the table. Help to prepare the food in the kitchen. Help to clean up afterwards. But also, keep in mind all the people in the world who don’t have food and water like you do. Pay attention to how you can help with food drives, support food pantries, work at a soup kitchen, or give money to people who feed the hungry.
I want you to shelter the homeless. You are very lucky to have a good roof over your head. Take care of your home. Help your neighbors to care for their homes. Pay attention to some of the ways that you can support people who work with the homeless. Homeless shelters need donations of soap, shampoo, and other personal items…maybe you can help by donating some of these.
I want you to clothe those who have no clothing. Again, you are very lucky to have warm clothes and shoes on your feet. Thank your parents for providing you with clothing and try not to get hung up on spending a lot of money on clothes. Go through your drawers and your closet and pack up some clothing that you can give to someone less fortunate.
I want you to visit the sick and imprisoned. I know that you’re not old enough to visit people in jail and hospitals even have age limits. But there are other ways you can be present to people. You can call or send a card to someone who is sick. If you have relatives that can’t get out of the house often because of their age or sickness, spend some time with them. People don’t have to be in jail to be imprisoned. Some people are imprisoned in their own homes because of sickness. Of course, if any of your friends are sick, be sure to visit them or call them…it will mean a lot to them.
I want you to be of help to others who are suffering the death of a loved one. I know it’s not fun to go to a wake or a funeral, but it means so much to the people who are grieving to just know that you care and that they are not alone. If you have grandparents or other relatives who are widows or widowers, spend some time with them. They can be very lonely missing their loved ones who have died. You probably even have friends who have lost a loved one. Be sure to show that you care and that you are there for them.
Finally, I want you to do what you can to help the poor. I know you probably don’t have a lot of money of your own but you’d be surprised to know just how many people in the world have far less than you have. Do what you can to share with those in need. Save your change in a jar at home and every once in a while, donate it to those who work with the poor. Instead of buying something for yourself, every once in a while, buy something for the poor or give the money to help those who are poor.
Jesus pauses and then says, I’m not asking you to change the world. But if you and all of my followers do what you can, the world will change. I want you to do works of mercy: feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned, bury the dead, and give to the poor. Will you consider being my follower?
Tell Jesus that you are preparing for Confirmation…preparing to follow him in a new way as a young adult. Tell him that you want to follow him but that you need his help. Talk to Jesus about what’s keeping you from truly being one of his followers.
Jesus knows that it’s time for you to move on now. He asks if there’s anything else you want to say to him or ask him. Take time to do that now.
Thank Jesus for this time together.
Watch as he walks out of the chapel and down the stairs.
Spend a quiet moment now with the Holy Spirit.
Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous 16 will answer him and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’ And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Last night, as part of our meditation, I showed the young people a number of different images of Jesus from around the world and over many centuries. Included in the images were depictions of Jesus as an Oriental, as Native American, as Black, and other dark-skinned peoples.
When we were finished, one young man came up to me and asked, “Not to be racist or anything, but how come some of those pictures showed Jesus as Black? I don’t get it. What color was Jesus?”
I explained to him that people have always imaged Jesus according to their own culture. In fact, most images of Jesus that we Americans are accustomed to depict Jesus as Anglo, which of course, he was not. Jesus was a Jew. Some Jews are light-skinned and others are darker-skinned. The important thing for us to remember is that, while the historical Jesus was a Jew, the Risen Christ transcends race and nationality. This is why people of all cultures can depict Jesus as “one of their own.”
This further reinforces the notion that all people are created in the image and likeness of God and it is evidence of the inculturation of the Gospel…the Gospel taking root within specific cultures and speaking to that culture from within.
I promised I would update on how things went this past week with one of my young people after needing to discipline him firmly the week before. That occurred toward the latter part of class and, at the time, he responded by being very quiet. I was curious as to how he would behave the following week.
I’d have to say I saw progress tempered by the fact that this young person is who he is and won’t change overnight just because I intervened.
For the most part, he was his usual gregarious self which I was glad to see. I’d hate to have seen him moping. Whenever he ventured close to his previous behavior, however, he saw my eye catching his eye, and he would immediately stop. I never verbally had to get his attention but needed to do so with my eye on a few occasions. I can live with that because as long as I don’t have to interrupt the session, I’m happy. We look for growth, not perfection.
My guess is that the further away we get from the session when I disciplined him verbally, the more likely it is that he will push the envelope with his behavior. We’ll just have to wait and see!
