Learning Our Faith

As we begin the new year in the Church, my son and I begin a new school year and start to looking to start afresh.

At this time of year, we naturally seem to move towards two things every year without fail and without really thinking about it:

games! (more in another post) - he has re-instituted game-night.

studying our faith with a new format. Each year we do something a bit different: one year it might be lesson plans from Our Lady of Victory; another year it might be a Bible study of some sort; another year something else --- and we do tend to start something new again in Lent as well - so we have a series of "studies" going throughout the year.

This year, in addition to creating a wooden Jesse Tree ornament every day of the season, we are also looking to do one of the two Catechisms (we have done levels 1 and 2 of the original Baltimore Catechism as well as the various First Communion catechisms from these same publishers):

[caption id="attachment_1014" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The New St. Joseph Baltimore Catechism"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1013" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="St. Joseph New American Catechism"][/caption]

We won't do both - and we don't do the entire set - but we want to pick just one and can't make up our minds! I hope we decide before Advent starts!

The nice thing about studying not just one catechism, but several, is that the same points are studied in a variety of ways - so if one way doesn't stick, another might. And it gets FAR away from rote memorization and much closer to a true heart-understanding, in which we can enter into true conversations about our faith, without resorting to what happens when I have a door-to-door evangelist at my doorstep. You mention "Eucharist" = a key word - that sets off a particular CANNED response that has nothing to do with what I just said about the Eucharist. This happens all the time, but a particular instance stands out:

Older gentleman at my door.  He is from a local church and looking to invite others to come to church as well. I politely explain that I am Catholic and do not need another church at this time. Oh, he says, CAAAATHOLIC (dragging out the A sound, prononcing a long o and making the last part sound like LICK). And why might I ask are you Cath-oh-lick?

I believe in the True Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

OH! The YOU-KAH-RIST! I see. Let me tell you about this home for alcoholic priests in the thumb of Michigan (proceeding to show me on the Michigander hand-map).

I asked him what his church taught about the presence of Christ in the Eucharist - and he continued to go on about Jesus not actually turning water into wine at the Wedding at Cana - that their wine wasn't like our wine today, etc. etc.

key words = canned response.

And I know Catholics like that too - so this is NOT picking on any particular denomination.

And I refuse to participate. I want a REAL conversation - NOT canned responses!

Stepping off soap-box now! And off to do a blind pick of which catechism to use this coming season of Advent.