Welcome back to school! Consider using this prayer (from the Diocese of Orange) as a prayer to recite each day or once a week in class. We pray that we will come to know and love Jesus Christ in a personal way. We pray that we will grow in maturity as missionary disciples of Christ. We pray that we will become actively engaged in the mission of the Church, joyfully using our gifts to share the Good News, building up the Kingdom of God. Amen.
Chapter Assignments in the Encountering Jesus series are a popular feature! Students are given the choice of three assignments at the beginning of the study of a chapter with the expectation they will be able to complete the assignment within eight to ten days, prior to the time of the chapter assessment. Projects vary by type and learning styles. Each comes with a grading rubric.Listed below are three assignments from Chapter 5, "Challenges to Marriage and Family Life" in a new textbook Your Christian Vocation available now at the Ave Maria Press website.Also, don't forget to signup and use all of the classroom resources for this new text. 1. Research and Report Choose one of the following topics, and research relevant information to supporting its position: Married couples who follow the teachings of Humanae Vitae have happier and more satisfying marriages. The benefits and blessings of a large family strongly outweigh its challenges. Because of Christ and the founding of the Church, women are given more esteem and value in married life than ever before. Divorced Catholics have served the Church well in ministry. Write a five-hundred-word position paper supporting one of these positions. Cite specific evidence and examples to support your claims. 2. Novena for Married Couples Create a novena for of married couples. Novena comes from the Latin word for “nine”; it is a prayer that takes place over nine days. Use the following sample day as your template for designing the remaining eight days of your “Novena for Married Couples”: Day 1 Copy a Scripture reflection on marriage. Home and possessions are an inheritance from parents, but a prudent wife is from the Lord (Prv 19:14). Write a two-sentence reflection on the passage. Common sense, wisdom, and prudence are marks of family life. Domestic happiness depends on these gifts that spouses share with one another much more than on any material possessions that they might acquire. Choose and name a married saint. Write a prayer to this saint on behalf of healthy marriages. St. Monica (332–387) St. Monica, you suffered through the debilitating effects of emotional abuse in your marriage, only to witness the conversions of your husband and your son, St. Augustine. Pray for married couples to persevere in faith that they too might be unified in seeking the Lord. We ask this in Christ’s name. Amen. 3. Finding Solutions to the Challenges of Married Life Interview seven to ten married people (individually, not as couples). Ask each person to name four of the greatest challenges married couples face in today’s culture. Create a chart or graphic organizer to list each of the challenges they name. In an accompanying column or space, offer your own comments (at least two paragraphs per comment) on the challenges mentioned and on possible solutions in light of the Church’s teaching on marriage you learned in Chapters 3, 4, and 5.
In celebration of two December Marian feasts (the Immaculate Conception and Our Lady of Guadalupe), listed below are seven assignment ideas. 1. Create a visual presentation on how the Blessed Mother has been portrayed in art through the ages. Include at least twenty pictures in your presentation. 2. Research and report on one of the famous apparitions of Mary. Examples include Guadalupe, Lourdes, or Fatima.. 3. Write your own Litany to the Blessed Mother. For inspiration, refer to several popular litanies. Litany of Loreto: Litany of Mary of Nazareth Litany of Our Lady of Lourdes: 4. Research and report on Mary as the first disciple. See, for example, "Mary, the First Disciple." 5. Create a booklet with pictures to illustrate any ten mysteries of the Rosary. 6. Research and report on five feast days of the Blessed Mother. 7. Read paragraphs 40–42, the Conclusion of Pope Benedict XVI’s Encyclical Letter Deus Caritas Est (God Is Love). Report on five interesting things he says about the Blessed Mother. Locate articles about the encyclical by conducting an Internet search of the English or Latin title.
