August 15 is the Feast of the Assumption of Mary into Heaven.
The Assumption was when Mary's body was assumed or taken up to Heaven through the power of God to be with her Son, Jesus. By declaring that the Assumption was a dogma of faith, Pope Pius XII was only confirming what the people of the Church had believed for centuries.
An annual feast day on August 15 to honor Mary is thought to have been celebrated in the Holy Land as early as the sixth century. A bishop of that era wrote about a celebration on the anniversary of Mary's "falling asleep." The Eastern Church named the feast "The Falling Asleep of the Mother of God."
The dogma of the Assumption holds that Mary's body, born without Original Sin, was incorruptible and was taken to Heaven after her death. The Assumption of Mary has been included in many legends and stories. In the fifth century, at the famous Council of Chalcedon, the Eastern Roman emperor asked the Bishop of Jerusalem to have the relics of Mary's body brought to Constantinople. The bishop is said to have responded, "Mary died in the presence of the Apostles, but her tomb, when opened later on the request of St. Thomas, was found empty, and thus the Apostles concluded that the body was taken up to Heaven."
Mary was the first disciple of her Son and her Assumption is a preview of our own fate after death. Catholics believe in the resurrection of the body and soul.
In 1 Corinthians 15:40–44, Paul describes the attributes of our heavenly bodies as imperishable, glorious, powerful, and spiritual. In Heaven, we will never die again.
The Feast of the Assumption is a good chance to remind everyone to take care of their bodies and respect them as Temples of the Holy Spirit, for our bodies are the seed from which our heavenly body will some day blossom.
Discussion Questions
How do you imagine your own heavenly body?
What "age" do you think you will be in Heaven?
Do you think it is important for the Church to speak infallibly on certain matters of faith? Which ones? Why?
Assumption Activity
Outline a workable program of diet and exercise you plan to take as an adult to show respect for your body.
No matter the subject of your theology course, a good place to begin is to remind your students of the natural and insatiable human desire for God. Reprint the following as a worksheet. Choose five different students to read the quotations. Then allow time for all of the students to write answers to the questions in their journals. Allow the chance for followup discussion, first in small groups, and then by calling on volunteers to summarize the discussion for the entire class. Our Desire for God
As human beings, we believe that all good things must come to an end and that nothing beautiful lasts forever. But we don’t like it. We want the good without end and beauty that never fades. That’s why we are constantly on the lookout for whatever is lasting and real. As Christians, we acknowledge that that everlasting reality is no thing or talent or attribute or even virtue. It is nothing less than God.
As the deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God. My being thirsts for God, the living God. When can I go and see the face of God? Psalm 42:1–3 The desire for God is written in the human heart, because man is created by God and for God; and God never ceases to draw man to himself. Only in God will he find the truth and happiness he never stops searching for. Catechism of the Catholic Church #27 If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not prove that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing. C. S. Lewis For everything that is not God is unable to fulfill my desires. It is you alone I seek, that I may have you. O Lord, open my heart. Jesus Christ, my Savior, the express image and character of your essence is that image and likeness I desire. Blaise Pascal The simple desire for God is already the beginning of faith. All of us have doubts. They are nothing to worry about. Our deepest desire is to listen to Christ, who whispers in our hearts. Brother Roger of Taizé
Journal Questions
Do any of your desires (e.g., relationships, reputation, security, comfort, material things, other) compete with your desire for God? Which ones?
Have any of the desires you illustrated—or any others (e.g., sexual desire, selfishness, over-indulgence, status, money, etc.)—been overwhelming for you?
What are you afraid of? What, if anything, does your fear tell you about your relationship with God?
Right now—at this moment in your life—what is the state of your desire for God? Do you desire God? Do you desire to desire God?
The logo for World Youth Day 2011 in Madrid, Spain was unveiled last week.The logo designer, José Gil-Nogués, explained that the image symbolizes "youth of the whole world united to celebrate their faith together with the Pope, at the foot of the cross, and they form the crown of Our Lady of Almudena, patron of Madrid." The crown forms the "M" of Mary and of Madrid. The cross of Christ presides over the event.As a fun exercise, have your students translate the Archdiocese of Madrid announcement of the World Youth Day logo from Spanish to English. Or, they can do a similar exercise from the official World Youth Day 2011 website.
St. Maria Goretti and Bl. Kateri Tekawitha together lived a total of 35 years. Their courages examples will no doubt live on forever. Each saint is honored in the month of July.
Maria Goretti was born in 1890 in the village of Corinaldo, near Ancona, Italy. Her family was poor. When she was nine years old, Maria's father died while her mother was pregnanat with the family's sixth child. In order to survive they had to migrate as tenant farmers. Traveling with the Goretti's was a family friend, Serenelli, and his fourteen-year-old son Alesssandro, whose mother had also died.The two families came to share living spaced in an old barn divided into separate quarters. A statue of the Blessed Virgin was placed in the common area in the center. At age 12, Maria's job was to care for the younger children while the others worked in the fields. She didn't know how to read or write, but she had been taught the Gospels and the Catechism.Alessandro became sexually attracted to Maria. He threatened her with his advances, telling her he would kill her if she told anyone about them. One day he came in early from the fields and told Maria to come inside the house from the upstairs landing where she was sewing a shirt. Maria refused. Alessandro grabbed Maria and dragged her into the kitchen area. Covering herself, she told him he would go to Hell for what he was about to do. Alessandro took a sharpened knife and stabbed Maria fourteen times.She survived for about 24 hours. During that time she forgave Alessandro. "I want him to be with me in Heaven," she said.For the murder of Maria, Alessandro was sentenced to thirty years in prison. There, he had a vision of Maria handing him flowers. His heart was changed. The first thing he did when he was released was to visit Maria's mother and beg for her forgiveness. When Pope Pius XII canonized Maria in 1950, Alessandro was at St. Peter's Square in attendance. Her feast day is on July 6.
Kateri Tekawitha was born in 1656 in an area which is now upstate Nw York. Her father was a Mohawk chieftain who had married her mother, Kahenta, an Algonquin, during the conequest of her tribe. What her father didn't know was that Kahenta was a Christian. She had been converted by the Jesuits and secretly prayed with a white Christian captive.Kateri's entire family died of smallpox when she was only four years old. The disease left Kateri's faced pocked, her eyesight poor, and her legs weakened. In a culture where marriage was a prime goal for a woman, Kateri was shunned by her people because of her appearance. She was treated harshly and forced to do much of the menial labor for the tribe.When her tribe allowed the Jesuit missionaries to preach to them, Kateri was attracted to the Gospel and was baptized. (Kateri means "Catherine.) Finally she was able to escape to Canada where she spent her last years helping the sick and elderly and living with other Catholics. She died at the age of 23.In a society and culture obsessed with outward bodily appearance and sex outside of marriage, Maria Goretti and Kateri Tekawitha represent the importance of inner beauty and moral decision-making. As St. Paul wrote, "The body, however, is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the the Lord is for the body" (1 Cor 6:13).As teens grow in their sexuality, they should be reminded that sexuality is a gift from God, that God gives them the powerful feelings that attract them to other people. Also, God gives us the self-control to be able to act on the choices that are right. Remind teens that our bodies are God's gift to us. They are meant to give glory to God, not to bring shame.Additional Lessons
Present a lesson on chastity, drawing on the material in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2331-2359.
Assign 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 for reading. Ask the students to consider how the description of the body as the temple of the Holy Spirit might affect the choices they make regarding their sexuality.
Have the students prepare and enact role-plays that express attitudes of respect and care for their bodies and the bodies of others.
Discussion Questions
When was a time you feared for your life or physical safety? How was the situation resolved?
How important is physical and outward appearance to people in your peer group?
St. Paul wrote that the body is a "temple of the Holy Spirit." What does this mean to you?
Provide teens with a piece of drawing paper and some colored markers. Tell them to take your cues and write their responses to the following in graffiti-style on the paper. Tell them they will not have to share what they write, but that they should do this exercise in the spirit of prayer. Read each of the following cues, pausing between each to allow for writing.Prayer Cues
Write the first name of someone from elementary school you once teased.
Write a word or symbol to describe an argument you had with a parent.
Write a word or symbol to describe a lie you once told or that was told to you.
Write a word or symbol to remind you of an act of vandalism you once committed or was committed against you.
Write a word or symbol to remind you of a time you once listened to gossip or told a rumor about someone else.
Write three practical steps you can take to put an end to one area of sinfulness in your life.
Ask the participants to close their books and put their pencils down. When it is silent, read from Paul's Letter to the Colossians:Away then with sinful, earthly things; deaden the evil desires lurking within you; have nothing to do with sexual sin, impurity, lust, and shameful desires; don't worship the good things of life, for that is idolatry. Now is the time to cast off and throw away all those rotten garments of anger, hatred, cursing, and dirty language. Don't tell lies to each other; it was your old life with all its wickedness that did that sort of thing; now it is dead and gone. You are living a brand new kind of life that is continually learning more and more of what is right, and trying constantly to be more and more like Christ who created this new life within you. Since you have been chosen by God who has given you this new kind of life, and because of his deep love and concern for you, you should practice tenderhearted mercy and kindness to others. don't worry about making a good impression on them but be ready to suffer quietly and patiently. Be gentle and ready to forgive; never hold grudges. Remember, the Lord forgave you so you must forgive others. Most of all, let love guide your life. Let the peace of heart which comes from Christ be always present in your hearts and lives, for this is your responsibility and privilege as members of his body. —Colossians 3:5, 8-10, 12-15Ask the teens to stand, take both hands of another person, and look the person in the eyes as they say the Confiteor from Mass. With your prompting, they should be able to join in:I confess to almighty God, and to you my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done, and in what I have failed to do; and I ask blessed Mary, ever Virgin, all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray to me to the Lord our God.
As teens begin a new school year, there will be many opportunities, some of them wasted, for making new friends. Hold a discussion on friendship and the ways to meet new friends. Ask teens to share some of the ways they have made new friends. Summarize and record their responses on a board. Then offer the following suggestions to complement their list:
Be yourself. This is probably the most important rule. Think back to when you were a little kid: you didn't have to be a "phony," that is, pretend to be someone else in order to make friends. The same holds true today. When other people see you doing things like expressing your own beliefs in a classroom discussion, going out of the way to talk to all classmates (not just a certain few "cool" people), dressing the way you like, etc., they will know much of the real you before even having the chance to talk with you. Their expectations of you will be realistic: "What they see will be what they get."
Ask someone to do things with you. Most people are "just waiting to be asked"—to play basketball, to study together, to go to a movie, to sit together at lunch. Take some initiative and invite someone you have never talked with to do something with you. The worst that can happen is that the person will say no.
Participate. Try out for a team, audition for a play, join a club, volunteer your time for a service organization. When you participate in something you like or deem worthwhile you are likely to find other people with the same talents and interests. Friends are often drawn together because of these similarities.
Communicate. One side of communication is to be a good listener. Friends listen to each other and carry on productive dialogue. This is different from a "shared monologue," in which two people trade off telling their stories without really paying attention to the other.
Optional: Invite a teen who has been at the school (or youth group) for less than a year to talk about the transition he or she faced and how he or she went about meeting new friends. Ask the person to respond to the following questions:
Could you tell us about someone who greeted you when you first arrived?
How were you made to feel welcomed?
What is something you learned about "making friends" in your first year at this school (or parish)?
- For links. Paste the URL in between the "".
The following prayer service is intended to encourage teens to avoid alcohol and drugs and to treat their bodies in healthy ways. It is taken from Everybody's Problem: Addiction and Recover by Therese Borchard.
1. Light a candle and darken the prayer space. Tell the teens to enter the space and quietly stand around the candle. When all are present and silent, lead this prayer:
Dear God,alcohol and drugs have hurt many people we know.We seek your help to encourage those affected by alcohol and drugsto seek a right course and become thepeople you intend them to be.We ask this prayer in the name of your Son,Jesus Christ.Amen.2. Say: "We all want to become a 'better me.' We all want to be healthy people in body, mind and spirit. With God's help, the help of others, and our own persistence, we can become the people God intends us to be. Take some time to write honest responses to the following questions (write on board or recite slowly):
What discourages you from treating your body in a health way? What discourages you from developing your mind to its fullest potential?
What discourages you from knowing God better and putting God first in your life?3. When everyone has completed the questions, have the teens recite the following prayer of Charles de Foucauld (make copies or project for everyone to see):Father,I abandon myself into your hands; do with me what you will.Whatever you may do, I thank you: I am ready for all, I accept all.Let only your will be done in me; and in all your creatures—I wish no more than this, O Lord.Into your hands I commend my soul; I offer it to you with all the love of my heart,without reserve, and with boundless confidence,for you are my Father.Amen.
4. Next, tell the teens to reflect and write responses to the following questions (write on board or recite slowly): What encourages you from treating your body in a health way?
What encourages you from developing your mind to its fullest potential? What encourages you from knowing God better and putting God first in your life?5. For the final prayer, ask everyone to stand around the candle and recite the Our Father.
Michael Pennock, author, teacher, and dear friend of all of us at Ave Maria Press, passed away Wednesday evening in his home in Austin, Texas. His loving wife Carol, who Mike recently described as "my saint," was with him when he died. Mike had an aggressive and virulent form of stomach cancer that was only diagnosed in April.Carol said that just before he died, Mike lifted up his hand to her as if he were waving good-bye. She said he also had the "biggest smile" on his face.If I were Mike Pennock writing about someone as faithful to Christ, the Church, and his family as Mike Pennock was, I would note the appropriateness of Mike's passing on the birthday of St. John the Baptist, June 24. John was God's Herald, who came to the world to testify to Jesus Christ, the Light of the World.To the nearly 15,000 students Mike taught in the classroom at Moeller High School in Cincinnati and St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland and nearly two million more students who have used his textbooks over nearly thirty years, Mike has indeed been a herald of his Savior, Jesus Christ.As Mike has always done for the sixteen years I have worked with him as an editor, he was way ahead of himself on his latest projects. He had recently completed three textbooks that will soon be released to provide support for the United States Catholic Bishops' National Framework. In one of them, he wrote:If we imitate Jesus in his love for others, then we need not fear death. Jesus Christ wants us to befriend him in this life so we can live joyfully with him in eternity. This is not only the Good News of the Gospel; this is the greatest news we could possibly want to know.
V. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord.
R. And let perpetual light shine upon them.
V. May their souls and the souls of the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
R. Amen.
Please address condolences to:Carol Pennock and Familyc/oAve Maria PressBox 428Notre Dame, IN 46556
