We continue our new study, Living as a Disciple of Christ Next class Monday, Dec 5th, at 6:30pm  Looking forward to seeing all our MS youth then!

What we've covered thus far:

• Nov 28: Lesson 12
  • This week, your child learned that:
    • Perfect happiness comes from loving God and being loved by Him.
    • When we choose the good consistently, it becomes a habit or virtue.
    • The Gifts of the Holy Spirit and the virtues should inform the way we act in relationship to God and to others.
    • The virtues of faith, hope, and love help us to know and be in relationship with God.
    • Homework sheet
    • Notes from class
• Nov 14: Lessons 10 & 11
  • Every human being possesses intrinsic dignity because he or she is made in God’s image and likeness.
  • Being created in the image and likeness of a Trinitarian God means that we are made for communion with others.
  • Truth is knowable, and the search for it is worthwhile.
  • There are three faculties of the soul: the intellect, the will, and the capacity to love.
  • The conscience is not rooted in feelings but is a reasoned application of the moral law to particular actions.
  • God is love, and Jesus commands us to love God and to love our neighbors.
  • Homework sheet
  • Notes from class
• Oct 24: Lessons 8 & 9 
  • The Gospel of Luke was written by St. Luke, a traveling companion of St. Paul.
  • The main audience of Luke’s Gospel were Gentile Christians.
  • The Virgin Mary was likely a source for Luke’s Gospel, which contains the most complete infancy narratives and other details only Mary could have known.
  • The Gospel of John was written by John the Beloved Disciple and was the last Gospel written.
  • The Gospel of John is very different from the three Synoptic Gospels and is concerned with presenting Jesus as the Incarnate Word of God who has always existed with God.
  • Homework sheet
  • Slides from class
• Oct 3: Lessons 6 & 7
  • Matthew was one of the Twelve Apostles and the traditional author of the Gospel according to Matthew.
  • Two of the main themes of Matthew’s Gospel are how Jesus fulfills the Old Testament promises of God and the proclamation of the Kingdom of God.
  • The Gospel of Matthew invites its readers to consider how God’s promises to three key Old Testament figures — Abraham, Moses, and David — are fulfilled by Jesus.
  • Traditionally, the author of Mark’s Gospel is thought to be a man named John Mark, who was not an Apostle, but was a traveling companion of St. Peter.
  • Mark wrote to a Gentile audience in Rome.
  • Mark’s Gospel is concerned with presenting the mystery of Christ
  • Homework sheet
  • Slides from class
• Sep 26: Lessons 3-5
  • The Gospels are the heart of Scripture since they convey the life, teachings, and Paschal Mystery of our Lord.
  • Each evangelist wrote in a different literary style to convey the Faith to a different audience, highlighting different aspects of Jesus’ life.
  • The Incarnation is a dogma of the Church that says that the Son of God became man.
  • Jesus is fully divine and fully human.
  • Jesus’ entire life and public ministry were focused on proclaiming the message: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”
  • The Paschal Mystery is how Christ’s Passion, Death, and Resurrection saved us from sin and death for new life as sons and daughters of God.
  • Homework sheet
  • Slides from class

Our program is a dynamic program made and tailored just for Middle School youth that meets on Monday nights 6:30 - 8pm (bi-weekly) We currently use one of the diocesan mandated Religious Education publishers, Sophia Press, and try to keep it engaging so students don’t see it as just sitting in another class. With their Spirit of Truth series, the students have wonderful workbooks packed with awesome information to share with the family. As there are three grades in this class, we follow a three year cycle – Sacred Scripture, Living as a Disciple of Christ, and the Communion of the Faithful. Since our program is bi-weekly, the youth will have homework in their workbooks to complete with parents. The homework is aimed at reinforcing what was learned and bringing the family together in a faith-filled activity. NOTE: homework was not meant to be completed all at once but rather in small 10 minute pieces.

In addition to the bi-weekly gatherings, we ask that each student participate in  

• Assist at a Mass at least once (see Liturgy Assistanc below)
• Attend at least one Community Event
• Particpate in at least one Work of Mercy project (Serving at a dinner, Church clean ups, etc)