Grade 6 Lesson 13: chapters 17 & 18 Key Points A vocation is the purpose for which God made us and a particular way to answer his call, whether as a lay person (married or single), a member of a religious community, or a member of the ordained ministry. Holy Orders is the Sacrament in which a baptized man is ordained to teach the faithful, lead divine worship, and govern the Church. The Magisterium is the teaching office of the Church. Consecrated religious life is a state of life lived in community and characterized by the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Matrimony is a Sacrament at the Service of Communion in which a baptized man and woman make a permanent covenant of love with each other and with God. The domestic Church is a name for the Catholic family because it is a community of Christians. Materials The Shamrock Saint (Active Learning Int 2) Ministry Crossword (Activity Master 233E) Please bring a laptop or tablet. Wi-Fi password: AllisHoly Catechist Prayer before the lesson: Almighty Father, grant me the creativity to do the work to which you have called me. Help me find support that will keep me from being discouraged. And guide me in offering my own support to others. Amen. Before the lesson: Hand out Ministry Crossword and allow them to start working on it. Note: this is a full lesson, just do your best to cover what you can! [10 min] Invite Lives of Service (p. 233) Ask the students if they have any prayer requests. Pray the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be. Recite the prayer and Scripture passage on page 233. Discuss the What Do You Wonder questions. [15 min] Discover Called to Serve (p. 234-237) Ask: Why do we have the washing of the feet at Mass on Holy Thursday? Read the story of the Washing of the Disciples Feet on page 234. Why did Jesus wash his Disciples feet? Read page 235 about vocations. Explain: God has a plan for each of our lives. Another word for our calling in life is vocation. When you find your vocation, you will live a happy and fulfilled life. Vocations fall into these categories: o Clergy (bishop, priest, deacon) 1
o Religious (monks and nuns) o Lay people (married and single people) Read page 236 about ordained and religious life. o An ordained man s soul is permanently changed, so that he will remain a priest even in the afterlife. A priest s hands are anointed with Chrism to give him the power to bless in Jesus name. When the bishop lays hands on the priest, he confers on him the power of the Holy Spirit to perform the Sacraments in persona Christi (in the person of Christ). Share some vocation statistics: o There are 74 million Catholics in America, and over a billion Catholics in the world. o There are 37,192 priests in America today. Two-thirds of these work as parish priests, and the other third live in religious communities (i.e. monks living in monasteries). o Last year, there were 548 new priests ordained. o There are 18,173 deacons in America. o There are 47,170 sisters (nuns) in America. o There are 4,119 brothers (monks) in America. But the total is 15,551 when adding in priests who also live in religious communities. There are many different Orders of consecrated religious life. Some are more active in the world, like the Franciscans and Missionaries of Charity, who work in cities to help the poor. Some focus on teaching in universities, such as the Dominicans, Jesuits, and Benedictines. And some lived a cloistered life, which means they never leave the monastery so that they can focus on a life of contemplative prayer, such as the Carmelites, Trappists, and Carthusians. [10 min] A Day in the Monastery Watch A Day in the Monastery by Mississippi Abbey https://youtu.be/e3fyflw3btq o What are the three elements of the tripod of religious life? Work Lectio Divina ( divine reading ) Prayer o The Divine Office means praying the Liturgy of the Hours, which are the prayers of the Church that follow the Liturgical calendar. The nuns meet seven times a day in their Church to pray the Divine Office together, starting at 3:30 am. o The Grand Silence is the time of day when no one in the community is allowed to speak. This lasts from 5:30 pm to 7:30 am. o Why did the nuns join the monastery? To spend their life with Jesus. To praise and glorify God. To be prayer for the world and intercede for the others. o The nuns in the video belong to the Trappist Order, which is also called the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance. They live in Dubuque, Iowa and make their living by making and selling caramels. There is also a community of Trappist monks in the area who make their living by making wooden caskets, which are sold across the country. o There is a community of Cistercian nuns in Prairie du Sac. 2
[10 min] The Shamrock Saint Hand out The Shamrock Saint worksheet. Let the students work in pairs, or together as a group if the questions are too difficult. Be sure to give some hints using the answer sheet attached below, or write a word bank on the board. o Ireland x 2 o Latin o Irish o shepherd o England o priest x 2 o bishop o love o shamrock o trinity o God [15 min] Discover Together in Holiness (p. 244-247) Read about the vocation of Matrimony on pages 244-247. o How is marriage a sacrament? o In what ways is a family a domestic Church? o What are the Sixth and Ninth Commandments? (Found on page 315.) Explain what the textbook means by committed single life on page 247: Some people are called to live their lives in consecrated celibacy, which means they neither get married, nor become a priest or join a religious order. They make a vow to God to always stay single as a layperson, so that they can better serve others in their community. [10 min] Vocations Discussion Discuss the different vocations. You can divide the class into small groups first, then discuss as a class: o What are some good things about being a priest? o What are some good things about being a monk or a nun in consecrated religious life? o What are some good things about married life? o What are some good things about single life? [10 min] Sending Prayer of Blessing (p. 250) Pray the Memorare. Select Students to read and recite the Prayer of Blessing Remind the students to read the Family+Faith pages with their parents. 3
Ireland Latin Irish shepherd England priest priest bishop love Ireland shamrock trinity God All hail St. Patrick, and God bless the Irish. 4
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