• Art
  • Book Reviews
  • Catechism
  • Games
  • Music
  • Special Needs
  • Technology
  • Theology

Amazing Catechists

Teaching and learning the faith together

Menu
  • Home
  • About
    • Patron Saint of Amazing Catechists
    • Donations
  • Lisa Mladinich
  • Columnists
    • Browse by Topic
      • #giveaway
      • Art
      • Campus Ministry
      • Catechetics
      • Catechism
      • Catechist Training
      • Catholic Spirituality
      • Church Documents
      • Columnists
      • Culture
      • Elementary School
      • Evangelization
      • Family Life
      • Featured
      • Games
      • General
      • Grief Resources
      • High School
      • Homeschooling
      • Liturgical
      • Mary
      • Middle School
      • Music
      • New Age
      • NFP/Chastity
      • Prayer
      • RCIA & Adult Ed
      • Reader Suggestions
      • Sacraments
      • Scripture
      • Special Needs
      • Spiritual Warfare
      • Technology
      • Theology
      • Therapeutic
      • Video
      • Vocations
    • Browse by Author
      • Alex Basile
      • Alice Gunther
      • Amanda Woodiel
      • Cay Gibson
      • Christian LeBlanc
      • Christopher Smith
      • Deanna Bartalini
      • Dorian Speed
      • Elizabeth Ficocelli
      • Elizabeth Tichvon
      • Ellen Gable Hrkach
      • Faith Writer
      • Father Juan R. Velez
      • Gabe Garnica
      • Jeannie Ewing
      • Jennifer Fitz
      • Justin Combs
      • Karee Santos
      • Lisa Mladinich
      • Marc Cardaronella
      • Maria Rivera
      • Mary Ellen Barrett
      • Mary Lou Rosien
      • Maureen Smith
      • Msgr. Robert Batule
      • Msgr. Charles Pope
      • Pat Gohn
      • Peggy Clores
      • Robyn Lee
      • Rocco Fortunato
      • Sarah Reinhard
      • Steve McVey
      • Tanja Cilia
      • William O’Leary
  • Resources
    • Bible Stories
    • Book Reviews
    • Catholic Cartoons
    • Catholic Links
    • Interviews
  • Speakers
  • Contact us

Loving ~ Learning ~ Living Our Faith

By Cay Gibson

It is the beginning of the new school year and on its albs comes the new church year.

They come down our hallways and into our classrooms having spent the whole day inside a box. Most of them come forced to our classrooms. They are restless, fidgety, bored.

Every year I give our teachers plans for religious education in the classroom.  I encourage movement and hands-on and trips outside the classroom. Something…anything…to cut through the boredom, their restlessness, their fidgetiness.

I hear those passionate with conviction, desiring to enarmor and impart knowledge. They are wise to desire this transfusion of faith and Word passed from Christ to the Apostles onto the Church Fathers and now to this next generation of Catholic children who are living in a mad, mobile, wired, stressful, furious world.

I realize the church’s mission is to educate.  We must never forget that our religious education programs are to educate, to impart knowledge. I focus on this each year, a learning theme for each class, all the while inviting teachers to take the lesson and let it dance and breathe away outside the classroom.

And that has been a challenge.

I realize we only have one hour a week to connect.

That’s pretty discouraging, isn’t it?

I mean, how does one connect, inspire, and educate in only one hour a week???

It isn’t possible. Or is it?

It is a mission broader than anything we do all week because, honestly, learning about God and His church and its message is more than educating in a classroom. It’s about a relationship that prays, a message that bleeds, a life that loves, an empty tomb that reveals, and a person who teaches all this. All outside a classroom.

I believe, in order to take our religious education lessons outside the classroom, it helps if we focus on the three “L’s” of our faith this upcoming Year of Faith: Love, Lesson, and Live

Our children have to love the faith before they will learn the faith in order that they can live the faith.

This upcoming Year of Faith invites us to have Faith outside ourselves, outside our books, outside our classrooms. To explore our faith anew. I hatched it open almost a year ago in this column and have thought and prayed and harbored some ideas through the past year which are on the drafting board for this Year of Faith.

In my next column I will explore how to take this living, bleeding, breathing message outside our classrooms and into the world.

Because that is what we are called to do with the Gospel message.

{Praying for each of you as you begin this new year of loving, learning, and living our faith.}

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Read all posts by Cay Gibson Filed Under: Catechetics, Catechist Training, Evangelization, Featured

About Cay Gibson

Cay Gibson lives with her husband, Mark, and their five children in Southwest Louisiana and serves her church parish as the Director of Religious Education. She is the author of "Catholic Mosaic" and "A Picture Perfect Childhood" and blogs at Cajun Cottage Under the Oaks.

Comments

  1. William O'Leary says

    September 1, 2012 at 9:49 am

    Great post. Our Archdiocese has launched a Year of Faith theme: Faith: Love it, Learn it, Live it. Yes, it’s about teaching, proclaiming and educating these students so that the can more fully love and be transformed into the image their creator. Our goal is to lead them to a deeper communion with God: Father, Son & Holy Spirit.

    Do you have any sheets you hand out about those practical ways to make the faith come alive? If so I’d be grateful if you’d share them: woleary@kcascension.org

  2. Cay Gibson says

    September 3, 2012 at 8:38 pm

    I plan to share, William. Thank you and stay tuned… 🙂

Follow Us!

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

What’s New?

microphoneNEED A SPEAKER FOR YOUR NEXT IN-SERVICE?

Amazing Catechists can help!

Visit our Speakers page to access our available speakers and topics. And if you don't see what you are looking for, send a comment through the website, and we will get right back to you!

Catholic CD of the month club

Sign up for our Newsletter!

Columnists

Alice Gunther

Amanda Woodiel

Cay Gibson

Christian LeBlanc

Christopher Smith

Deanna Bartalini

Dorian Speed

Elizabeth Ficocelli

Elizabeth Tichvon

Ellen Gable Hrkach

Faith Writer

Father Juan Velez

Gabriel Garnica

Jeannie Ewing

Jennifer Fitz

Karee Santos

Lisa Mladinich

Marc Cardaronella

Mary Ellen Barrett

Mary Lou Rosien

Maureen Smith

Monsignor Robert Batule

Msgr. Charles Pope

Pat Gohn

Peggy Clores

Robyn Lee

Rocco Fortunato

Sarah Reinhard

Sherine Green

Sr. Teresa Joseph fma

Steve McVey

Tanja Cilia

William O’Leary

Archives

Share Amazing Catechists at your website!

Amazing Catechists

[footer_backtotop]

Copyright © 2022 Amazing Catechists. · Log in

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.