Amazing Catechists

Teaching and learning the faith together

BREAKTHROUGH: Small-Group Online Coaching for Creatives Starts This Week!

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If you’re asking yourself, “What’s getting in the way of my creating the life God is calling me to live for his glory? Why do I feel indecisive, blocked, or stymied? Why don’t I have a clear vision for my life?” or “Why does my vision still feel like a pipe dream?” Read on, without delay, because we’re forming Breakthrough small-group sessions that start next week!

Let me explain. God places holy desires in each of our hearts that are meant to lead us to our most beautiful and impactful lives. Those desires show us how we are irrevocably gifted and called, for God’s greater glory (Romans 11:29). We have the opportunity, through Breakthrough coaching techniques, to gain clarity on our gifts and our calling. With a clearer vision, we can then create momentum and progress toward achieving our goals–and knocking down barriers to success. I see this in my clients, all the time. (See end of message for endorsements from current and former clients.)

Small group coaching will allow us to form tightknit, prayerful communities and give each participant individualized attention, as well as a chance to step into your dreams and passions with more confidence than ever before.

You’ll bond with your small community, pray each other through the process, and receive more validation and support than you have probably ever experienced in your life. That’s because coaching involves deep, prayerful listening, playful exploration, and powerful questions that take you outside your ordinary mindset.

New sessions are set to begin on the following dates:

  • Wednesdays: 4-6 pm ET (starting October 10)
  • Thursdays: 4-6 pm ET (starting October 11)
  • Fridays: 5-7 pm ET (starting October 12)

Note: More times and dates will be added, as needed.

Breakthrough groups online will include the following opportunities for growth:

  • One private phone session with me before your group launches, to establish your personal priorities and build rapport.
  • A 10-15 minute Jump-Start presentation at each group session (by me), addressing topics of interest to the group, including creative breakthrough techniques, brain science, Catholic spirituality, marketing, health, relationships, organization, and other common obstacles to creativity, productivity, and personal fulfillment.
  • Two small-group Breakthrough sessions online, per month.
  • One additional private ½ hour phone session per participant, per month, to make sure you’re getting the most out of our work, together.
  • 10-15 minutes of direct coaching of every attendee at every 90-minute online session (no more than five participants per group). FYI, participants determine their own focus for each coaching experience, as well as goals and levels of desired accountability.
  • Up to thirty additional minutes of follow-up comments, encouragement, and sharing within the group.
  • Cost is a rock-bottom sacrificial price of $75 per participant, per month, paid in advance.
  • NOTE: All participants will be required to sign a non-disclosure agreement, to protect each other’s privacy, before the start of the first session.
  • Registration, at this time, is month-to-month—so, no long-term commitment.

To reassure you that this package is not about profits but about growing the impact of the faithful within the Church and in the world, and to show that it is being offered in a way that supports participation at every economic level, here are some clarifying statistics:

  • Base-level market rates for group coaching are typically two group sessions per month at $100 or more per participant.
  • Base-level market rates for private coaching are typically $100 or more per ½-hour phone session, with coaching happening three times per month, at a monthly cost of $300-$500 for private coaching and $500-and-up for executive coaching.
  • My clients pay on a sliding scale, with my full market rate now at $130 per one-hour (60 minute) session.
  • The Breakthrough groups will offer two group sessions per month, plus one private ½-hour session per month, plus one introductory one-hour private session in advance: This is a roughly $300 value the first month and about $200 thereafter—again, for $75/month total (minus any recruiting discounts—see next point)
  • NOTE: Any attendee who recruits another paid, full-price attendee will save $25 per recruit, during the months their recruits participate (with a three-discount maximum per month). Doing the math, that means you could form your own small group of four people to work with me and you would personally participate for free, for as long as that group continues.
  • Those who jump right in with our beta group in October and register by October 9 will secure the above discounted group rate and the low rate of $25 per private ½-hour coaching call with me, for a full year.
  • Note that a portion of your fee is donated to the Catholic Writers Guild.

NOTE: Again, everyone will be expected to sign a non-disclosure form beforehand, to protect each other’s privacy, and I will need to schedule a PRE-LAUNCH, PRIVATE phone session with each of you, as well.

So, pray and act! Let’s get going on moving our lives forward into fulfillment! With God’s help, onward and upward!

For More Information: lisa@mladinich.com 

Blessings in the Two Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Lisa Mladinich

What People Are Saying About Breakthrough Coaching

“I gained so much from my first session with Lisa! God used it to reveal to me that I am actually a creative person. I felt like he was saying to me that people are not saved by seeing the truth of my career, but by seeing his truth. Like he was saying, ‘Come, follow my plan for your life.’” Julie Barlett (recently resigned from federal service, writer)

“From week one, our focus on tangible preparation and priority-setting have been a Godsend. At the time, I was struggling with balancing the needs of my family with my job search and my writing. Lisa helped me spot low-hanging fruit to pick–quickly-attainable goals that would provide some clarity in my job search parameters and create some boundaries with family and friends. When I struggled with a lack of confidence that I could succeed in the workplace, she was there for me with prayer and with invaluable tools for self-assessment to help me narrow my search to companies that would be a good fit for my workplace strengths. We quickly clarified what assets I could bring to would-be employers and she offered resources that gave me good places to start when looking for companies that would best benefit from my personality and working style.” Matthew Souder (research scientist, writer)

“When people ask me how I became successful as a writer, I tell them Lisa Mladinich was the one who changed everything for me! She helped me find and develop my gifts and led me to others who provided me with the necessary skills to succeed. Lisa has that unique ability to see into someone’s heart and find out what their passion really is and gives them guidance about pursuing it. Through a series of questions, insights, and God-given talent, she helps you discover the deepest desires of your own heart. She meets you where you are and gives you the tools to create a map for where you want to be. She is truly a gift to all who have the pleasure of knowing her.” Mary Lou Rosien (author, speaker, ministry leader)

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information, email me at lisa@mladinich.com 

Outrage and Grief: The Nuncio’s Letter and My Response

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“In an extraordinary 11-page written statement…Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, 77, claims that Pope Francis knew about strict canonical sanctions imposed on McCarrick by Pope Benedict XVI but chose to repeal them.” LifeSite News

I have read the Nuncio’s letter with outrage and grief. So much of what I have sensed, in recent years, appears to be true, and we, as members of Christ’s wounded Body, now have the opportunity to address issues of corruption within the Church more openly than ever before. The following is a personal response.

Our beloved Church is infected with a monstrous disease that must be cut out completely, so the Body of Christ can heal. But I am not afraid. I know that we are Davids, and this monster is merely another Goliath trying to appear too large for the small stones of our faith, hope, and love. I believe with all my heart that the giant will be eradicated from the Church, but it will take much time and courage. We must unite with faithful priests, friends, and family–and “be not afraid.”

I am asking Our Lord what I can personally do, and I suspect that fasting and praying are the first steps, followed by repenting of my own sins and doing my best to live in holiness and trust. Beyond that, I am discerning.

I am comforted that Peter walked through the storm-tossed waves as long as his eyes were on Christ (Matt 14:22-23). I pray that the faithful will be able to do the same, resisting the urge to sink into the waves of grief and humiliation by redoubling their efforts to be God’s light on the lampstand, their eyes fixed firmly on Jesus. But even when we do sink into our own human frailty, I pray that we will always reach for the hand of Jesus and let him lift us back into the safety and comfort of his friendship.

In 1969, long before he was Pope Benedict XVI, Father Joseph Ratzinger prophesied that the Church would undergo a dramatic transformation, that it would be attacked and scorned and severely wounded from within, leaving only a small, poor, faithful remnant to carry on the work of Christ’s love in the world. But he also indicated that the faithful remnant would inspire the world to holiness, rescuing souls from the deep loneliness of living without God.

I believe that the corridors of wealth and power within the Church will crumble, yet Our Lord will be faithful to nourish and bless those who persevere with confidence and humility. I also believe that there will be those among the ranks of the corrupt who will experience conversion and redemption, as a result of our offered sufferings, prayers, and acts of trust.

It is vitally important that each of us engage and do what we can to help in this work, but it is even more important that we live each day faithful to our individual vocations: walking in faith each day, loving those God has placed in our lives, and providing a visible sign of hope to others.

It helps me to think of Jesus carrying his cross, the braying mob all around him seeing only his defeat. And yet, Our Lord loved each of them personally and kept rising from the ground, certain of the beauty and power of his sacrifice.

Joining our pain to his cross will magnify our efforts and fill us with the heroic love that is so sorely needed, now. In heaven, we will see the fruits of this struggle and the myriad of ways that God’s glory and power shone through our small efforts.

Love,

Lisa

Image detail captured from CatholicPrayerCards.org. Click for ordering information.

Catholic Halloween! It’s our feast, and we’re going to enjoy it!

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Catechists and parents, Halloween is a Catholic feast that not many of us know the history of–or how to truly enjoy it–so I’d like to recommend a resource for celebrating with our children, whether in our Catholic schools, homes, parishes, or homeschool networks. I talked about it on Relevant Radio, this morning, with Glen Leverenz. (Listen here.)

This self-published resource (sorry about my poor photography) was created by two brilliant women in the Immaculate Heart of Mary homeschool network, here on Long Island, and it’s called, Celebrating Catholic Halloween. It was written by Patricia Bissex; graphics were provided by Lynn Mary Wilson. I’ll give ordering information at the end of this post.*

This magazine-sized, roughly 40-page booklet includes not only the history and delightful traditions of All Hallows E’en (including begging for soul cakes on the vigil of All Saints Day) but helps us and our children to embrace the majesty and beauty of our traditions as a Catholic family: a family that never stops loving each other, even after death.

Celebrating Catholic Halloween provides:

  • A deeper appreciation for the Feasts of All Saints (November 1) and All Souls (November 2)
  • Historical context for understanding the development of trick-or-treating, based on the Catholic tradition of begging for soul cakes on the vigil of All Saints (October 31)
  • Religious customs and the importance of praying for the Holy Souls
  • Fascinating symbols from nature (and food!) that reconnect us to the beauty of our faith
  • Lessons in various academic disciplines, including lovely catechetical games, activities, word games, traditional liturgies, coloring pages, crafts, recipes, litanies, processions, vocabulary lists for various levels, recommended resources, prayers, insights into related sacramentals, and simple but beautiful songs for increasing the joy and reverence of your celebration.

With this simple but value-packed resource, you will be empowered to help children and adults experience the thrill of learning about the lives of the saints and the Holy Souls in purgatory–their family and friends in the Communion of Saints.

A final note and prayer request:

In the traditional calendar of the Church, Mondays are devoted to the Holy Spirit and the Holy Souls, so I’d like to close on this Monday morning by asking for prayers for the  soul of Carmella R. Kosinski, a wife, mom, and teacher, who died last week. She is the very beloved mom of John Harper, the host of Morning Air, on Relevant Radio. He treasured and cared for her in his home, for years. Please say a Hail Mary or an Our Father for her soul and ask the Holy Spirit to comfort John and his family.

I’ll close with two beautiful and powerful prayers for the Holy Souls in Purgatory:

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them.
May their souls and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.

This one is from St. Gertrude the Great and is believed to release 1,000 souls from purgatory at each recitation:

Eternal Father, I offer You the most precious blood of thy Divine Son, Jesus,
in union with the Masses said throughout the world today,
for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere,
for sinners in the universal Church, for those in my own home,
and in my family. Amen.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that our prayers for the Holy Souls not only helps them to get to heaven faster but enables them to pray for us–and their prayers are powerful. These are friends we want to have and want our children to know and love.

958 Communion with the dead.

“In full consciousness of this communion of the whole Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, the Church in its pilgrim members, from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, has honored with great respect the memory of the dead; and ‘because it is a holy and a wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from their sins’ she offers her suffrages for them.” Our prayer for them is capable not only of helping them, but also of making their intercession for us effective.

Please share your favorite All Saints and All Souls resources, including prayers, lessons, and activities, in the com boxes!

* Order Celebrating Catholic Halloween, $25 postage paid: make check payable to Lynn M. Wilson, P.O. Box 432, Huntington Station, NY 11746

Glory Cloud

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This year so far is the best year I’ve had catechizing 6th grade, which is saying a lot, since even the worst year (which I clearly remember) was still a good year. The kids and I have become a little family, laughing, learning, anticipating, finishing other people’s sentences. It’s like sitting around the dinner table and the topic of lively conversation is always Jesus and his Church. The last two classes were like group flow-states, if that’s possible. The kids believe in themselves, partly because they know I believe in them and love them like my own children. Every Wednesday night we hit the ground running, and they are fearless thinkers, knowing that even a fabulously wrong answer can still be a good answer.

Last class we were discussing this Annunciation, and how aspects of both Church and Temple are present in the building. The kids can relate new stuff to old stuff on the fly, and one of them asked if there had been a Shekhinah cloud over the Temple, as there had been over the Meeting Tent.

annunciation1
 Panel from the Isenheim Altarpiece
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“Huh…maybe as long as it contained the Ark; y’all may remember that the Ark was gone by the time Mary was born. But there’s a Glory Cloud in the painting. I see it!  Yes! And in the cloud? The dove, the Holy Spirit!  Yes! But is it overshadowing the Ark? No, Mary!  Yes, because…Jesus is in her?  Yes, as of that very moment when the both Holy Spirit and Glory Cloud overshadow her. Yes, what? Is there a Shekhinah in church?  Uhh…never thought about it. I guess not. Well, maybe it’s there but we can’t see it because of sin (being blinded or veiled by sin is a standard idea). Wow, you could be right! There’s all sorts of glory and saints and angels at Mass with us, so I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole church (arms waving around) might be lit like the sun with God’s presence. It might be like visions Isaiah and Daniel had (they know them). Wow. We’ll get to some of that later this year.” And then we continued to discuss the painting.

I know this vignette is a small thing, but for that weekly hour of class we hover on the cusp of Heaven. This is my life. As the song says, God Has Been So Good to Me.

Another #Amazing #Giveaway! Newsletter Subscribers Entered to Win!

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To celebrate our new, mobile-friendly website, AmazingCatechists.com is having an AMAZING giveaway!!!

If you subscribed to our newsletter longer than a month ago or have never subscribed, we’d like to give you the opportunity to SIGN UP NOW at the sidebar on the home page to be entered to win one of MORE THAN A DOZEN beautiful crucifixes—and to receive our once-weekly posts!

Gold and RedI’ll be raffling off FOURTEEN stunning pieces by the Holy Mass Crucifix Apostolate, which has received the Apostolic Blessings of both Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis! Once you have these extraordinarily beautiful crucifixes blessed by a priest, the Papal blessings will be imparted to them to bring the grace of God to those who use them.

The founder of the Holy Mass Crucifix Apostolate, Roger LeBlanc, frequently receives testimonials as to the power of those graces. Some say their loved ones have been brought back to the sacraments after receiving them! (Please consider supporting his holy apostolate with your Christmas shopping dollars.) He offers this collection to us in hopes of drawing many more souls back to the Holy Mass. What incredible generosity. This is the kind of selflessness that contributes powerfully to a culture of love and life.

As a result, we are GIVING AWAY TEN 5″ “First Communion: Holy Mass Standing Crucifixes,” TWO 3″ pendant crucifixes on black cord, and TWO 2″ pendant crucifixes on black cord. These are exquisite, heirloom-quality, enameled pieces that make great gifts for Christmas, First Communion, First Reconciliation, and Confirmation. Girl Praying

TO ENTER, visit the home page, here at AmazingCatechists.com and scroll down the right sidebar to find our easy sign-up form. Fill in your name and email address. It’s that simple!

I’ll be awarding these beautiful gifts by random drawing from our newsletter subscriber list, starting on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, December 12th.

Our once-weekly newsletter, updating our subscribers on new posts and features at AmazingCatechists.com will begin in just a few days.

Feel free to contact me with any questions, suggestions, or catechetical tips you’d like to share, at the email address below!

And don’t forget to subscribe to our once-weekly newsletter to be entered to win!

Blessings of the Advent Season!

Lisa Mladinich
Founder, AmazingCatechists.com TM
lisa@mladinich.com
Author, “Be an Amazing Catechist: Inspire the Faith of Children” and
“Be an Amazing Catechist: Sacramental Preparation”
From Our Sunday Visitor in English and Spanish

Stained Glass and the Book of Revelation

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sainte-chapelle-parisMost Catholics are unaware of the fact that our traditional church buildings are based on designs given by God Himself. Their designs stretch all the way back to Mount Sinai, when God set forth the design for the sanctuary in the desert and the tent of meeting. Many of the fundamental aspects of our church layouts still follow that plan and the stone version of it that became the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. Our traditional church buildings also have numerous references to the Book of Revelation and the Book of Hebrews, both of which describe the heavenly liturgy and Heaven itself.

There is not time to develop these roots at length in this post today, though I hope to do so in a series of future posts.

Sadly, in recent decades there has been a casting aside of these biblical roots in favor of a “meeting house” approach to church design. No longer was the thinking that our churches should reflect heavenly realities, teach the faith,  and follow biblical plans. Rather, the idea was that the church simply provided a space for people to meet and conduct various liturgies.

In some cases the liturgical space came to be considered “fungible” in that it could be reconfigured to suit various needs: Mass today, concert tomorrow, spaghetti dinner next Wednesday. This thinking began to be set forth as early as the 1950s. Pews were often replaced by chairs, which could easily be moved to suit various functions. And even in parishes that did not go so far as to allow spaghetti dinners in the nave (mine did in the 1970s), the notion of the church as essentially a meeting space still prevailed.

Thus churches began to look less and less like churches and more and more like meeting halls. The bare essentials such as an altar, pews or chairs, a pulpit, and very minimal statuary were still there, but the main point was simply to provide a place for people to come together. There was very little sense that the structure itself was to reflect Heaven or even remind us of it.

That is beginning to change as newer architects are returning more and more to sacred and biblical principles in church design. Further, many Catholics are becoming more educated on the meaning of church art as something more than merely that it is “pretty.” They are coming to understand the rich symbolism of the art and architecture as revealing the faith and expressing heavenly realities.

Take stained glass for instance. Stained glass is more than just pretty colors, pictures, and symbols. Stained glass was used for centuries to teach the faith through pictures and symbols. Until about 200 years ago, most people—even among the upper classes—could not read well if at all. How does the Church teach the faith in such a setting? Through preaching, art, passion plays, statues, and stained glass.

Stained glass depicted biblical stories, saints, Sacraments, and glimpses of Heaven. Over the centuries a rich shorthand of symbols also developed: crossed keys = St. Peter, a sword = St. Paul, a large boat = the Church, a shell = baptism, and so forth. And so the Church taught the faith through the exquisite art of stained glass.

But stained glass also served another purpose: acting as an image of the foundational walls of Heaven. Recall that traditional church architecture saw the church as an image of Heaven. Hence a church’s design was based on the descriptions of Heaven found in the Scriptures. Now among other things, Heaven is described in the Book of Revelation as having high walls with rows of jewels embedded in the foundations of those walls:

One of the seven angels … showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates … The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst ... (Revelation 21:varia).

Thus because Heaven had great, high walls, older churches almost always had a lot of verticality. The lower foundational walls gave way to the higher clerestory and above the clerestory the vaults of the ceiling rose even higher. And in the lower sections of the walls, extending even as high as the clerestory, the jewel-like stained glass recalled the precious gemstones described in the lower walls of Heaven.

The compelling effect of a traditional church is to say to the believer, you are in Heaven now. In my own parish church, the floors are a green jasper color, and the clerestory walls, red jasper. On the clerestory are painted the saints gathered before the throne-like altar in Heaven (Heb 12:1; Rev. 7:9). In the apse is the throne-like altar with Jesus at the center (Rev 5:6); the seven lamp stands are surrounding him with seven candles (Rev 4:5). In the stained glass of the transept are the 12 Apostles joined with the 12 patriarchs (symbolized by 12 wooden pillars). Together they form the 24 elders who surround the throne in Heaven (Rev 4:4). Above the high altar, in the clerestory windows, are the four living creatures also said to surround the throne (Rev 4:6-7).

Yes, it’s amazing! I stand in my church and realize its message: you are in Heaven when you enter here and celebrate the sacred mysteries: sursum corda (hearts aloft)!

The photo above is of the Sainte-Chapelle, a royal medieval Gothic chapel located in Paris, France.

Here’s a video I put together on stained glass. Enjoy these jewels of light that recall the lower walls of Heaven as you listen to the choir sing “Christe Lux mundi” (O Christ you are the Light of the world).

Here’s another video I created. Many of the photos in the video can be found here:

http://www.romeofthewest.com
http://viewfrombackpew.blogspot.com/

And finally, if you are interested, here is a video I made some time ago featuring some of the architectural details of my own parish.

by Monsignor Charles Pope, Archdiocese of Washington

msgr-pope-200x250Amazing Catechists welcomes Monsignor Charles Pope as a new contributing author to Amazing Catechists. Msgr. Charles Pope is the pastor of Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian, a vibrant parish community in Washington, D.C.  A native of Chicago with a bachelor’s degree in computer science, his interest in the priesthood stemmed from his experience as a church musician.  He attended Mount Saint Mary’s Seminary and was ordained in 1989.  A pastor since 2000, he also has led Bible studies in the U.S. Congress and at the White House in past years.  Monsignor Pope is often featured in New Advent and Our Sunday Visitor and is the primary author for the Archdiocese of Washington’s blog, and we are honored that he will be sharing some of his best blogs on theology, art, music, and culture here at Amazing Catechists.   Monsignor Pope has just released his first book The Ten Commandments by TAN Books, a division of Saint Benedict Press.

Fine Art 11: Die Maria Schützt Euch

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Let’s jump right in: I read Die Weise von Liebe und Tod des Cornets Christoph Rilke for the first time in 1982. Here’s that backstory, but you don’t have to look at it. All you need to know is that it’s a prose poem in German, and an elegant introduction to the language.

Yesterday I was admiring Hans Holbein’s portrait of St. Thomas More:

So much of who I think More is comes from this painting. And the same is true for Holbein’s portrait of Henry VIII. And Erasmus. And Anne of Cleves. So I started aimlessly browsing all the Holbeins I could find, because you can often see a lot just by looking. By and by I came across this one:

It’s called the Darmstadt Madonna. It follows a standard formula in which the patron (in this case, Jakob Meyer, mayor of Basel, Switzerland) is at the right hand of Jesus, the Trinity, or a saint; and other members of the family, both dead and alive, are distributed starting at the central character’s left hand. Notice in this case that although Mary is physically dominant, nobody looks at her: the patron focuses his gaze on baby Jesus, as does Mary herself. That’s a little Catholic digression about a content-packed painting which is not the subject of this post.

But what struck me is Mary’s cloak resting on Jakob’s shoulder…a type of overshadowing I hadn’t ever noticed before. Mary is protecting Jakob by ‘spreading her wing’ over him, recalling numerous Bible and liturgical examples of protective overshadowing. I assume that Jakob will extend this protection over his family, and that’s why Mary’s cloak doesn’t overshadow to her left. This image of Mary’s protection reminded me of a line from the Cornet, when two soldiers go their separate ways:

“Kehrt glücklich heim, Herr Marquis. > Return happily home, Herr Marquis.”
“Die Maria schützt Euch, Herr Junker. > The Mary protects you, Herr Junker.”

So then I wondered if that was a standard German idea, to seek or enjoy Mary’s protection. A quick search on “schutz maria” turned up a town called Maria Schutz in Austria, but I was looking for piety, not places. Tried “schutz madonna”, got Schutzmantel Madonna right away, which simply means Protection-cloak Madonna. It’s a very common Catholic image in German-speaking cultures:


Looks just like his Momma.
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SchutzmantelmadonnaFrauensteinIs the Son’s swaddling cloth overshadowing his Mom?
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Both the Queen Mother and her Son the King wear crowns

 

Even popes and bishops want in.

 The Schutzmantel Madonna is such a vivid image that I want to get a statue like these for catechism class. It’ll fit right in with our recurring theme of overshadowing. Yeah, I could print off a nice lettersize handout of one of these photos (and I may do so regardless) but a 3D teaching tool works better than its 2D version.

And the Schutzmantel isn’t just a religious concept. The traditional way a German man would legally demonstrate his adoption (or legitimization) of a child was to publically extend his mantel over the child; so Mary isn’t simply protecting a bunch of people- she’s adopting them as her children. There’s just something about a statue that’ll make that point better than a picture. But for class we’ll first do a quick skit of Mary extending her beach towel mantel over a couple of her peers. Once the kids figure out its significance, then I’ll pull out the statue, we’ll discuss some of the German history behind it, and connect it to the Bible examples we’ve already covered. Then right before class is over I’ll distribute a Schutzmantel Madonna handout, and have the kids explain to me how they are going to explain it to their parents for homework.

Figure no more than 5 minutes on the skit and statue; no more than 2 minutes on the handout and quick review.

Fine Art 10: St. Apollinare in Classe

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My parish included this mosaic in this year’s Corpus Christi missalette:


 It’s located in St. Apollinare in Classe, Italy. Classe is near Ravenna, which has some spectacular mosaics, including these two which I already use in Catechism class to discuss Abel, Abraham and Melchizedek as they show up in Genesis:

Two scenes from Abraham’s life

 

             Abel and Melichizedek


 They’re both in San Vitale, which was consecrated in A.D. 546. St. Apollinare was consecrated in A.D. 549, so it’s no surprise that the art is similar.  I suppose they were done by the same artists.

 Anyway, per this older post I use these two mosaics in September to lay the groundwork for April’s discussion of this line from the Mass:

 “Be pleased to look upon these offerings with a serene and kindly countenance, and to accept them, as once you were pleased to accept the gifts of your servant Abel the just, the sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith, and the offering of your high priest Melchizedek, a holy sacrifice, a spotless victim.”

 But next year I’ll use the St. Apollinare mosaic to discuss the Mass instead of using the two San Vitale mosaics twice in the same year. I’ll point out that the mosaic of all three men and their offerings together around a common altar directly illustrates that line in the Mass. It shows that early on, the liturgy was explicitly connecting their sacrifices to the sacrifice re-presented at Mass. Like a lot of things in Catechism class, I can always tell this to the kids. But when they can see it for themselves they learn better.

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By the way, I checked online for the oldest extant text of a Mass, and found the Gelasian Sacramentary from about A.D. 750. It reads:

 “…et accepta habere, sicuti accepta habere dignatus es munera pueri tui iusti Abel, et sacrificium patriarchae nostri Abrahae, et quod tibi obtulit summus sacerdos tuus Melchisedech, sanctum sacrificium, immaculatam hostiam.”

 In English:

 “…and accept, just as you deigned to accept the offering of your just servant Abel, and the sacrifice of our patriarch Abraham, and that which your highest priest Melchisedech offered you, a holy sacrifice, a unstained offering.” (thanks to Steve Perkins)