The Gatekeeper
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, Level III 
February 16, 2010 - Level 3, Issue 10
In This Issue
Moral Formation Recap
Reconciliation Meditations
Maxim Work
Lenten Opportunities
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Dear CGS Level III Parent,   
The Good Shepherd

This week, Level III children will work for three consecutive sessions on the topic of Reconciliation.  We begin this week, not by specifically talking about Reconciliation, but rather by reflecting on what it means to remain in right relationship with God.  The series of presentations will culminate with a celebration of the Sacrament of Reconciliation on March 16/18.  Consistent attendance during a series is important to the child's full experience because the work of each week builds upon the work of the previous week.  Please reach out to the Level III catechists if your child misses a session, and you want to collaborate to fill in gaps.

 

Ash Wednesday, February 17th, marks the beginning of Lent, a time of preparation to celebrate the great feast of Easter.  Ash Wednesday mass will be celebrated at 7:30 AM and 7:00 PM at St. Teresa.
 
Thanks for reading,
The Level III catechist team:
   Sarah Coles and Michael Sanem on Tuesdays
   Lina Hilko and Bernadette Diaz on Thursdays
Moral Formation Recap

You may recall reading in the last newsletter that the 9-12 child is ready and able to apply moral rules to the child's own actions and choices.  The Level and Level II proclamations of the Good Shepherd and the True Vine have helped to turn the child naturally, lovingly, and joyfully toward God, like a sunflower turns naturally toward light.  The spiritually-mature child's moral actions are the expression of the child's orientation toward God's light.  On page 154 of Cavalletti's The Religious Potential of the Child, we read, "The enjoyment the child experienced in considering the Good Shepherd's love now grows into the deep joy of knowing himself to be loved and supported, even if one is an imperfect sheep; that the Good Shepherd's love does not stop when faced with deficiency whatever it may be, and that it surpasses every human capacity."

 

This, in a nutshell, is the foundation of this week's reflections with the Level III children.


Reconciliation Meditations

Before ever touching on the sacrament of Reconciliation, we will spend this Atrium session reflecting on scripture passages that remind us of our orientation toward God and light.  This week we will reflect on the words in Ephesians 5: 8:

 

"For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Live as children of light."

 

The children have already heard throughout their Atrium time that in Baptism they received the light of Christ.  Now, we reflect on the subtle difference in wording. Not only do we have the light of Christ, sort of like a flashlight, but we are light.  We go further, though, to think what it means to be "light in the Lord."  What does it mean to be "in" the Lord?  Here we remember the parable of the True Vine from John 15: 1-10.  In these ten verses, we hear the word "remain" repeated ten times.  It must be important.

 

So, we ask ourselves, "How do we remain in the Lord?"  There are many ways to do this.  We'll reflect on the words from Romans 13:12:

 

"The night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light."

 

What is our "armor?"  In Level III, we often point to the helps God gives us in writing a Blank Page in the History of Salvation:  the Sacraments and God's Word.  So, one "arm" we have is God's Word, particularly words which give us rules to live by, such as the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, and the Maxims.  In this series of Reconciliation meditations, we'll focus on the Maxims.  (Interested parents can read a list of the Level III Maxims in the archived newsletter dated 3/3/2009.)
Maxim Work

The children's work starting this session is intended (ideally) to span the whole two weeks before we meet again on March 2/4.  Each child will pick one Maxim that they want to practice specially for these two weeks.  The child may keep notes on their Maxim observance.  This is the child's work.  We are not asking for the parent to help in this task (except if the child asks for it) because, in fact, we want the child to experience how attainable or unattainable this behavior is for them personally.  When we meet again, the children will share their experiences - successes, failures, or just plain forgetfulness.  As we journey together, we learn that it's good to strive and it's human to falter.  God provides us the means and the strength to get back on track, always facing forward.

 

Lenten Opportunities

[Same article as in Level II.]  This week marks the beginning of Lent.  Ash Wednesday masses will be held at St. Teresa at 7:30 AM and 7:00 PM.  Please celebrate this time of preparation by joining the St. Teresa community at mass.

 

If you are still looking for ways that your family can observe Lent, consider doing something to combine your fasting with giving to one of the following organizations:  Operation Rice Bowl (http://orb.crs.org/), Living Water International (http://www.water.cc/), or Heifer International (http://www.heifer.org/).  For more on each, read below or visit their web sites.

 

All of these organizations offer a chance to learn about the world.  Remember during Lent to give thanks with your child for the gift of learning or reading.  Our children may take it for granted, and even wish for snow days off of school.  There are so many children who yearn to read and learn but instead do tasks just to stay alive.  So, if your Lenten observation includes reading or learning, give yourself credit for making good use of this gift!

 

Operation Rice Bowl

This year as in the past, St. Teresa offers families the opportunity to become more aware of global hunger and thirst while helping to support Catholic Relief Services through Operation Rice Bowl.  The program comes with a calendar to help guide a family through Lent.  This is a great opportunity for you and your child to learn about other countries; for your child to use math to figure out the amount saved by certain fasting choices; or for your child to learn to cook basic foods, such as rice or noodles.  Make choices which get your child involved hands-on.

 

Living Water International

You may recall from our CGS newsletters during Advent that we provided a link to "Advent Conspiracy."  Living Water International is the organization supported by Advent Conspiracy.  This organization addresses the "most basic of needs by helping deprived communities acquire safe, clean water."  You can learn a lot from their web site, such as this fact:

"A child dies every 15 seconds because of the lack of clean water.  It costs us an average of $0.98 to provide clean, safe water to one person for one year:  every dollar makes a difference."

There are many creative ways that a family can contribute to a solution to this global crisis.  There's also a lot of great opportunity to exercise math skills.  For example, does your child drink juice from time to time?  Can you calculate the cost of one serving of juice or one juice box (about 15-40 cents)?  Stick two containers on your refrigerator, one full of dimes (labeled something like "Fast") and the other empty (labeled something like "Give").  Each time a family member opts for tap water instead of juice (or soda), they can move the right amount of dimes (whatever you decided, such as two dimes) from the "Fast" bucket to the "Give" bucket.  On Fridays your child can count by tens to calculate the dollars in the "Give" bucket.  (Then move all the dimes back to "Fast" and start over.)  Each dollar can be represented by one paper person (cut out simple paper dolls from some sort of catalog you would have recycled anyway).  Make a chain of paper people representing every dollar you have fasted in order to give to Living Water International.  Visually delight in how many people can receive the gift of clean water for one year due to your Lenten efforts.

 

For even more math and more water-awareness, credit yourself with savings for taking shorter showers or for turning off water while you soap and shampoo.  You can work with your child to estimate the cost of tap water and estimated savings from using less water.  However, since water is relatively inexpensive, you might want to attribute some other monetary crediting to this good environmental behavior in order to save more dimes and add more paper people to your Living Water people chain.

 

Did you know that "Clean water combined with hand washing can eliminate 70% of disease?" (http://www.water.cc/schools/)  How about crediting yourself with one dime before every time you wash your hands during Lent.  Your Living Water people chain will grow a lot!  And every time you wash your hands (something you may take for granted), you'll remember how something so basic can make a huge difference.

 

Heifer International

Could your family save up enough to give chickens, rabbits, or a sheep to a family in need?  Through Heifer International, you can do just that:

"With gifts of livestock and training, we help families improve their nutrition and generate income in sustainable ways. We refer to the animals as "living loans" because in exchange for their livestock and training, families agree to give one of its animal's offspring to another family in need. It's called Passing on the Gift - a cornerstone of our mission that creates an ever-expanding network of hope and peace." (citation)

You can watch a short video about Heifer.  Consider whether this Easter the baskets you give contain a Heifer chick or bunny.  Maybe your child can save toward this cause by taking on a pet-care chore and receiving a dollar each time they do it.  Think about animal-related works that can lead to savings toward Heifer livestock. 
Please feel free to talk to Lina Hilko (LHilko@aol.com) or Sarah Coles (secoles@gmail.com) with your questions, comments or concerns about Level III or this e-newsletter.