The Gatekeeper
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, Levels I & II
April 6, 2010 - Levels 1&2, Issue 13 |
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| Dear CGS Level I and/or II Parent |
Joyful Easter! Both Level I and Level II will read an account of the resurrection of Jesus and work with a material called "The Empty Tomb." So, one combined newsletter is being sent to both distribution lists.
Please take notice with your child of the beauty of our church this Easter season. Take notice of the liturgical color, white for celebration. Easter is such a great feast that we don't just celebrate for one day, but rather for 50 days - all the way to Pentecost. Doesn't the church look beautiful? Who does all this for us? How can we express thanks?
And it's not just inside the church that we feel the joy. The whole Earth is literally bursting with joy right now. Take time with your child to notice nature awakening. Every single day there's a new treasure that is just revealed. Yesterday it was hidden, and now here it is. And then ask together: Doesn't the world look beautiful? Who does all this for us? How can we express thanks?
Alleluia!!
Your catechists
and Lina Hilko (editor)
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| The Empty Tomb |
Christ is risen, Alleluia! What a glorious week in the atrium as we present in detail the narrative of the Resurrection of Jesus. We use the Gospel of Mark (16:1-8) and read of the three women who come to the tomb where Jesus is buried. These women come to the tomb brokenhearted as their friend has died. They come to perform the final routine preparations to the body of Jesus under the Jewish custom. The emotions they must have felt when they arrived to find the stone of the tomb rolled away and no Jesus! The women at first are afraid, but they see a man dressed in white sitting on the stone who says to women that they should not be afraid because Jesus has been raised and will meet them in Galilee.
In the Atrium, we have a three-dimensional model of the tomb that we present with the narrative of the Gopel of Mark. It is a depiction of what a tomb might have looked like in Jesus' time in history. The children are individually able to work with this model and the corresponding figures (women and man in white) after the presentation.
We wonder with the children about this amazing story with these questions:
- Who do you think the man in white is?
- How was the stone moved?
- Had this type of event ever happened in history before?
- The light of the Risen Christ has come into the world. What can this event mean for us? For the world? For all peoples?
The Resurrection is so significant in salvation history because it changed and unified the universe! Sofia Cavelletti explains this well in History's Golden Thread pages 156-157.
"Saint Paul observes how 'God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of the cross' (Colossians 1:20). Here Saint Paul presents the resurrection in its cosmic dimension: It is an event through which not only human beings are reconciled to God, but the entire universe is reconciled to the Father in Christ the man. Christ's human body, which comes back to life, is mysteriously linked to all of nature; therefore, nature itself cannot avoid receiving from the resurrection a new, life-giving sap."
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Food for (Parental) Thought |
| The young man in white brought good news indeed. And this news wasn't just for the three women. The young man told the women to go tell the disciples. And we hear this same news today. This is good news for the whole world.
Parents can ask themselves
- How can we spread the light of the risen Christ within our families?
- How often do we recount this amazing event with our families?
Parents can relive the Resurrection by reading and meditating on the Gospel narratives. It is good for parents to nourish themselves spiritually. Just as a mother watches what she eats during her pregnancy because she is feeding two, so too parents must nourish themselves well in their spiritual life because their children derive spiritual growth almost as through osmosis.
Mark 16:1-8
Matthew 28:1-8
Luke 24:1-12
John 20:1-18
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Provide comments to Lina Hilko, the editor, at LHilko@aol.com and/or Sarah Coles, St. Teresa's Director of Religious Education, at SEColes@gmail.com. Thanks! |
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