The Gatekeeper
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, Level III 
December 4, 2014 - Level 3
In This Issue
The Debtors
Reconciliation Service Dec 10th
Children's Mass This Sunday
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Sunday, Dec 7th, 3-6PM at Chief O'Neill's, 3471 N. Elston Ave: Help bid farewell to parishioners and catechists Myrna Gomez and Tom Kinsella as they move to New York City to be close to their son. Join us at Chief O'Neill's Restaurant for a family-friendly send-off. This is a "no-host" party.

Children's Mass: This Sun, Dec 7th, at 9AM (plus Greenery Sales)

Communal Reconciliation Service: Wed, Dec 10th, 6:30PM
Dear CGS Level III Parent,  
The Good Shepherd

We are in a period of "presentation disconnect" amongst the three meeting days (Sun, Mon, and Tues) due to schedule flux for weekday masses and Sunday Advent Wreath making. However, I will write about Level III studies of Kingdom Parables because all days have taken time over the past month to study one or two parables.

 

When Jesus lived on Earth - when he walked, talked and breathed just like us - people would often ask him, "What is the Kingdom of God like?" One way Jesus answered was through parables. Parables are stories about something ordinary from which we can draw a much deeper meaning. Jesus tended to refrain from listing qualities or giving lectures. It seems that one purpose of parables is to entice the listener to "pick up" the message and work with it further. Jesus' preferred teaching method fits well with Catechesis of the Good Shepherd because our hope is that the child is encouraged to "pick up" the story or the material and work with it further, internalizing it and personalizing it.

 

Children of all CGS levels receive and work with parables. Some of the parables introduced in Level III are especially challenging because, upon first read, they may not sound entirely like God or his Kingdom. One such Level III parable that all days have worked with by now is the Parable of the Debtors, about which I write more below.

 

We hope all families are enjoying Advent Wreaths, and we hope to see you at this month's various events (see sidebar and articles below).

 

Peace,

   Lina Hilko, Editor

The Debtors

The Parable of the Debtors is found in Matthew 18:23-34. This story features a king and two subjects, whom, for ease, I will call John and Paul. John owes the king a ridiculously large sum of money. When the king asks for payment, John cannot repay and pleads for more time. The king gives John far more than he asks for; he forgives John the entire debt.

 

John leaves this encounter and immediately bumps into Paul, who owes John a relative pittance. Paul cannot repay the debt, though, and pleads for more time. John feels no mercy and throws Paul into prison until he can work off the debt.

 

The king gets wind of this interaction and summons John. The king cannot comprehend why John showed no mercy when he had just been shown such great mercy. In anger, the king throws John into prison until he repays his debt.

 

So, at the end we are left with two people, John and Paul, both in the same place (prison) and both equally distanced from their king and his kingdom.

 

We spend quite a bit of time discussing this parable. It has a lot of angles. But one question that seems to always come up is why the king doesn't free Paul from prison. I can't recall children questioning the king's action of sending John to prison, but every time, there is wondering as to why the king doesn't "set things right" by getting Paul out of prison.

 

As I've written before, Level III organizes itself around two key messages:

  • A plan has always existed in the mind of God, the purpose of which is to bring all humanity and all creation into the fullness of God through a cosmic communion of love.
  • The history of the Kingdom of God has been, and continues to be, written by people all over the world, of all types and all ages.  We are each called to contribute to this history.

One thing I like about this parable is that it gives us a chance to think about the importance of human collaboration with God to move toward the fulfillment of God's Plan, to move toward Parousia, the time when God will be all in all. The children feel a tension between the injustice in this story and their perception that "God forgives everything." If God can forgive anything, why is Paul in prison? That doesn't sound right.

 

It is hard to work through the possibility that the king cannot forgive Paul's debt to John. That debt is between Paul and John, and only John can forgive it. The materials in the Atrium do, however, show clearly that John's refusal to forgive imprisons both Paul and John. It's indeed a lot to think over.

 

Just a couple verses before this parable, Jesus tells his disciples, "Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Mt 18:18) In fact, similar words are stated multiple times in the Gospels of Matthew and of John.

 

We can associate these passages with the institution of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, concluding that Jesus was conferring on those disciples the responsibility to impart the gift of absolution. But this passage could also be read more broadly, especially in consideration of the parable. If the words are directed to all disciples (as opposed to the smaller group called the Apostles), then the message is said to each and all of us since we are Christ's disciples through our Baptism. What we each bind on earth is held bound in heaven. I distance myself from the Kingdom when I hold someone bound on earth. Worse yet, I may also distance that person, or even whole groups of people, from the Kingdom when I hold a person or people or an act or acts bound.

 

This is a lot to think about and work through. I'm pretty sure some children leave such a presentation with questions and conflicts. Sometimes it feels unfair how little time we actually have to talk through such a rich parable. I always pray for these beautiful children that they'll encounter such stories again and again throughout their lives and continue to welcome their feelings and questions and keep working toward greater understanding.

Communal Reconciliation Service, Dec 10th 6:30PM

The Sacrament of Reconciliation will be celebrated at St. Teresa's on Wednesday, December 10th, starting at 6:30PM. This service begins with a communal rite of reconciliation (for the first half hour or so), followed by the opportunity for individual confession and absolution with a priest. We invite you to experience this peaceful time of reflection on God's Word and prayer for God's help with the "bindings" in our life that we want to "let loose."

 

It is true that we are asking God and each other for forgiveness all the time in daily life and also when we celebrate the mass. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is one other opportunity given to us through our Catholic faith to experience the gift of God's forgiveness and the gifts of grace and strength to change what keeps us bound. Reconciliation is a celebration of God's love and our communion with God and each other. As such, it can be very special to come as a family and follow the service with a dinner together.

 

Children's Mass This Sunday, Dec 7th 9AM
St. Teresa is hosting its monthly Children's Mass this Sunday, December 7th at 9AM. This month we will even have lectors from the ranks of Level III! It has been our hope to continue to expand the roles children play at mass. We particularly encourage Level III families to attend. Who knows? Perhaps some will get inspired to serve as lectors in other children's masses this year.

 

Please feel free to contact Kate Lynch, St. Teresa's Director of Religious Education ([email protected]), or Lina Hilko, newsletter editor ([email protected]), if you have questions or comments about this information.