We are open until 11 AM on Good Friday, March 29, reopening with normal business hours as of April 1. 

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Friendship and Forgiveness Prayer Space

An activity, including a discussion and a craft, on forgiving friends and family members, based on The Catholic Children’s Bible featured story “Jesus Teaches Us to Forgive”, Matthew 18:21–35.

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Symbol Interviews

A series of interview questions that students can ask married couples about symbols and marriage.

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Remembering My Confirmation

A worksheet where students are asked to interview several adults about their Confirmation experiences.

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The Bible’s Big Picture (Part II)

A description of what a Covenant is, and discussion questions about God’s promises.

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A Restless Heart

Read through the following questions and discuss your answers with your small group.

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Questions about Elisha

An activity in the form of a talk show, Good Morning Israel, about the death of Elisha and interviewing people who came in contact with him.

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Where Is God Leading Me?

A discussion oriented worksheet that includes meditating on scripture passages and answering questions about the readings as well as personal questions.

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Being versus Doing

A scripture passage from the Gospel of Luke about Martha and Mary is read along with a commentary, and is followed by large group discussion questions.

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A Call to Priestly Ministry

This resource is a discussion guide and worksheet about the call to priestly ministry based on the film clip from There Be Dragons.

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Getting to Know Jesus

A partner activity on getting to know Jesus through Scriptural accounts of his miracles.

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The Word to the Page

A worksheet on the topic, facts, main point or theme, and moral or message of a chosen event.

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Three Scriptural Images of the Church

An activity where students are asked to respond to each of the items for each of the three scriptural images of the Church.

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The Acts of the Apostles

A group activity where students are asked to read assigned sections of Acts of the Apostles, and discuss the presented questions.

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The Body of Christ

A customizable assignment on different issues, locations, and groups of people around the world, in relation to the Church, the Body of Christ.

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Cities of the Roman Empire

A group assignment on the cities of the Roman Empire.

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The Gospel of John and Anti-Semitism

A group activity on the Gospel of John and anti-Semitism.

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Analyzing Artistic Depictions of the Book of Glory

A group activity where students analyze the artistic depictions of the Book of Glory.

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Exegetical Methodology: Sociohistorical Criticism

A group assignment on exegetical methodology: sociohistorical criticism.

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Exegetical Methodology: Literary Criticism

A group activity on using exegetical methodology to analyze Scripture.

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Literary Analysis of Luke 10:25-37

A partner discussion of Luke 10:25-37.

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Contextual Reading of Scripture

An activity where students read selected Scripture quotes and generate a list of questions that they want to ask of the text to further understand why it was written.

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Preassessment Pair Activity

A preassessment activity where students work in pairs to match definitions and vocabulary words.

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Imaginary First-Century Letters

Two imaginary first-century letters that describe the difficulties of staying faithful to the teachings of Jesus in a culture that rejects them.

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Socratic Seminar Symbol Codes

A list of symbol codes used to evaluate the Socratic Seminar method.

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The Socratic Seminar

A handout on the Socratic Seminar method, which is a class seminar that gives students the opportunity to test their analytical and discussion skills through oral debate.

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Socratic Seminar: Israel's Demand for a King

Instructions for an in-class debate on Israel’s demand for a King.

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Israel in Egypt

A worksheet where students are asked to work in groups to read Scripture passages that illustrate the development of the Israelite community and identity.

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Small Passage Midrash, from “The Catholic Youth Bible” Old Testament Teacher Guide

An activity where students read an assigned Scripture passage of the mythical genre and then work on interpreting what they have read, from “The Catholic Youth Bible” Old Testament Teacher Guide.

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A Preassessment of My Knowledge of the Sacraments of Holy Orders and Matrimony

The leader’s copy of several preassessment questions and answers used to gauge students’ knowledge of the Sacraments of Holy Orders and Matrimony.

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Life in the Holy Spirit

A number of real-world scenarios that deal with the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit and the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

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The Meaning of Redemption (II)

A set of discussion questions centered around the meaning of Redemption: a matter of unconditional love, from "The Sacraments: Encounters with Christ."

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Sacramental Symbols in Scripture

A listing of scripture passages and complementary discussion questions from “The Sacraments: Encounters with Christ.”

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Preassessment

The Leader’s Guide for a preassessment of students’ knowledge of the Sacraments.

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Story Critique

Guidelines for critiquing “What is My Story?” from “The Sacraments: Encounters with Christ.”

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What Is My Story?

An activity based on reflecting on moments in your life in which you faced a significant challenge, from “The Sacraments: Encounters with Christ.”

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Scripture Readings for Celebrating the Rite of Marriage

A list of Scripture readings that can be included in celebrating the Rite of Marriage, from "Christian Morality: Our Response to God's Love."

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Sharing in the Ministry of Jesus: Priest, Prophet, and King

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Groups of students can answer questions about Jesus as Priest, Prophet or King and reflect on models and characteristics of these distinct but related ministries.

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The Prodigal Son A Story of Conversion

This worksheet is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can reflect on and answer questions about the conversion of the Prodigal Son.

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Redemptive Suffering in the Ministry of Jesus

This worksheet is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students must look up various scripture passages referring to Jesus' suffering and answer questions about the scenario and the significance of redemptive suffering.

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Visual Meditation on the Ascension

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students may reflect on images of Jesus' Ascension and answer these questions.

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The Miracles of Jesus

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can work in groups to look up passages of some of Jesus' miracles and reflect on them together.

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Reading the Parables

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students must look up some of Jesus' parables and answer questions about the analogy and imagery used and the message being given about the Kingdom of God.

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Symbols of Baptism

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. It invites students to reflect on the significance of key symbols used in baptism.

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The Baptism of Jesus

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can read the account of Jesus' baptism and answer questions about it.

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Interview Questions about Your Baptism

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students ask the provided to questions to adults who can tell them about the details of that student's baptism. A reflection on the significance of the sacrament is done at …

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Using the Lectionary to Understand How God’s Ancient Promises Are Fulfilled in Jesus

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can use this handout to explore some Old Testament prophecies that find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ.

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Compare and Contrast: Abraham and Moses

In this exercise the students compare and contrast the covenant experiences of Abraham and Moses to gain a deeper understanding of the role of covenant in the history of the Jewish people.

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Senses of Scripture and the Annunciation

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can analyze the story of the Annunciation through the literal, moral, spiritual, anagogical, and allegorical sense of interpretation.

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Reading Notes and Questions for Student Book Articles 9-12

This reading guide is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can use it while reading other articles from the LIC Series to take important notes and answer significant questions.

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Pentecost

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can read the account of Pentecost in the Acts of the Apostles and answer questions about it.

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The Ascension of Jesus

This worksheet is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can read the account of Jesus' Ascension and answer questions about it.

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What Kind of Leader Is Moses?

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students are asked to look up verses and make assessments about Moses' leadership in the Old Testament.

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Sprint Through Salvation History Scriptural Passages

This activity is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students are asked to explore the Bible for key events in the Old and New Testaments in Salvation History.

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Pass the Bag: A Biblical Affirmation Exercise

Class activity that familiarizes them with scriptural values, increases vocab, and ups self-esteem

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Paul: A Unique Person

Background for the Teacher Saint Paul has fascinated Christians throughout history. The combination of his Jewish upbringing, his exposure to Greek culture, his fiery personality, and his openness to God's grace uniquely prepared him to spread the Gospel. This session …

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Program aims to get youth excited about Bible

Young people in the diocese are getting excited about Scripture and it's all part of a national effort called "Yes! Youth Engaging Scripture." YES is a Catholic teen-to-teen Bible sharing concept and to date, some 1,800 young people have been …

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Leader's Guide for The Master's Companion: A Christian Midrash

Table of Contents Beyond Scripture Helpful Hints for Using and Creating Midrash with Young People Classroom Activities Chapter 1: The Small Black Dog with the White Foot (John 4:1-30)--compassion for animals Chapter 2: A Night in the Garden (John 4:39-45)--significance …

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Leader's Guide for Coyote Meets Jesus

Stories are not just for young children. Everyone loves a good story and good storytelling is a useful tool for teaching. Using folktales as a teaching tool in a catechetical setting or a religion class can help teens understand the …

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Peace Creed

Writing a Peace Creed (15 minutes) 1. Tell the young people that as much as we might want peace to become a reality in our world, being a peacemaker takes a lot of hard work. The first steps are to …

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Family Relationships

Scripture Passage Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. "Honor your father and mother"-- this is the first commandment with a promise: "so that it may be well with you and you may live long on …

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The Final Beginning: Ascension and Pentecost

Overview After Jesus' death, his followers were fearful, angry, grief-stricken, confused, and shattered. About fifty days later, at Pentecost, they were confident, joyful, determined, committed, and passionate. This topic of this session covers the time from the Resurrection until the …

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Who Does the Movie Say Killed Jesus?

Much of the controversy about The Passion of the Christ centers around one question: Who killed Jesus? The Anti-Defamation League feels the movie lays the blame at the feet of the Jews. Mel Gibson, the movie's director, producer and cowriter, …

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Advent: Saint Joseph and Jesus

This can be easily adapted to a video call.  1. Gather the group in a circle for a moment of silence. Light the candle and read these passages about Joseph in the Gospel of Matthew (1:18-21 and 2:13-15). Ask the …

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The Meal Ministry of Jesus

Ask the students to recall their favorite meal celebration. What made it so special? What was the occasion? Where were they? Who was present? What did they eat? What else happened there? Invite them to share with the class the …

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Sacraments Outside the Box

I'm sure that one of the first things you did when you returned to school in September was to check your faculty mailbox. Most schools have a bank of neatly labeled cubbyholes. Get an image in your mind's eye: some …

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Catholic Youth and the Bible: Moving from Biblical Literacy to Biblical Spirituality

Developing one's biblical literacy As a college student back in the mid-seventies, I was invited to be part of an ecumenical student Bible study. Born and raised Catholic, I don't think I had cracked open a Bible more than two …

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Names and Images of God

Fill in the three columns ("Names for God," "Images of God," "Feelings Evoked by Names and Images") for each of the age categories in which you have lived to date. In the "Names for God" box, list all the names …

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Using Literature in Theology Classes

Editor's note: The author of our feature article, Kathleen Hodapp, was one of the participants in last summer's workshop "The Catholic High School As Faith Community," held here in Winona, Minnesota, as well as on the East Coast and the …

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A One-Day Retreat on Service in the Inner City

Our sophomore class day retreat focuses on finding spirituality in the inner city. It is a kind of "urban plunge" experience within a spiritual framework, and students go on this retreat during the same semester that they take a social …

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Helping Students Get the Most Out of Stories

For the past six years I have been researching the power of stories for communicating Catholic religious and moral values. At the same time, I have been experimenting with stories in my high school classroom (tenth- and twelfth-grade classes in …

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The Power of Parables

We all know that a good story will almost always act as an excellent springboard for reflection. Jesus' most effective teaching tool was the parable. He would gather his disciples and tell them a story with a message that moved …

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Taking Off on the Ten Commandments

This classroom strategy is based on a method used by Fr. Steve Brice while teaching religion at Aquinas High School, La Crosse, Wisconsin. Young people love humor and satire. One way to alleviate pressures students feel from the culture around …

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Using Imaginative Retellings in Teaching the Bible

Biblical stories have been imaginatively retold over and over again for centuries. A particular type of retelling, in which students assume the role of a biblical character then retell the story using a first-person point of view, has proven effective …

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Expect Much, Praise Much, Be Present to Them

Course materials, such as the high school religion textbooks and teacher's manuals published by Saint Mary's Press, are a significant ingredient in the education of our young people. But we all know that the most important factor in a student's …

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A New Look at the Sower and the Seeds

This is the text of a reflection given at the opening prayer service of the school year. The concept is interesting and could work well in a classroom or retreat setting. Scattered them wildly about (see Matt. 13:1-53; Mark 4:1-34; …

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Praying the Psalms

Remember the television show from the late 80's called "Doogie Howser, M.D.?" At the end of every show, Doogie would sit down at his computer and write a 2 or 3 sentence "blurb" that perfectly summed up his day and …

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