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Leadership and Service
Back in July, all the conditions seemed ideal for my first attempt at climbing Mount Rainier. I was in the best physical shape possible. I was emotionally and spiritually ready to climb Tahoma, the "Mountain of God." The weather that …
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Intergenerational Service Project
Objectives to provide layette and nursery supplies for families in need to bring together girls and women to serve, build community, and pray to stimulate intergenerational dialogue among girls and women to reflect on the physical and emotional needs of …
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Anointed to Love
Luke 4:21-30 begins with the phrase, "Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing." It is the same phrase that ended a previous passage of Luke. The Spirit of God has anointed Jesus; where the Spirit of God has …
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Emergency Phone Numbers
When in sorrow, call John 14. When men fail you, call Psalm 27. If you want to be fruitful, call John 15. When you have sinned, call Psalm 51. When you worry, call Matthew 6:19-34. When you are in danger, …
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Excerpts from Listen for a Whisper: Prayers, Poems, and Reflections by Girls
God is with her. God works for her. God fills her. God chooses her. God accepts her. God praises her. God listens to her. God cries with her. God knows her. God loves her. We are her. Quotes taken from …
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Listening to the Voices of Girls
God is with her. God works for her. God fills her. God chooses her. God accepts her. God praises her. God listens to her. God cries with her. God knows her. God loves her. We are her. In eleven short …
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The Color Purple
A CAUTIONARY NOTE: One of the criticisms of The Color Purple is that it depicts the men in the story as primarily abusive. Also, this movie is PG-13, mostly because of the violence and strong language. We recommend the movie …
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Technology assignment - Catholic Social Teaching
Over ten years ago, I began using my home computer to file and create documents for my students. My high school, located in the heart of Silicon Valley, already had a very well-developed technological infrastructure. Internet searches, e-mail, PowerPoint presentations, …
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The Buzz About the Theology-Technology Connection
"What's the buzz? Tell me what's happenin'!" I'm sure many of you recognize those lyrics from "Jesus Christ Superstar." I think of that song whenever the topic of technology comes up, which is often. In-services, workshops, and professional journals regularly …
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Teaching the Rite Way
Mix a little ancient Chinese with some fifth century Latin and you have "the rite thing" for teaching sacraments. Let me explain. I hear, and I forget. I see, and I remember. I do, and I understand. --Ancient Chinese proverb …
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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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The Late Great Catholic High School
"Jesus is everyone's department!" That is what I found myself exclaiming as I argued with a fellow teacher and friend about why she only wanted the religion teachers in our high school to offer extra credit to students if they …
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An Easter Reflection
I was living in Louisville, Kentucky, at the time my younger sister gave birth to her second child. I arrived at the hospital just shortly after she had the baby, and the nurses allowed me into the birthing room to …
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Feminine Images of God
Look up the following Scripture references and summarize each in the space provided. For each group of readings, come up with a category or theme. Isaiah 66:13 Isaiah 46:3 Isaiah 49:13-16 Hosea 11:1,3-4 Wisdom 16:25-26 Psalm 22:9-10 Isaiah 66:9 …
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The Sacred Ground of the Mountains
I came to know the mountains of Washington long before I moved here a couple of years ago. I first fell in love with this area back in 1984 when I came to visit my sister and brother-in-law right after …
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Scripture Puppet Show
This assignment allows students to use their own creativity in the understanding and application of the Scriptures. Their grade for this assignment will be based on their ability to do the following tasks: Involve all members of the group. Create …
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U.S. Students Work for Salvadoran Students
Katie Murphy visited El Salvador in the summer of 1999 as part of the Frontiers of Justice project, a learning opportunity for Catholic high school teachers cosponsored by Catholic Relief Services and the National Catholic Educational Association's Secondary Division. Her …
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Following the Spirit Down the (Yellow?) Brick Road
The road is really a five-foot wide path. The bricks are more dappled browns than yellow. But the journey does have a wizard and feisty little black terrier. And along the way we found our hearts, our minds, and our …
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Let the Church Say Amen
Amen is a cry of complete reliance, of heartfelt abandonment to something or someone that is true and trustworthy. THE TWO-SYLLABLE WORD COULD BE HEARD by all in the front quarter of the sizeable church. It was said by a …
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Undergraduates and Theology: Why Bother?
They seemed happily unaware of traditional teachings.... I thought them unchurched. The invitation to spell out what I see happening today in theological education for undergraduates is too good to pass up. I’ve been teaching undergraduates for nearly 30 years. …
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Theology for Teens
Adolescents' values and aspirations are in the process of formation and their capacity for commitment is just beginning to emerge. Europeans tell the story of a young man who was disturbed by the antireligious skepticism prevalent at his university and …
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The Saint Patrick You Never Knew
He didn't chase the snakes out of Ireland and he may never have plucked a shamrock to teach the mystery of the Trinity. Yet Saint Patrick well deserves to be honored by the people of Ireland and by downtrodden and …
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Until a "lack of discretion" do us part
Ever since the church got involved in the wedding ceremony, relatively late in Christian history, it has stood by its main belief about a marriage. It’s the consent of the couple that binds. SEVENTH IN A 10-PART SERIES ON CHURCH …
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Jesus Makes the Perfect Host
A recent classroom interchange at a Catholic university, in a history class on American Catholicism: Student: Interesting you should bring up Communion today. I just had a long argument with my parents about it. Professor: What was the argument? Student: …
