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Chapter J: Major Events in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries

Students order important events from the 19th and 20th centuries.

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Chapter F: Church Father Unscramble

Unscramble the names of the Church Fathers below. Then, under each unscrambled name, write one important contribution that the Church Father made to the Church.

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The Mission of the Church

Jesus has just risen from the tomb. Although you and all the other Christians are overjoyed, you now have to decide what to do. You are one of the followers who has been with Jesus for more than two years. …

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Revelation, Sacred Scripture, and Tradition

Using the information in chapter 1 of The Catholic Connections Handbook, find the word or words described in the clues below. Fill in the blank spaces below each clue. Then, use the letters from the numbered spaces to fill in …

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Chapter 23 Activity: How Much Do You Know about the Church?

The descriptions below relate to the Church, present and past. Write the word or name from the box that matches each description. Some words will be used more than once.

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Chapter 22 Activity: Marks of the Church

Clues about the marks of the church.

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Developments after the Second Vatican Council

A list of developments made after the Second Vatican Council that can be cut out.

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Vocabulary for Unit 8

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 8 of Church History: Apostolic Times to Today. The defined words include Body of Christ, catechists, Catholic Action, collegiality, concordat, exegesis, fascism, Gregorian chant, Marks of the Church, Marxist, new evangelization, pastoral, and …

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List of Key Terms and People

A list of key terms and people that can be cut out.

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Vocabulary for Unit 7

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 7 of Church History: Apostolic Times to Today. The defined words include capitalism, communism, deterrence, social doctrine, social encyclical, socialism, and subsidiarity.

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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 7

The final performance task options for Unit 7 of Church History: Apostolic Times to Today. The options include creating a children’s book about the Catholic Church in the United States, or creating a PowerPoint presentation about the Catholic Church in …

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Vocabulary for Unit 6

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 6 of Church History: Apostolic Times to Today. Defined words include deism, dogma, empiricism, ex cathedra, fideism, pantheism, rationalism, and Reign of Terror.

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Vocabulary for Unit 5

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 5 of Church History: Apostolic Times to Today. The words that are defined are Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, conquistadors, and enculturation.

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Vocabulary for Unit 4

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 4 of Church History: Apostolic Times to Today. The defined words include Apocrypha, College of Cardinals, deuterocanonical, grace, humanism, justification, merit, predestination, and theocracy.

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Dialogue with Others

Excerpts from the address of Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday, April 17, 2008 at the John Paul II center in Washington D.C.

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The Council of Trent

An article about The Council of Trent, excerpted from The Catholic Church: A Brief Popular History, by Cynthia Stewart.

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Vocabulary for Unit 3

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 3 of Church History: Apostolic Times to Today. The words defined are chancel, conciliar movement, Divine Office, friars, Great Western Schism, indulgence, Medieval Inquisition, mendicants, mystic, nave, scholasticism, and Spanish Inquisition.

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Vocabulary for Unit 2

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 2 including abbot, abbess, antipope, Arianism, charism, Christendom, consubstantial, Doctor of the Church, Ecumenical Council, Fathers of the Church, feudalism, filioque, Franks, hermit, hypostatic union, iconoclasm, illuminated manuscript, Logos, papal bull, Papal States, …

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Vocabulary for Unit 1

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 1 including apologist, Apostle, Apostolic Succession, bishop, charism, Christian, college of bishops, covenant, deacon, Deposit of Faith, Edict of Milan, emperor, Eucharist, Church Fathers, Magisterium, martyrdom, Messiah, New Covenant, persecution, presbyter, priest, providence …

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Chapter 15 Activities

Activities for Chapter 15 The Last Things, including a core activity, core activity extension, and additional activities.

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Chapter 14 Activities

Activities for Chapter 14 The Organization of the Catholic Church, including a core activity, core activity extension, and additional activities.

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Chapter 13 Activities

Activities for Chapter 13 The Mission of the Catholic Church, including a core activity, core activity extension, and additional activities.

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Chapter 4 Activities

Activities for Chapter 4 Faith, including a core activity, core activity extension, and additional activities.

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Chapter 2 Activities

Activities for Chapter 2 Knowing God: Reason and Revelation, including a core activity, core activity extension, and additional activities.

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Chapter 1 Activities

Activities for Chapter 1: Being Catholic, including a core activity, core activity extension, and additional activities.

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Handout: Scripture in the Mass

Find the biblical passages assigned to you, and then write on the line the words from the Mass that refer to or echo the passage.

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Vocabulary for Unit 3

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 3 that defines the terms bishop, Body of Christ, Catholic Church, charism, Communion of Saints, consecrated life, diocese, doctrine, Final Judgment, fruits of the Holy Spirit, Gifts of the Holy Spirit, laity, Marks …

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Vocabulary for Unit 2

A list of vocabulary words for Unit 2 including Annunciation, Blessed Trinity, church, Creation, creed, disciple, ecumenism, evangelist, faith, Gospel, Incarnation, Kingdom of God, Messiah, ministry, Original Sin, parable, Paschal Mystery, salvation, stewardship, and Theotokos.

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Vocabulary for Unit 1

A list of vocabulary words for unit one, defines the terms Bible, biblical inspiration, canon, covenant, Deposit of Faith, Divine Revelation, Ecumenical Council, Gospel, inerrancy, Israelites, Law, Magisterium, natural revelation, New Testament, Old Testament, Parousia, reason, Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, …

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Letters in Paul's Day

An article that discusses the format of Paul’s letters and how they are different from letters today.

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Ignatian Discernment of Spirits

An article that breaks down the differences between good and evil spirits.

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Vocabulary for Unit 7

A vocabulary list for unit 7 defining terms associated with consecrated life.

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What Do Sisters Do?

An article that discusses the roles and responsibilities of religious sisters.

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“To Brother”: A Personal Story

An article written by Br. Armand Alcazar FSC, who discusses his view of his vocation as a verb, “to brother”, or “brothering” in teaching and community life.

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Vocabulary for Unit 6

A vocabulary list for unit 6 defining the terms dalmatic, dogmatic theology, Donatist heresy, formation, Holy See, insignia, and seminary.

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Vocabulary for Unit 5

A vocabulary list with terms mostly associated with ordained ministry within the Catholic Church.

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Catholic / catholic

A worksheet that visually explores the differences between Catholic and catholic.

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Researching the Role of the Magisterium

Several strips of paper that may come in handy when researching the role of the Magisterium.

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Where Does the Church Say…?

A chart outlining different types of Church documents, the author and audience of each particular document, and what’s in each document.

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Who? What? When? Where? How? in the Local Diocese

An activity where students are asked to locate information about their local diocese.

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Your Role in Evangelization

An activity where students assess their role in evangelization.

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My Charisms

A worksheet where students are asked about ordinary charisms and religious charisms.

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Gifts of Holy Spirit

A worksheet where students are asked to explain each of the seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit and then compose a short essay on instances where the gifts helped them out in difficult situations.

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Terms Related to the Church

A worksheet where students are asked to define several vocabulary terms related to the Church and write a short essay on which term means the most to them.

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Marks of the Church

A chart that students are asked to fill in with at least two examples of ways the Church models the four marks of the Church, and at least two examples of ways they model the four marks of the Church.

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Five Models of the Church

An activity where students are given a chart containing the meanings, strengths, and limitations of each of the five models of the Church and asked to answer related questions.

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Revelation: A New Testament Apocalypse

An article on the Book of Revelation.

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Christian Persecutions in the Roman Empire

An article on the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire.

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Why the Second Vatican Council Really Is That Important

An article on the importance of the Second Vatican Council.

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Events at the Second Vatican Council

An article on the events that took place at the Second Vatican Council.

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The Two Pentecosts

A chart used to draw parallels between the feasts of Shavuot and Christian Pentecost.

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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 2

This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers ideas for assessing students who have recently learned about the Church, especially the birth of the Church at Pentecost.

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The Church

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The List of Popes

A full list of all of the Popes with links to information about each Pope.

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Final Performance Task Options for Unit 5

This resource is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers various project ideas for students who have recently studied the Paschal Mystery, especially the birth of the Church at Pentecost, the descent of the Holy Spirit, and the …

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Political and Religious Structure in Jesus' Time

This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It offers an extensive overview of the political and religious structures and influences at work in Jesus' time.

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The Apostles

This article is part of the Living in Christ Series. It discusses the Apostles and followers of Jesus who are known in Scripture, including Peter and Mary Magdalene, among others.

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Canons and Their Development

This article discusses the development of the Old and New Testament Canons and provides charts which compare and contrast different Christian or Jewish canons.

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The Development of Catholic Trinitarian Theology

This handout is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students can fill in the blanks to learn or review key concepts about the development of Trinitarian theology.

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Vocabulary for Unit 2

This vocabulary list is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students may use it as a reference for key theological terms to know.

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Vocabulary Review

This review is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students may use it to review key theological terms.

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Vocabulary for Unit 1

This vocabulary list is part of the Living in Christ Series. Students may use it as a reference for key theological terms to know.

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The Holy Spirit

Student handout: Activity for chapter 15, puzzle/exercise

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Revelation, The Scriptures, and Tradition

Activity for Chapter 1, puzzle

Article

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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Frequently Asked Questions About the Pope

What is the pope? The pope is the bishop of the Church of Rome, Italy. Because of the importance of Rome, Tradition recognizes the pope as the supreme pastor of all Christians. Why is the Church of Rome so important? …

Article

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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In the Name of the Father

Making the sign of the cross is a gesture that says, in shorthand, that a person is a Catholic. It appears as an icon in popular culture, and as a gesture it is scattered throughout film history, for example: movie …

Article

Fighting Catholic Amnesia

I was a high school junior before I learned that the Catholic faith was something more than Mass, folk songs and the Bible. Father Corry turned me on to Church history in his religion class. He showed me how our …

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The Church and the Bible: A New Understanding

The Catholic Church's attitude toward biblical study has undergone a sea of change in recent times. A world-renowned Scripture scholar explains why and how. Very often when older Catholics hear at Mass a presentation about the Bible they are puzzled. …

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Saint Jerome: The Perils of a Bible Translator

“WHAT IS THE BEST TRANSLATION OF THE BIBLE?” This is the question that people who teach biblical studies hear more than any other. A bewildering abundance of alternatives is available to those who want to begin reading the Bible. This …

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Six Ways to be Truly Catholic

I always thought that I would have made a great archbishop in Salzburg during the time of Mozart. But instead I'm the archbishop of Milwaukee in the time of rock 'n' roll. That's the way life turns out. We live …

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The Church

Central Characteristics of Roman Catholicism Catholicism is a remarkably rich religion, characterized by a complex tapestry of beliefs, practices, values, rituals, traditions, and more. When viewed “from the outside”—that is, by those who do not share its communal life—Catholicism is …

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A Christmas Legend: The Birth of Jesus and Gift Giving

Session Overview: This 2-hour session is designed to use role-playing skills for a presentation to an audience. Scripture: This session is based on Luke 2:1-20. Read the Scripture passage to the young people after the role-play, "Christmas Legend," has been …

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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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The Quincentenary

As we are all aware, 1992 marks the quincentenary of Christopher Columbus's landing in the West Indies–thus, the "discovery" of America. For religious educators, this anniversary offers an opportunity to examine the injustices done to Native Americans by the colonizers …

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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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Curriculum Offerings of Theology Departments

For a couple of years, Saint Mary’s Press sponsored a listserv discussion group online. Discussions on a variety of topics were pursued via e-mail. In this section of the web site, I summarize some of the highlights from these old …

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