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Finding patterns in the Bible

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Transfiguration by Giovanni Gerolamo Savoldo (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons). Last week for homeschool we did a narration of the Transfiguration. While reading the story aloud, I had an epiphany: it echoes the story of Moses receiving the 10 Commandments. I shared the parallel between the two stories with my boys. Now I’d like to share it–and the principle behind it–with you. As a writer and avid reader, I am convinced of the inspiration of Sacred Scripture. (Besides, of course, being convinced as a Christian by the authority of the Church.) Dozens of writers over thousands of years produced the book we now call the Bible. They were from different cultures, used different literary genres, and had diverse purposes. Amazingly, the same themes are developed throughout the Bible from beginning to end. Types and anti-types, prophecies and their fulfillment, fill its pages. You can follow one idea like a wave on the sea from Genesis to Revelation, or stand on the s

Teach your kids the one thing necessary

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Are you teaching your kids to do mental prayer? I’ve written about this in the past with a few examples   of kids’ meditation s . Today I’m sharing with you a meditation for kids about… mental prayer. You may want to print this out. 1. Read aloud to your children Luke 10:38-42 , using your favorite children’s Bible. This is the Gospel from last Sunday, so they should recognize it. 2. Study the painting above. (It’s Christ in the House of Martha and Mary , attributed to Georg Friedrich Stettner). Ask them to identify the people in the painting. Discuss the painting in this manner: “Martha and Mary are both holding something. What do you think those objects are? What does each represent? (Mary is reading the Bible. This represents meditating on Sacred Scripture. Martha is holding a duck, symbolizing being busy with household tasks.) Who are the other people in the picture? What are they doing? How many people appear to have been listening to Jesus? (Only Mary d

If God is willing...

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" Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and get gain'; whereas you do not know about tomorrow. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that'" (James 4:13-15). This passage from James the Apostle can almost seem silly. Should we really preface every statement of intent with "God willing?" I used to ask myself this question. That changed in the summer of 2002.  I was a new mom, struggling to adjust to sleepless nights and no time to myself, when it became clear that I would have to return to work. Never in my life had I considered being a working mother. In fact, I'd had many discussions in which I had said, "There is absolutely no way I would work when I had small kids." But circumstances were against me. I had no other choice,

Jacob and Esau contemplative homeschool unit

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I have been blogging lately about my method of contemplative homeschooling. Here is an example of a unit I did a few years ago with my boys on Jacob and Esau. The best way to start these units is for you (the parent) to meditate on the Scripture passage you will study with your kids. In this case, prayerfully read Genesis 25:29-24, 27:1-40. Since this passage is long, you could spread your meditation over 2-3 days or choose a smaller portion of the text to meditate on.  Identify the main elements or themes of the story that speak to you and use them as part of your studies. The themes I chose for this unit were twins, telling the truth, and comparing and contrasting. (I created this before I began starting each unit with my prayer time.) Narration: Read "Esau and Jacob" from The Golden Children's Bible aloud. If you have a different Bible, use only the parts of the story that correspond to the sections of Genesis noted above. Have your kids narr

Is your homeschool faith-based?

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  I’ve read at least a dozen books on homeschool philosophy and gleaned something from every one. But none exactly met my vision of what I wanted our homeschool to be. Some were literature-based (Charlotte Mason/ Real Learning ). Others were history-based (Neo-Classical/ The Well-Trained Mind ). Others were classics-based ( The Latin-Centered Curriculum ). The faith-based methods fell into two general categories of Protestant, Bible-based ( Ruth Beechick ) and either Protestant or Catholic textbooks that incorporated the faith into each subject (Seton Homeschool and Catholic Heritage Curricula). I decided to create a Catholic Bible-based homeschool method. Teaching with homilies, not sermons   One way in which the Contemplative Homeschool is different from other faith-based methods is that I spread religion across the curriculum in a homily, not sermon, format. A sermon, common in Protestant churches, starts with an idea. The preacher finds Bible passages to sup

Teaching typology with Joseph and his brothers

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In past posts, I have written on Peter Rabbit and the Fall of Man, Benjamin Bunny and the narrow gate , and the Epiphany in My Side of the Mountain . I am making this into a series called Finding God in children's literature . Before posting more on fiction, I want to examine how to find Jesus in the Old Testament. Let's look at typology with the story of Joseph in Genesis. Typology finds the things, people, or events in the Bible that prefigure more significant things, people, or events in salvation history. Most types are in the Old Testament. Most anti-types (what the types prefigure) are in the New Testament. Fisheaters.com has a fuller explanation of typology . Learn more about Joseph and Jesus.

10 Ways to keep your kids Catholic

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Watching the events of the last few weeks unfold, I have been struck anew by how many former Catholics there are in the news media. None of them have a clue about what it means to be Catholic. That, coupled with this post at 8 Kids and a Business, got me thinking about how to keep our kids Catholic. I decided to create a list. Please note: my children are still preteens, so I cannot say, "It worked for us." But I have done some research on the matter, and observed other Catholic families. I've often wondered how my husband and his siblings all remained good Catholics, while some of my siblings did not. I almost left the Church myself in my 20s. I also know that a parent can do everything right, and his children can still choose to leave the Church. We have freewill. This list is not meant for pointing fingers or accusing other parents of failing. It's meant to help those who are raising their kids now and want to do the best they can. View the

Matthew 16 and the papal conclave for kids

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Since Sacred Scripture is at the center of our homeschool, I decided to begin our studies on the papal conclave with a look at the origins of the papacy in Matthew 16. We have been reading The Golden Children's Bible chronologically. We are just finishing the Sermon on the Mount with a unit on the parable of the wise and foolish builders. Reading Matthew 16 at this point provides a good bridge to studies of the pope. For the best start to this unit, you (the parent) should prayerfully read Matthew 7:24-27 and 16:14-20 ahead of time. Make it the subject of your daily meditation. (If you don't know how to do Christian meditation, read my recent post on mental prayer , or see this sample meditation .) You may want to share your insights or resolutions with your kids in the course of your studies. Then use as many of the following activities as you see fit. View the whole lesson plan.

Mary pondered all these things--do you?

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There are many types of devotion to Mary. Carmelites honor Mary by imitating her. In particular, they imitate her way of meditating on the great things that God has done. Luke’s Gospel tells us twice that “Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.” She was the first contemplative Christian.  What did she ponder? What God had done for her, and what He was doing in and through her Son. Here are some concrete ways you can live a more contemplative life, following Mary’s example. Continue reading.

Meditation for kids: Manna in the wilderness

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As promised, this is an example of a concrete meditation on Scripture for primary-grade kids. Please read Teach your children mental prayer for background. I will go through all the steps outlined there, and add in some other subjects for homeschoolers at the end. Read the entire meditation .

Teach your kids mental prayer

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What is your goal for your children's education? Academic prowess? Love of learning? Knowledge of Church doctrine? All these are good, but a contemplative homeschool seeks something more. My goal is to help my children have a deep prayer life, which leads them to union with God. You too can teach your children to practice mental prayer, whether you homeschool or send your kids to a Catholic, or even public, school.   Read more.

10 Reasons Catholics should read the Bible

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    1. The Bible is the Church's book. The Bible was written by men of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit. The Catholic Church, by the same Spirit, determined which books to include in the official Canon . The Bible tells our family story, from Creation through the early Church, with some previews of what's to come. 2. The Church urges us to read the Bible. Really. The stereotype of the Catholic Church suppressing Bible reading is false, a misreading of history. Vatican II included an entire constitution, Dei Verbum , on the Bible. "The Church 'forcefully and specifically exhorts all the Christian faithful. . . to learn "the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ," by frequent reading of the divine Scriptures'" ( Catechism of the Catholic Church #133, quoting Dei Verbum and Philippians 3:8). Continue Reading

'The cold-blooded murder of the English tongue'

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Jeremy Irons and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa in a concert version of My Fair Lady. If one wants to see what connection this has with last Sunday's Mass as celebrated in English in the USA and the Philippines one should check here .

The Road Map

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" My people are ruined because they don't know what is right or true." Hosea 4:6 Be honest. How often do you read your Bible? Do you meditate on the scriptures so that they become written on your heart? While it is difficult to find time to read God's Word, it's so important. We need the Word so much on the inside of us that there's no room for anything else. This verse from Hosea really says a lot. If we don't know what we believe... if we don't know what is right and wrong .... how will we ever be able to live a life in Christ? When we are faced with an ethical dilemma, we need God's guidance in our life. His Word is full of wisdom and guidance, but if we don't know it, it doesn't do a lot of good.  Neglecting the Word of God is like having a road map to where you are going and never bothering to look at it for direction.  So get out your road map to life and dive into God's Word today and everyday. He will help us to make the bes