Category: Spirituality

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Prayer by Thomas Merton for Graduates

The following prayer by Thomas Merton is one that I like to give to graduates when they get anxious about moving on. It’s also a prayer I use myself when I am unsure if I’ve made the right decision. Currently I’m beginning the discernment process about whether or not I’m being called to the diaconate, so I expect to visit this prayer many times over the next few months:

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

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Teaching Students How to Find God in the Little Things

Other66 by Loyola CommunicationsSometimes we think God only speaks in grand, sweeping gestures or experiences. We forget that God most often communicates to us through the little things. It’s important to remind our students (and ourselves) of this simple truth. But how can we remember to look at the details of our lives and learn to recognize God’s presence?

In the tradition of the Ignatian examen, Loyola Communications has designed a website called Other6: Where Does God Bubble Up in Your Life the Other 6 Days of the Week? Other6 is a beautifully simple and elegant site, consisting of translucent blue bubbles spiraling upward to the soothing sounds of wind chimes. As your mouse hovers over the bubbles you can read how other people have seen God’s presence in their lives. Here are a few examples from today:

“In my daughter’s elementary school. I love visiting my daughter’s elementary school, where everyone from the janitor up is involved in keeping small people safe and providing a place for them to grow.”

“In every breath I take, every beat of my heart. I find such peace these days. I am focused on starting my day with gratitude and prayer. I know God is in every beat of my heart, every breath I take, every thought in my mind.”

“In my coworker. I see such joy & faith in my co-worker. Her life is a daily testimony of God’s love & grace. God has blessed me so much by bringing JE into my life. There is much I need to learn from her faith.”

Clicking on a bubble brings up a small window that allows readers to leave a comment. Adding your own bubble is as easy as clicking the bubble containing a plus sign.

Other6 can be used in the classroom as part of morning prayer or for prayer at the end of the day. Students can take turns reading how others found God that day, or perhaps the students can leave their own observations. No registration is required to use the site.

I find Other6 tremendously soothing, and will often surf the web with the sound of the chiming bells in the background. I’d love to hear what you think, so visit Other6 and then come back and leave a comment. Maybe Other6 will be the quiet way God speaks to you today.

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Tutorials of the Catholic Mass

One of the most important things we teachers/catechists can do is help students participate more fully in the celebration of the Mass. One way to teach about the Mass is to walk students through a celebration step by step. The following resources may help:

Fr. Jim McKearney’s Video Tutorial of the Mass: This series of 24 short video clips is appropriate for younger children, especially those preparing to make their first communion. Fr. Jim McKearney, a Sulpician priest, takes viewers on a tour of the entire mass, explaining it in language that children in grades 2-5 will understand.

Mysteries of the Mass podcast: In this podcast Fr. Bill Holtzinger, a Catholic parish priest from Forest Grove, Oregon, offers “reflections, teachings, interviews and more about the Mass.” Fr. Bill has a friendly voice and a natural manner, and his reflections help listeners to understand the Mass more deeply. His podcast is probably more appropriate as a background for teachers, but you may find it useful to use with students in grades 7-12. You might also suggest that your students subscribe to the podcast in iTunes.

The Catholic Mass Revealed: This web site is more of a sample of the dvd, but it does contain some beautiful images of the Mass, and some of the segments are available in their entirety.

Do you have a favorite multimedia resource for teaching about the Mass? Let everyone know by leaving a comment.