Welcome to Religious Education in the Catholic Schools of Ontario EDST 456

1
Welcome to Religious Education in the Catholic
Schools of Ontario EDST 456
2

• Radiating Christ
• Dear Jesus, help us to spread your fragrance
  everywhere we go. Flood our souls with your
  spirit and life. Penetrate and possess our whole
  being so utterly, that our lives may only be a
  radiance of yours. Shine through us, and be so
  in us, that every soul we come in contact with
  may feel your presence in our soul. Let them
  look up and see no longer us but only Jesus!
  Stay with us, and then we shall begin to shine as
  you shine so to shine as to be a light to
  others the light, O Jesus will be all from you,
  none of it will be ours it will be you, shining
  on others through us. Let us thus praise you in
  the way you love best by shining on those around
  us. Let us preach you without preaching, not by
  words but by our example, by the catching force,
  the sympathetic influence of what we do, the
  evident fullness of the love our hearts bear to
  you. Amen.

3
(No Transcript)
4
(No Transcript)
5
(No Transcript)
6
(No Transcript)
7
(No Transcript)
8
(No Transcript)
9
(No Transcript)
10
(No Transcript)
11
(No Transcript)
12
(No Transcript)
13

• A little girl was talking to her teacher about
  whales.The teacher said it was physically
  impossible for a whale to swallow a humanbecause
  even though it was a very large mammal its throat
  was very small.

14
The little girl stated that Jonah was
swallowed by a whale.Irritated, the teacher
reiterated that a whale could not swallow a
human itwas physically impossible.The little
girl said, "When I get to heaven I will ask
Jonah".The teacher asked, "What if Jonah went to
hell?"The little girl replied, "Then you ask
him. "
15

• stjohnsgananoque.ca
• fathershawnhughes
• _at_sympatico.ca

16

• What are the advantages of Catholic education?

17

• What are the challenges of Catholic education?

18
In your opinion what are the most admirable
qualities of Jesus?
19

• Modern man no longer listens to teachers, he
  only listens to witnesses and he only listens to
  teachers when they are witnesses.
• Pope Paul VI (Pope from 1963-1978)

20

• A retired teacher-principal, 30 years experience.
• Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of the Catholic
  school Catholic education rises from the belief
  in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
  His life is a model for living. His teaching is
  a guide for growing to the fullness of human
  potential. Catholic education embraces three
  interlocking dimensions the message revealed by
  God which the Church proclaims fellowship in the
  life of the Holy Spirit and service to the
  Christian community and to the entire human
  community
• There is a two-fold purpose in a Catholic school
  learning and believing. Neither should be
  neglected.

21
The Catholic school to be authentically
Catholic needs teachers who know the talk, own
it, believe it, talk it, and walk it! So much
depends on each individual teachers commitment
to his or her own faith and the responsibility to
participate in the Catholic education students
ought to be receiving in every classroom and in
every activity and the quality of interpersonal
relationships they experience. The teacher in
the Catholic school needs to own a sense of their
own personal call of their sin history and
grace history a sense that teaching in the
Catholic school is a vocation that does not
depend on measurable worthiness or moral
superiority.
22

• At the same time our awareness, our response, our
  working at our own call our attempts to accept
  it gratefully and with trust our attempts to
  work at it with integrity or our failure or
  indifference have an inextricable impact on the
  students sense of their call, their faith
  journey.
• At the heart of Catholic teaching is
• to pass on the Catholic faith.
• To help the students discover their vocation
• To help them sort through the din of secular
  noise and start them on the road to a deep
  relationship with God.
• Therefore it is incumbent on the Catholic Teacher
  to KNOW THE FAITH, But not only know it but to
  understand it so that it can be passed on.

23

• THE SACRED CONGREGATION FOR CATHOLIC EDUCATION
• LAY CATHOLICS IN SCHOOLS WITNESSES TO FAITH
• http//www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cc
  atheduc/documents/rc_con_ccatheduc_doc_19821015_la
  y-catholics_en.html
•  

24

• Called to personal holiness and to apostolic
  mission is common to all believers.

25

• KEY POINT
• The teacher is not simply a professional person
  who systematically transmits a body of knowledge
  in the context of a school teacher is to be
  understood as educator one who helps to form
  human persons. (16)

26

• KEY!!!!!!!!!!!
• EDUCATORS CAN BE CERTAIN THAT THEY MAKE HUMAN
  BEINGS MORE HUMAN. (18)

27

• Lay teachers must be profoundly convinced that
  they share in the sanctifying, and therefore
  educational mission of the Church they cannot
  regard themselves as cut off from the ecclesial
  complex.

28

• 19. The vocation of every Catholic educator
  includes the work of ongoing social development
  to form men and women who will be ready to take
  their place in society, preparing them in such a
  way that they will make the kind of social
  commitment which will enable them to work for the
  improvement of social structures, making these
  structures more conformed to the principles of
  the Gospel. Thus, they will form human beings who
  will make human society more peaceful, fraternal,
  and communitarian. Today's world has tremendous
  problems hunger, illiteracy and human
  exploitation sharp contrasts in the standard of
  living of individuals and of countries agression
  and violence, a growing drug problem,
  legalization of abortion, along with many other
  examples of the degredation of human life. All of
  this demands that Catholic educators develop in
  themselves, and cultivate in their students, a
  keen social awareness and a profound sense of
  civic and political responsibility. The Catholic
  educator, in other words, must be committed to
  the task of forming men and women who will make
  the " civilization of love "(23) a reality. 

29

• Conduct is always much more important than
  speech. (32)
• e.g. St. Francis
• e.g. Mother Teresas prayer which we prayed at
  the beginning of class

30

• Modern man no longer listens to teachers, he
  only listens to witnesses and he only listens to
  teachers when they are witnesses.
• Pope Paul VI

31
ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL POINTS IN THE
DOCUMENT

• A Personal Relationship (i.e. with a student) is
  always a dialogue rather than a monologue, and
  the teacher must be convinced that the enrichment
  in the relationship is mutual. (33)

32

• Vocation rather than profession ( 37)

33

• ESSENTIAL
• It is important that lay Catholics who work in a
  Catholic school participate simply and actively
  in the liturgical and sacramental life of the
  school. Students will share in this life more
  readily when they have concrete examples when
  they see the importance that this life has for
  believers. (40)

34

• Modern man no longer listens to teachers, he
  only listens to witnesses and he only listens to
  teachers when they are witnesses.
• Pope Paul VI

35

• Lay Catholics must have a religious formation
  that is equal to their general, cultural and most
  especially professional formation. (60)
• -The point of this course.

36
Patience and Wisdom
37
Reflection Paper

• Usually to take the topic of that class and write
  a 200-250 word reflection on how you would apply
  it to your particular division-level. (i.e.
  primary, junior, intermediate or senior.) This
  is not a full blown lesson plan but the initial
  thoughts of how the concepts could be tailored to
  your division level.
• Should take you no more than an hour or two to
  prepare. Not meant to be a major paper.
• Pass/Fail grade will be assigned.

38

• FAITH REFERENCE PORFOLIO
• FOR TEACHERS
• 1. Applicants for teaching positions with the
  Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School
  Board
• are asked to submit the following pieces of
  information
• a)
• Pre-service credit course in Religious Education
  
• OR
• Pre-service certificate in Religious Education
  or equivalency
• (University Courses in Theology or Religious
  Studies)
• Faith Reference Portfolio with its reflection
  component.
• 2. Candidates who do not possess either of
  these, must commit to obtaining Religious
  Education Part I during their probationary
  period. As well, applicants must provide a
  pastoral letter of reference from their Parish
  Priest and may use the attached Priest Reference
  form for this purpose.

39

• FAITH REFERENCE PORTFOLIO
• FOR TEACHERS
• PERSONAL ASSESSMENT
• 1. I promise the Algonquin and Lakeshore
  Catholic District School Board that I will strive
  to be a person
• of good moral character consistent with the life
  of the Catholic Church.
• As a member of the Catholic teaching community,
  I will strive
• i) to provide religious instruction in the
  Catholic Faith using the curriculum approved by
  the school
• board and as requested by the principal
• ii) to seek to infuse gospel values across the
  curriculum
• iii) to influence and strengthen the spiritual
  growth of the students and act as an appropriate
  role model
• within the Catholic school community.

40

• 2. My contribution and participation in the life
  of the broader community and the Catholic Parish
  includes
• (Your reflection here should include service to
  the common good of society as well as to your
  faith community.)
• 3. This involvement has contributed to my growth
  in faith by

41

• P. 4FAITH REFERENCE PORTFOLIO
• FOR TEACHERS
• REFLECTION PAPER
• (Please respond to the following statement in
  200-250 words, double-spaced.)
• It is my desire to teach in a Catholic School
  because
• (THIS IS YOUR HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT FOR THURSDAY,
  SEPTEMBER 10THs CLASS)

42

• Pastoral reference make a connection with a
  priest if you dont already have someone in mind
  to write your reference for you.
• Faith Portfolio.

43

• For Thursday, September 10th
• Sources of Catholic Teaching
• Introduction to Scripture and Tradition
• Introduction to the Magisterium and the Catechism
  of the Catholic Church
• Please read paragraphs 1 to 141 of the Catechism.
• Good site with indexing of the Catechism
• scborromeo.org/ccc/ccc_toc2.