Be Hopeful

Theme 1: What keeps us going?

Outcomes
Students will

  • define hope and its role in Christian living
  • explore the ways prayer nourishes hope
  • identify people who model Christian hope
  • find hope for their own lives in the death and resurrection of Jesus

Key Concepts

  • “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5.11-12).
  • Jesus’ death and resurrection are the foundation of Christian hope.
  • Hope is the virtue which keeps us searching for true happiness which is found in being true to oneself and faithful to God.
  • Hope sustains us during times of abandonment. Hope also protects us during times of struggle.
  • Hope is nourished in prayer.
  • When we presume that we don’t need God or when we deliberately presume that God will forgive and save us regardless of our attitudes, we sin against hope.
  • The first commandment is not only a call to avoid idolatry; it is also a call to place all our hope in God.

Theme 2: Where have we been and where will that take us?

Outcomes
Students will

  • review the virtues and Beatitudes, which underlie the Christian attitude toward being in the world
  • share their faith with others in the context of a year-end class celebration

Key Concepts

  • Review of Christian virtues and the Beatitudes.

Tanakh: Hebrew Scriptures

The name for the collected Hebrew Scriptures is Tanakh. This name comes from the Hebrew letters for the three parts of the scriptures: Torah, Nev’im, and Ketuwim.

Torah, which means “Teaching,” includes the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

Nev’im, which means “Prophets,” includes the books of Joshua, Judges, I Samuel, II Samuel, I Kings, II Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Michah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

Ketuvim, which means “Writings,” includes the books of Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, I Chronicles, and II Chronicles.

Which part of the Tanakh are each of the following books found?

Isaiah
Leviticus
Daniel
Proverbs

Origins of Hinduism

Hinduism developed over a long period of time; although the religion is about 3,000 years old, some elements are much older. Hinduism is not based on the teachings or words of any one person. Although there have been many teachers within Hinduism, it has no single fundamental teacher and no prophets. Hinduism does not have one holy book that lays out tenets of the religion. It combines ideas from different cultures and periods.


In what ways does this make Hinduism different from other major world religions, such as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Taoism?

Facts about Hinduism

Here are some facts about Hinduism.

  • Has about 800 million followers worldwide
  • Has no founder or prophets
  • Not a single, unified religion
  • About 80% of the population of India considers themselves Hindus
  • Over 3,000 years old
  • Includes the concept of a cycle of birth, death, and rebirth
  • Has many deities, including Krishna, Shiva, and Rama

Use these facts to write a paragraph about this ancient religion.