Tag: vine

Be Faithful

Theme 1: What do I really believe?

Outcomes
Students will

  • articulate ways that relationships based on faith are reasonable
  • express what it means to have a relationship with God through Jesus
  • describe how faith in Jesus Christ challenges them to love and respect others

Key Concepts

  • “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord…” (Deuteronomy 6.4).
  • Jesus is the beginning and the end, the alpha and the omega.
  • Faith cannot be fully explained, but it is reasonable. Faith admits mystery.
  • Our moral life has its source in faith in God, who reveals his love to us. (CCC #2087) Faith in God’s love encom- passes the call and the obligation to respond with love and respect – the first and second command- ments call us to love and respect God above everything, and to respect all creatures for and because of God.
  • Being faithful means being open to develop- ing our relationship with God.

Theme 2: What’s the point of prayer?

Outcomes
Students will

  • define Christian prayer
  • locate in Scripture, describe and demonstrate five forms of prayer:
    • Adoration and Blessing
    • Petition
    • Intercession
    • Thanksgiving
    • Praise
  • express different ways that God responds to prayer
  • demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between human freedom, divine prerogative and prayer

Key Concepts

  • “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heav- en” (Matthew 5.3).
  • Prayer is our living relationship with God.
  • The third commandment calls us to stop and pray. The Sunday celebration of the Lord’s Day and his Eucharist is at the heart of the Church’s life.
  • Jesus teaches us how to pray.
  • God always answers our prayers.
  • God answers our prayers in ways that are not limited by our own perspectives. God’s view is infinitely bigger than our view.
  • In answering our prayers, God does not take away human free- dom.

The Strawberry

Buddhism often uses stories to present ideas. Here is a Buddhist story.

One day while walking in the wilderness, a man came upon a vicious tiger. He fled, running through the trees, looking back over his shoulder to see if the tiger was gaining on him.

Unfortunately, this meant he didn’t watch where he was going, and he tumbled headlong over a cliff. He scrambled desperately to save himself and managed to grab a vine that hung over the cliff. For a few moments he dangled there, savouring his amazing escape from certain death.

Then he looked up. Two mice were perched on the cliff edge, gnawing on his vine with their sharp little teeth.

As he looked up, the man glimpsed something else. A strawberry plant was growing from the cliff face, with one plump, ripe strawberry. The man reached up and plucked the strawberry. It was incredibly delicious!

What idea do you think the story is trying to present?