As per course,
"The Church: Past, Present and Future
Key Concepts
exploring the history of Catholic Education in Ontario in the recognition of the action of the Holy Spirit at work in the Church and the world
becoming familiar with the main phases of Church history, from the early Christian communities to the present, emphasizing the significance and implications of Vatican II recognizing the action of the Holy Spirit
understanding the significance of the beliefs and practices of the Catholic faith through the history of the Church
critically reflecting on experiences connected to a quest for meaning.
exploring official Church documents
exploring the links between biblical texts and the doctrines in the Apostles’ Creed and recognizing that the Creed is a summary of Catholic faith
understanding the importance of Religious Education curriculum documents to support teaching and learning
understanding the challenges facing the Catholic Church in a secular, pluralistic and diverse society through post-modern perspectives
critically exploring actions initiated by the Catholic Church with other Christian denominations and world religions through post-modern perspectives
understanding how a personal vision of God, the Catholic worldview and the sacredness of each person contributes to society
exploring the influences which create or enhance identity as a Catholic in the post-modern world
engaging in experiences related to the quest for meaning grounded in theological perspectives.
Read Text: The Catholic Source Book 3rd Edition (2000), Chapter 4, pp. 213 - 274 Theology for Teachers. (1999). Chapter 12, pp.165 - 187
Read Nine Things That Make Us Catholic, Thomas Groome, Catholic Update, Sept 2004
Tasks:
Read the submodule entitled The Church: Past, Present, and Future
Review the expectations and submission for Assignment #2 - Article Analysis or The Enduring Gift
Complete the following task and post your response in the discussion forum. Also, read and respond to at least 2 of your classmates' posts.
As Knox states in Theology for Teachers “The church is a mystery of faith – a faith in the continuing presence of Jesus among us, faith in “the purpose of God’s plan; to unite all things in him.” (CCC 772) In order to better understand this mysterious reality, we use images or models. Read Theology for Teachers p. 165 – 187 or Models of Church found in the resources section of the course. Respond to the following questions as a post to your discussion group.
Which model appeals to you the most and why?
Which model appeals to you the least and why?
What are some your experiences with the model?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Church
As is stated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church 777, ‘The word "Church" means "convocation." It designates the assembly of those whom God's Word "convokes," i.e., gathers together to form the People of God, and who themselves, nourished with the Body of Christ, become the Body of Christ.’
The Catechism of the Catholic Church also states “The church is a mystery of faith”.
As Knox explains “Since the church is essentially a mystery, we cannot fully understand the church any more than we can fully understand God…We shall always be searching for new ways to lead to better understanding.” (p 168) The models of church (Body of Christ, People of God, Institution, Sacrament, Servant) are to help us understand some of the “mysterious reality that is the church.” (p. 168)
There are many different models of church. Avery Dulles himself insists that no one model by itself is sufficient for an adequate understanding of the complex mystery of the church in all its dimensions. He has said: ‘In order to do justice to the various aspects of the church, as a complex reality, we must work simultaneously with different models. By a kind of mental juggling act, we have to keep several models in the air at once.” Dulles,A. Models of the Church, 2nd edition, New York, Doubleday Image Books, 1987, p 10
The different models must complement one another and compensate for the deficiencies of each. The Church is visible and spiritual, a hierarchical society and the Mystical Body of Christ. She is one but made of two components that are human and divine. That is her mystery, which only faith can accept.
One of the fundamental statements of our beliefs is the Apostles’ creed.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended to heaven
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
As is stated in The Catholic Source Book, “The Apostles’ Creed is the epitome of Christian doctrine.” When the word “catholic” is written with the lower case c, as in the creed it means “universal/all-embracing” not pertaining specifically to the Catholic faith. When we pray “I believe in the holy catholic church” we are stating that we believe in a church that is universal, all-embracing – welcoming of all people, as stated in the New Testament.
19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. Ephesians 2:19-22
12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. 1 Corinthians 12:12-14
“Let us be concerned for one another, to help one another to show love and to do good. Let us not give up the habit of meeting together as some are doing. Instead let us encourage one another all the more, since you see that the day of the Lord is coming nearer.” Hebrews 10: 24-25
“I believe in God, not in a Catholic God, there is no Catholic God, there is God and I believe in Jesus Christ, his incarnation." Pope Francis
Read the article by Thomas Groome Nine Things That Make Us Catholic and reflect on your experiences and reflections around the catholicity of the Church
As per discussion,
"To be frank, I feel a question that may be worth asking would be one's perception of their current situation, ideally I feel the model most appealing to me is Church as a community and potentially church as a sacrament namely because of the ideals that I hold as an open-minded believer who follows to endorse community and peace amongst humankind as Christ has modelled for us. I don't necessarily struggle with being a poster child of my faith (in a manner of speaking-certainly not within my own faith community), because there are still many experiences and aspects of my faith I am still living through and trying to better understand myself-as well, for example in regards to a charity I recently participated in, I didn't sign up to participate in a faith event, but out of a matter of goodwill. The leader of the event gave a routine introduction before we began and explained that we are all of different beginnings, we are here to share the gift of giving, please keep it at that, as there are a lot of individuals who will meet who may not find your religious beliefs as an appetizing side to their meal. Not to mention we likely have quite a few different belief systems in one room and that is an amazing thing in itself, so what ever other reasons you felt motivated to participate tonight, please keep it at the most understandable level when talking amongst your team and our friends of the streets. Which is to try make their lives as comfortable as we can with the resources we have available. I'm paraphrasing, but ultimately I get that, and I can see why, in the room there were certainly some religions that have questionable relations to each other but everyone was there with a simple goal in mind and it was successful. This being a very different experience than when we participated in a fundraiser at another location and although the evangelical aspects of Christianity were understood by myself and other patrons, it had the overwhelming grace effect on some of the guests-I would get eyes from a friend or two from across the table as the host was delivering their prayer-my friend who was just as unprepared for the introduction as I was, but they were secular matter fact, they were actually growing up in an an environment in which they were warned against religion. The conversation I had with my friend after mellowed him out, but he had 'culture shock' for sure. Nonetheless, brings to me to the least appealing modes of the church, funny enough, Church as a servant and Church as a Herald. My earlier example of a charity event certainly helped solidify that at some point, a homeless person doesn't want to feed from the pages of the bible, as much as that metaphorically may feed their soul-but buddy just needs some food. Furthermore it almost feels like a weird way of thinking about it, but if we do acts of kindness to atone on a level in a manner of thinking-is one not feeding on the sufferings of others (its a twisted way of looking at charity, but certainly begs the question, if you atone by trying to amount kindness unto those suffering-solely, what would happen if there was no one suffering? I have met a few who do actually need to ask themselves this question because it begs the question of why not be proactive and figure out how to stop it from happening in the first place maybe? Its a big question and requires a lot of resource allocation but if one is on a road of atonement-hey, what better way? thoughts and reflections-sorry for the tangent. I think it is great that people can quote the bible, but two issues I may experience in heraldship, I can't remember the exact words someone says to me because I usually apply it and fix it into my understanding-unless it is a matter of extreme importance to a particular moment from to day and two I am a contextual reader which the previous statement basically demonstrates, I can tell you stories of Jesus and what happened in Genesis, Exodus, etc. but I cannot for the life of me quote anything from outside of what I pick up in Sunday missal. Our pastor back home was actually well spoken, and he was direct, great at summarizing and then given a key quote to help pinpoint that portion of the scripture or gospel."
Discussion Feedback:
You have all been fortunate to experience the sacramental power of creation in many amazing places and in so many incredible ways. As John Cardinal Newman has said "With Christians, a poetical view of things is a duty. We are bid to colour all things with hues of faith, to see a divine meaning in every event."
We must realize that we are always experiencing the sacramental power of creation. Many people think the power of creation is in the power of a thunderstorm, the majesty of the mountains, the expanse of the ocean. In reality, it is around us at all times: jumping into cool clean water, having the time to watch a sunset, watching plants grow, the birth of a child or the metamorphosis of a butterfly. Many people across the globe are not so fortunate. We must remember to pause and take time to truly appreciate what is around us. The lessons we must learn from nature, co-existing with one another regardless from where we originate.
You have all posed good suggestions to promote environmental stewardship within your school community and increase your students’ awareness and involvement. And, we must recognize, that many young people around the world are increasing our awareness and hopefully involvement. For the first time in its history, the World Economic Forum invited teenage change-makers to the 2020 annual meeting in Davos-Klosters. Greta Thunberg, 17 from Sweden, Ayakha Melithafa 17 from South Africa, Cruz Erdmann, 14 from New Zealand, Fionn Ferreira, 18 from Ireland and Autumn Pelletier, 15 from Canada, are only a few of the young people taking the future into their own hands. The planet’s future is theirs, so it is important for their voices to be heard and acted upon.
We know that the actions of speaking up for, and defending the environment, are critical for the future of the earth, but this has proved fatal for environmental activists. “Killings of environmental defenders have doubled over the past 15 years to reach levels usually associated with war zones, according to a study that reveals how murders of activists are concentrated in countries with the worst corruption and weakest laws. At least 1,558 people were killed between 2002 and 2017 while trying to protect their land, water or local wildlife, says the analysis, which calculates the death toll is almost half that of US troops killed in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001. The rate of deaths in this period increased from two to four a week which the authors attributed to rising environmental stress as the global demand for resources pushes mining, farming and other extractive industries into ever more remote regions.” The Guardian, August 2019 https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/aug/05/environmental-activist-murders-double
When the United Nations’ climate summit COP26, with nearly 200 countries participating, concluded in Glasgow, Scotland, the reviews of what was and was not accomplished were mixed. As Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General said in his statement on the conclusion of COP26,
“The approved texts are a compromise. They reflect the interests, the conditions, the contradictions and the state of political will in the world today. They take important steps, but unfortunately the collective political will was not enough to overcome some deep contradictions. As I said at the opening, we must accelerate action to keep the 1.5 degree goal alive.
Our fragile planet is hanging by a thread.
We are still knocking on the door of climate catastrophe.
It is time to go into emergency mode — or our chance of reaching net zero will itself be zero.
And in conclusion, he stated,
“Finally, I want to close with a message of hope and resolve to young people, indigenous communities, women leaders, all those leading the climate action army. I know many of you are disappointed. Success or failure is not an act of nature. It’s in our hands. The path of progress is not always a straight line. Sometimes there are detours. Sometimes there are ditches. As the great Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson said: “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds that you plant.”
We have many more seeds to plant along the path.
We won’t reach our destination in one day or one conference.
But I know we can get there.
We are in the fight of our lives.
Never give up. Never retreat. Keep pushing forward.
I will be with you all the way.
COP 27 starts now.”
https://www.un.org/sg/en/node/260645
We must all, individually and collectively, do whatever we can to reach our destination.
As Wendell Berry wrote, over 40 years ago, “the care of the earth is our most ancient and most worthy and, after all, our most pleasing responsibility. To cherish what remains of it, and to foster its renewal, is our only hope.” (The Unsettling of America, 1977).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You are to choose an on-line article focused on the challenged faced by the Catholic Church or Catholic education. You are free to choose any that interests or challenges you, as long as it pertains to the Catholic faith or Catholic education. The article can be from any newspaper, website, journal or magazine. For example, McLean’s Magazine published an article “What Catholics Really Believe”.
For some interesting articles, you may want to look at the National Catholic Reporter (online) as it has many articles dealing with spirituality, theology, justice, people and politics as well as many columns (The Gospel of Sports, Making a Difference, From Where I Stand, The Small c Catholic). You can also look at Nicholas Kristof’s column in the New York Times, as he writes on many current political, religious and social justice issues: What Religion Would Jesus Belong to, Mr. Trump Meet My Family, #MeToo Goes Global, God and Her (Female) Clergy.
Find something that interests, challenges, intrigues you.
After reading the article, analyze it and submit your research while supporting your opinions with evidence.
What do I think, what can I do, how does Jesus expect me to act?
What are the facts?
What do the facts mean?
What are the facts in light of our faith?
What will I do to help my community?
OR
Watch the video The Enduring Gift, read the brochure 168 Years of Success and respond to the following questions.
As educators in Catholic schools in Ontario, we are fortunate to have a publicly funded Catholic school system. In order to more fully understand our responsibility as Catholic educators, we should take time to understand the history of Catholic education in the province of Ontario.
View the video: The Enduring Gift: English Catholic Education in Ontario - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HsGp8C0YnA
1. How do we distinguish between a “generic Christianity” and a distinct Catholic identity? What difference does this distinction make to the ongoing life of Catholic education?
2. If Catholic education is to maintain its distinctive nature congruent with its right to exist, we have a responsibility to give an accounting to society in order to demonstrate the need for the right to continue. How do we do this?
3. “The document from the Ontario bishops, This Moment of Promise, was produced in 1989 and reflected the great promise that full funding brought to the Catholic community. The document identifies the many stakeholders in Catholic education: students, parents, teachers, administrators, support personnel, trustees and clergy and it provides guidance to them as they carry out their varied responsibilities.
What steps can we take to further engage all of the stakeholders in conversation about the future of Catholic education?
What questions would guide the conversations?
What role is there for the wider Catholic community such as parishes, Catholic organizations, and the business community in forging a future for Catholic education in Ontario?
4. In the video, Premier Davis says that he hopes that we treasure the gift of Catholic education, respect it and continue to be involved in it, in order to make it work.
What can we do individually and collectively in order to ensure that Ontario’s Catholic schools continue to grow as vibrant centres of academic excellence infuse with the wisdom of sacred scripture and church tradition that makes these schools distinct?
What knowledge, skills and attitudes must Catholic education have in order to ensure an authentic Catholic atmosphere, and Catholic curricula, beyond religious education courses?
What aspect of Catholic education would a student in 2021 stand up for?
5. Mark McGowan says, “Those who know the story of the development of Catholic schools in this province must realize that these schools are a gift that should not be squandered.”
What steps can be taken to ensure that the Catholic education story in Ontario is shared within the broader community?
How might this assist us in meeting, positively and proactively, the challenges to Catholic education that the future will bring?
Mark McGowan says that the “enemy is us”.
What does he mean by this statement?
What can we do to ensure that we are friends not foes of Catholic education?
Feedback on Assignment #2:
Your article analysis is well done. You have articulated the key points of the article and your response to them. Music plays an important part in the lives of our students and in our lives as well. Music and singing has always been an integral part of celebrations and liturgies in the Catholic Church. As Thomas Groome explains the sacramental outlook, the sacramental imagination, in Nine Things That Make Us Catholic, “As with its outlook on the person, Catholic faith sees all of God's creation as essentially good. Likewise, whatever humans create as participants in God's creativity, though it can be misused for destruction, is never inherently evil. Here is why Catholicism has never condemned dancing, singing, celebrating, good food, even alcohol—and Catholics can have a little more fun.” We cannot determine what our students listen to and nor should we. As you gave in the example, we may decide to ask the student to turn it off if it is vulgar or graphic. Jesus has told us not to judge others nor condemn them. However, there certainly is an example of Jesus reacting in scripture when he chased the moneylenders out of the temple. I think if the music was racist, demonstrating intolerance or discrimination in any way that he would react. And perhaps we should to. Regardless of our reaction, it is important to create an environment in which students can discuss their faith beliefs and concerns. As educators and Canadian citizens, we are bound by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. As educators we are also bound by the Ethical Standards of Teaching Practice (OCT). As Catholic educators we are bound by the Catholic School Graduate Expectations. But more importantly, we are bound by the gospel message to be inclusive and to treat all others with compassion, dignity and respect regardless of race, creed, gender or socioeconomic status. Certainly nothing we do as educators takes precedence over the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and nothing we do can take precedence over the gospel message. 12/15
No comments:
Post a Comment