Catholic Faith Formation Resources

We recognize that our lives are given and sustained by God's love and grace. We are called to surrender to God and to allow God's love to continually transform us, so that we may respond by loving God and others. One way of measuring your spiritual progress in that regard is to reflect on what type of person you are becoming in thought, word, and deed. Are you inwardly experiencing and outwardly projecting the fruits of the Spirit such as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity (see CCC, no. 1832; Galatians 5:22–23). Are you becoming a person of humility, integrity and holiness (wholeness)? Do you express gratitude to God and to others? Are you becoming more compassionate, friendly, forgiving, inclusive and tolerant of others? Do you engage in acts of selfless service to others in need? These changes may not begin to occur until you reach your “tipping point,” when you begin to recognize ...

There are a number of Spiritual Practices to help guide and nurture us such as prayer, solitude, silence, lectio divina , study, reflection, discernment, meditation, contemplation, Liturgy of the Hours, the Examen, adoration, fasting, participating in liturgy, receiving the sacraments, retreats, pilgrimages, spiritual direction, or other practices. You can find a description of some of these spiritual practices in the publication " Catholic Spirituality in Practice ," published by the Church of the 21st Century at Boston College. A search of the web will disclose a number of other resources for learning more about different Spiritual Practices.

OPENING PRAYER Peace Within May today there be peace within. May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith. May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you May you be confident knowing you are a child of God. Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us. —attributed to St. Therèse of Lisieux and St. Theresa of Avila Source: https://www.xavier.edu/jesuitresource/online-resources/prayer-index/morning-and-new-beginnings-prayers "BAPTISM" BECOMING A CHRISTIAN" — CCC , Nos. 1076–1209 "You were buried with [Christ] in baptism, in which you were also raised with [Christ] through faith in the power of God,who raised [Christ] from the dead" Colossians 2:12 Have you ever experienced any initiation ...

There have been many definitions proposed for the term "religion." For example, consider William James, author of Varieties of Religious Experience, a Study of Human Nature , who defines "religion" as the "feelings, acts and experiences of [individuals] in their solitude, so far as they apprehend themselves to stand in relation to whatever they may consider the divine" (1902, pp. 11-12). Compare this definition with that presented in the Catechism of the Catholic Church , which defines "religion" as "A set of beliefs and practices followed by those committed to the service and worship of God." (USCCB Second ed. 1997, p. 896). When someone describes themselves as being "spiritual but not religous," it generally means they believe they can have a private and personal relationship with the Divine that is independent of being affiliated with an organized religious community. See the report " Meet the Spiritual but Not R...

The term "spirituality" has been given a variety of definitions. One definition that you may find helpful is "Spirituality is our lived relationship with Mystery." * In place of "Mystery," some may prefer to use the word "God," the "Divine," "Spirit," "Higher Power," the "Ground of All Being," or some other term to name the underlying spiritual and transcendent reality of all creation. "For in [God] we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28). From the Catholic Christian faith tradition, spirituality refers to consciously growing in our dynamic relationship with God through Jesus Christ and, by God's grace, seeking to live a life of love in conformity with the Holy Spirit, in communion with the Church—the People of God, the Body of Christ, the Communion of Saints. *Thomas Hart, Spiritual Quest: A Guide to the Changing Landscape, (Mahwah, NJ:Paulist Press, 1989), 40.

OPENING PRAYER Canticle of the Sun O most High, almighty, good Lord God, to you belong praise, glory, honor, and all blessing! Praised be my Lord God with all creatures; and especially our brother the sun, which brings us the day, and the light; fair is he, and shining with a very great splendor: O Lord, he signifies you to us! Praised be my Lord for our sister the moon, and for the stars, which God has set clear and lovely in heaven. Praised be my Lord for our brother the wind, and for air and cloud, calms and all weather, by which you uphold in life all creatures. Praised be my Lord for our sister water, which is very serviceable to us, and humble, and precious, and clean. Praised be my Lord for brother fire, through which you give us light in the darkness: and he is bright, and pleasant, and very mighty, and strong. Praised be my Lord for our mother the Earth, which sustains us and keeps us, and yields divers fruits, and flowers of many colors, an...

Do we strive to "see" ourselves and others through the eyes of God; that is, through the eyes of a God who loves unconditionally and whose love sustains all of creation? Just as important, do we "see" the essence of God's love in one another, even if the other person does not "see" this love within themselves or in others? Saint ("Mother") Teresa of Calcutta was once asked why she serves other people, especially the poor who are suffering and dying. Her response was that she sees the face of Jesus [the "human face of God"], whom she loves, in each human being. "Just as you did it to one of the least of these...you did it to me." (Matt 25:40).  Who needs you today to "see" them through the eyes of God?

When we think of the term “mystery” we generally believe it is something to be solved. When we read a Sherlock Holmes novel we expect to learn by the end of the novel “who did it,” and the clues that led Holmes to use his extraordinary deductive reasoning capabilities to discover the culprit. We usually do not like mysteries without endings, nor stories that do not tie up the loose ends. When we speak of God as Ultimate Mystery, we mean something different. We can never experience the fullness or completeness of God who is eternal. God is beyond our finite ability to comprehend or describe. At best, we can only say what God is not and not what God is. Given the eternal and transcendental attributes ascribed to God, and our own creaturely finiteness, we can never directly know nor experience the full and complete depth and breadth of God. At best, we are able to only experience a limited, partial unveiling of God that God chooses to reveal to us. The Christian faith tradition...

OPENING PRAYER ACT OF FAITH O my God, I firmly believe that you are one God in three divine Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I believe that your divine Son became man and died for our sins and that he will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe these and all the truths which the Holy Catholic Church teaches because you have revealed them who are eternal truth and wisdom, who can neither deceive nor be deceived. In this faith I intend to live and die. Amen. ACT OF HOPE O Lord God, I hope by your grace for the pardon of all my sins and after life here to gain eternal happiness because you have promised it who are infinitely powerful, faithful, kind, and merciful. In this hope I intend to live and die. Amen. ACT OF LOVE O Lord God, I love you above all things and I love my neighbor for your sake because you are the highest, infinite and perfect good, worthy of all my love. In this love I intend to live and die. Amen. "OUR ETERNA...

The Gospel reading for tomorrow is Jesus's parable about the "Good Samaritan" (Luke 10:35–37) . Pope Francis reflected on this parable and the question of "who is my neighbor" in his third and most recent encyclical, Fratelli tutti  ("On Fraternity and Social Friendship") . Perhaps today we can spend some time reading and praying over this Gospel and Pope Francis' reflection on it (nos. 56-86), and asking ourselves some of the following questions: Which person am I in this Gospel story? Who do I consider to be my neighbor? How do I currently live in relationship with them? What do I hear God speaking to me today as to who God considers is my neighbor and how I should live in relationship with them? Are there any other insights that I received?  Express gratitude to God for giving you this inspiration and asking for the wisdom, courage, strength and will to act in conformity with it. If you like, take some time to write down in your journal ...

We are each created by and sustained through God's abiding love that is the essence of our being. “For God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God and God abides in them” (1 John 4:16) God’s love for all people of this world is unconditional, abundant, never ending, and it never changes. This love is never earned and it is never lost. This love is not dependent upon whether we take our first breath, or on our gender, age, race, nationality, religious beliefs, educational attainment, sexual preferences, what we do, how we look, how much money or possessions we have, but solely on the fact that we are all God’s beloved. Whether we are aware of it or not, we are able to love "because [God] first loved us” (1 John 4:19). God wants nothing more than for each of us to surrender to this love with our whole being, and to strive to love others as God loves us.

OPENING PRAYER The Canticle of Mary (" The Magnificat ") My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed: the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name. He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation. He has shown the strength of his arm, he has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children for ever. Amen. (Lk 1: 46-55) "MARY: THE CHURCH'S FIRST AND MOST PERFECT MEMBER" — CCC , Nos. 484–507, 963–972, 2673–2677 What relationship do you experience with Mar...

We are each called by God to be holy, to be set apart for God. “But as [God] who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in every aspect of your conduct, for it is written, ‘Be holy because I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:15–16; see Leviticus 11:44–45). Our holiness is derived through our relationship with God, who is the source of all holiness. Holiness is a call to the “fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of love.” ( Lumen Gentium 40; CCC 2013). “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect ”(Matthew 5:48). The Greek word that is translated as "perfect" can also mean "whole." We increase in holiness and wholeness by surendering ourselves to the Mystery we call God. We seek to grow towards an intimate relationship with God through prayer and abiding in God's presence and unconditional love, recognizing God as the creator and sustainer of all reality, seeking to do God's will, and loving who and what God loves. We are also called to l...