Catholic Faith Formation Resources

OPENING PRAYER Prayer for Community Embracing Father, You grace each of us with equal measure in your love. Let us learn to love our neighbors more deeply, so that we can create peaceful and just communities. Inspire us to use our creative energies to build the structures we need to overcome the obstacles of intolerance and indifference. May Jesus provide us the example needed and send the Spirit to warm our hearts for the journey. Amen. Source: "From Being Neighbor: The Catechism and Social Justice" (USCCB, April 1998) SEVEN THEMES OF CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING " We believe that every person is precious, that people are more important than things, and that the measure of every institution is whether it threatens or enhances the life and dignity of the human person. " (USCCB). What are the most important social issues you believe we face today? How do you learn about the Church's moral vision and guidance regarding these issues? ...

You are invited to continue to reflect on your experience of belonging to a parish community. As described by the U.S. Bishops, The parish is where the Church lives. Parishes are communities of faith, of action, and of hope. They are where the gospel is proclaimed and celebrated, where believers are formed and sent to renew the earth. Parishes are the home of the Christian community; they are the heart of our Church. Parishes are the place where God's people meet Jesus in word and sacrament and come in touch with the source of the Church's life. *     *    * Our parish communities are measured by how they serve "the least of these" in our parish and beyond its boundaries-the hungry, the homeless, the sick, those in prison, the stranger (cf. Mt 25:31). Our local families of faith are called to "hunger and thirst for justice" and to be "peacemakers" in our own communities (c Mt 5:6,9). A parish cannot really proclaim the gospel if its message i...

Various books and articles have been written opining as to what traits, qualities, characteristics, or practices are found in a "vibrant" or "Spirt-filled" parish, where we encounter the "living" Christ. One such article offers the following "10 Signs of a Vibrant Parish": * 1.     All who enter experience welcome and hospitality. 2.     Liturgy inspires active participation and offers an experience of God. 3.     Parishioners recognize their parish mission. 4.     Collegial leadership is practiced. 5.     Members are recognized as gifted and called forth to use their gifts. 6.     Faith is nurtured. 7.     Outreach to the body of Christ is practiced. 8.     There is a plan for a sustainable and responsible future. 9.     Communal life abounds. 10....

OPENING PRAYER Prayer for Life Eternal God, creator and sustainer of life, bless us with the courage to defend all life from conception to natural death. Bless us with the strength to respect all peoples from east to west, from north to south, so that we may truly follow the call of Jesus to be neighbor. We ask this in the name of Jesus, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit. Amen Source: "From Being Neighbor: The Catechism and Social Justice" (USCCB, April 1998) "CHOOSE LIFE FOR YOURSELF AND OTHERS" " I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then, that you and your descendants may live ." (Deuteronomy 30:19b). Jesus said, "I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly." (John 10:10b) " Our parish communities are measured by how they serve "the least of these" in our parish and beyond its boundaries—the hungry, the homeless, t...

"If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is “thank you,” it will be enough." — Meister Eckhart What's the first thought that comes into your mind when you awaken from sleep in the morning? Do you express your gratitude to God for your life, your next breath, and for a new day? Do you give thanksgiving to God for the gift of your parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and your other ancestors who came before you and, without whom, you would not exist or have been nourished? Do you thank God for the gift of your spouse, your children, their spouses, and your grandchildren? Do you give thanks for your education, your teachers, fellow students, and other mentors? Do you thank God for the gift of your friends and acquaintances? Do you give thanks to God for your vocation, your employers, employees, co-employees, and your clients? Do you thank God for providing you with your talents and other gifts that you are called to share with others? Do yo...

We cannot share with others what we don't have ourselves. To live in peace with others begins with being at peace within ourselves. To will love for others begins with willing love within ourselves. Seeing others as God sees them begins with seeing ourselves as God sees us and all humanity, as persons who God loves unconditionally for who we are—the daughters and sons of God. People are not mere "objects" to be used for our own self-interests and purposes. Rather, like us, they are imbued with the inherent dignity of being created in the image and likeness of God. All humans are infused with the "spark" of God at the center or depth of their very being, waiting to be manifested through each of us. We are called to tear down all barriers that prevent or limit us from seeing and experiencing this inherent human dignity in one another. We invite you to take some time to reflect on the "spark" of God that lies within you. Do you experience the fire o...

OPENING PRAYER Namasté Namasté is sometimes interpreted as “I greet the Holy One in You,” but it can be expanded to mean “I greet the totality of who you are, your deepest self where your true being resides, and I greet the part of you with its flaws and incompleteness, that is still in the process of becoming whole. ” I greet the Enduring Love in you. I greet the Compassionate One in you I greet the kindness in you. I greet the spirit of ancestors in you. I greet the strength to endure in you. I greet the gift of laughter in you. I greet the dancing muse of creativity in you. I greet the listening heart in you. I greet the radiant light in you. I greet the deep peace in you. I greet the gift of hope in you. I greet the Holy One’s strength in you. I greet the divine beauty in you. I greet the playful child in you. I greet the strength to surrender in you. I greet the Beloved One in you. Amen Source: Joyce Rupp, Prayer Seeds , pp. x, xi. "CREATE...

We face many global, societal, and systemic challenges to humanity today including: injustice, poverty, hunger, homelessness, food and water insecurity, Covid and other pandemics, disease, inadequate medical and mental healthcare, global warming, environmental destruction and damage, killing of innocent life, racism, class warfare, personal safety, violence, crime, terrorism, global conflict and war, subjugation and exploitation of women and children, immigration, persecution, discrimination and marginalization of others, unequal distribution of wealth and power, lack of economic opportunity and unemployment, inflation, the lack and cost of education, unaccountability and the lack of transparency and corruption in government, lack of tolerance for others of different faiths, self-identities, and beliefs, and many other challenges. There are no easy solutions to any of these challenges that can be daunting, and they will take our imagination, patience, courage, and cooperation with o...

We are social beings who live in networks of interdependent relationships and social structures. Each person's inherent dignity arises from being created in the image and likeness of God, a God who unconditionally loves all of God's creatures. Since "God is love" (1 Jn 4:8) and we are created in the image and likeness of God, then the innermost essence of our being is also love. Once we recognize and accept this, and allow God's love to transform us, then through love we can begin to also transform the quality of our relationships with others, with our environment, and with the social structures we encounter. As stated in the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church : Discovering that they are loved by God, people come to understand their own transcendent dignity, they learn not to be satisfied with only themselves but to encounter their neighbour in a network of relationships that are ever more authentically human. Men and women who are made “new” by...

OPENING PRAYER We cannot merely pray to you, O God, to end war; For we know that You have made the world in a way that people must find their own path to peace within themselves and with their neighbors. We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to end starvation; For You have already given us the resources with which to feed the entire world, if we would only use them wisely. We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to root out prejudice; For You have already given us eyes with which to see the good in all people, if we would only use them rightly. We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to end despair; For You have already given us the power to clear away slums and to give hope, if we would only use our power justly. We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to end disease; For You have already given us great minds with which to search out cures and healing, if we would only use them constructively. Therefore we pray to You instead, O God, for strength, determination a...

Jesus, like so many before him and after him, suffered and was crucified on a cross by those who were in power. Did God will Jesus to suffer and die in this manner? Perhaps we should consider and reflect on the words of Elizabeth Johnson, CJS, who wrote: To say that God willed Jesus to suffer makes God less good than a normal human being would be. Historically speaking, Jesus was condemned to death unjustly, a victim of human sinfulness and rejection. To say God handed him over is to blame God for what should be laid at the doorstep of human injustice. Rather, God wills life and not death, joy and not suffering, both for Jesus and for everyone else. * What "powers" are unjustly causing suffering to innocent lives today? How can you individually and with others promote justice and help to peacefully and non-violently transform such unjust "powers"? How can you be an agent for fostering change that leads to "life and not death, joy and not suffering" f...

You are invited to reflect on the following passage by David G. Benner: Creation is an outpouring of love...[that] reveals the abundance of [God's] love. Creation declares that humans are born of love and for love, created in the image of a God who is love. Love is our source and love is to be our fulfillment. Made in God's image, humans are invested with a nonnegotiable dignity....Even more astounding, God chooses us to be [God's] friends. That imputed status was never annulled, despite our sinful rebellion and declaration of independence. Creation was God's plan for friendship. We were not brought into existence simply so that we could worship God. Nor were we created simply for service. Human beings exist because of God's desire for companionship. We are the fruit of God's love reaching out toward creatures who share enough similarity that relationship is possible. * Do you believe God desires your friendship? Are you open to having a friendship ...

OPENING PRAYER Lord, Jesus Christ, You are the Way, the Truth and the Life. Hear our prayer for truth and integrity in all segments of society today. May the truth be spoken by us and affirmed in others, that in seeking truth, the world will come to find You, the Source of All Truth. Wherever relationships are weakened by deception or hypocrisy, strengthen good Christian character among us that we may bear witness to the critical need for truth. May your Spirit of Truth fashion minds and hearts open to a moral integrity so strong that both words and actions can be trusted. In public and private life, deepen among us a genuine commitment to honest, sincerity and truth-telling. Let nations and peoples not compromise truth by rationalization or pretense, but safe-guard and defend it always as Your most precious gift. Lord, may those around us come to know that they can take us at our word, until that day when all the world lives in truth and the Truth ...