RELIGIOUS
EDUCATION RESOURCES
Aspects
of Catholic education and Catholic belief and practice
Explanatory
pamphlets for parents, staff and board members of Catholic
schools
Produced by the Ethos
Committee of the Catholic Schools Board |
| 1.
The History and Rationale of Catholic Schools |
download |
| 2.
The Distinctive Character of a Catholic School: Expectations
of Teachers |
download |
| 3.
Religious Education in Catholic Schools |
download |
| 4.
Ethos and Pastoral Care |
download |
| 5.
The Mass: an explanation for those who are not Catholics |
download |
| 6.
The Eucharist: may anyone receive Communion? |
download |
| 7.
Sacramentals: candles, holy water, statues, incense,
vestments, etc |
download |
| 8.
Catholics and Mary |
download |
| 9.
Saints: why Catholics have a devotion to the saints |
download |
| 10.
Gospel Values |
download |
| 11.
Principles of Catholic Social Teaching |
download |
| 12.
Governance of Catholic Schools |
download |
| 13.
Education in South Africa: Our Context |
download |
| 14.
The Catholic Education Network in South Africa |
download |
CATEGORIES - RE RESOURCES
This
page contains links to websites useful to RE teachers. Clicking on an underlined title will take you the section with the links.
Catechisms
Catholic
News
Catholic
Social Teaching
Church
Documents
Workshops
for RE Teachers
Courses
for RE Teachers
Environment
and Green Issues
Evolutionary
Theory
General
Catholic Sites
Lesson
Resources
Liturgical
Calendar and Daily Lectionary Readings
Prayers
Religious
Orders
Saints
Scripture
Sexual
Ethics
Theological
Questions
Tough
Issues
Miscellaneous
The
Catholic Schools Office is obviously not responsible for the
contents of other websites, and the contents of websites linked here
do not necessarily represent the full views of the Catholic Schools
Office.
catechisms
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
The Baltimore Catechism Parts 1 to 3
The
Baltimore Catechism Part 4
Written for the Catholic minority in
America
in the 1880s and revised in 1941, the Baltimore Catechism devotes
much of its subject matter to defending Catholic truth and
countering Protestant “falsehoods”.
These Catechisms are intended to furnish a complete course of
religious instruction, when, used as follows:
No. 1 for First Communion classes
No. 2 for Confirmation classes
No. 3 for two years´ course for Post-Confirmation classes
No. 4 for Teachers and Teachers´ Training classes
The
Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)
The unofficial Catholic Encyclopedia has many articles on Catholic
beliefs, practices, saints, and organisations. The preface declares,
"The Catholic Encyclopedia gives full and authoritative
information on the entire cycle of Catholic history, interests,
action and doctrine. What the Church teaches and has taught; what
she has done and is still doing for the highest welfare of
humankind; her methods, past and present; her struggles, her
triumphs, and the achievements of her members -- all come within the
scope of the Catholic Encyclopedia."
catholic news
Zenit
ZENIT is an
International News Agency. It provides coverage of events, documents
and issues emanating from or concerning the Catholic Church.
Coverage includes activities of Benedict XVI, such as his travels,
documents and audiences; the
Vatican
, including diplomatic activity, humanitarian efforts, and profiles
of Church leaders; interviews with and features about leading lay
Catholics, including researchers, politicians, writers and
entertainers. ZENIT offers daily news dispatches by e-mail.
Catholic
World News
Catholic World News is an independent
Catholic news service staffed by lay Catholic journalists, dedicated
to providing accurate world news, written from a Catholic
perspective
Catholic
News Service
CNS reports news about the involvement of the Church in the world
today. CNS, serving since 1920 as a news agency specialising in
reporting religion, is the primary source of national and world news
that appears in the US Catholic press. It is also a leading source
of news for Catholic print and broadcast media throughout the world.
Almost every English-language Catholic newspaper in the world uses
CNS. The approximately 170 US Catholic newspapers and broadcasters
and the more than 70 other news organisations in some 60 countries
that rely on CNS touch the lives of more than 8 million throughout
the world. Vatican Radio, which broadcasts news around the globe in
more than 30 languages, is among the users of the CNS daily news
report
catholic social teaching
Catholic
Social Teaching Resources
Catholic social teaching resources compiled by the Office for Social
Justice of the Archdiocese of St Paul and
Minneapolis. This link includes: social teaching documents; notable quotations;
major themes; 25 questions; reading list; teacher's toolbox; and web
links.
Powerpoint
presentation on Catholic Social Teaching: A Key to Catholic
Identity from the Office for Social
Justice of the Archdiocese of St Paul and Minneapolis.
Click
here to download.
Catholic
Social Thought
Online Resources compiled by Professor Joseph Incandela
of St Mary's College, Notre Dame,
Indiana
,
USA
. Includes information on the Catholic Church, The Bible, and
specific ethical issues such as birth control, conscience and
dissent, abortion, reproductive technologies, euthanasia, and women
in the Church.
Center
of Concern: Education for Justice
Offers downloadable educational materials related to the principles
of Catholic Social Teaching: fact sheets, reflections, prayers,
annotated links, and interactive materials. It also provides a
calendar, lectionary reflections, prayer services and much more.
Resources
for Catholic Educators: Social Justice and Peace
Links to many Catholic Social Teaching sites.
Parish
without Borders: Social Justice Teaching Aids
A network of Catholic communities joined in mission and outreach.
Non-Violence
Education
Conflict
resolution in the clasroom, Games, Non-violent teaching practice
Overcoming
Violence
A World Council of Churches campaign that addresses political and
domestic violence against women and children. Violence in the
family, sexual violence, violence against women and children in war
areas, children's work and discriminatory laws.
Liturgical material, Bible studies and reflections as well as books,
films, articles and exhibits to be used for campaign-related worship
and other activities.
church documents
The Code of Canon Law (1983)
The Code of Canon Law is the official compendium of the primary
rules and regulations of the Catholic Church.
Documents
of the Second Vatican Council
Encyclicals
and other church documents
This library includes a complete set
of encyclicals and other documents, letters and articles from many
renowned authors that concern almost every facet of Catholicism
workshops
for RE teachers
Lighting the Way - RE Conference Documents
Sacredness of the Child - Sr Ulrike (Download)
The Creed - Br Michael Burke (Download)
Do you know where we're going - Paul Faller
(Download)
Practical Lesson - sexuality education - Rita
Goodhead & Sr Sarah Doherty
(Download1,
Download2,
Download3)
Power of Music in RE - Mathilda Bester (Download)
Lord do you not care - Bernie Chellew (Download)
Meditation on the ordinary - Bernie Mullen (Download)
Spirituality for RE
Teachers
Talk at workshop for RE Co-ordinators, 18
June 2009 Mayfair Mercy Convent School by Fr Chris Chatteris SJ download
Workshops for RE Coordinators and Teachers
Paul Faller presented to RE
Coordinators and Teachers two workshops with the titles: A Trinitarian Image
(28 Jan 2010) and Praying
in Color (18 feb 2010). Select the following
links to download the workshop material.
1)
A
Trinitarian Image
2)
Praying
in Color and its Summary
courses for RE teachers
environment and green issues
Enviropaedia
- A-Z of Environmental Topics -
short
factual explanations.
- Major environmental challenges – broad overview
perspectives
- Controversial Issues - exploring conflicting values and viewpoints
- Sustainable Development - how do we achieve it?
- Database of environmental and other organisations involved in
sustainable development
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is an
independent, campaigning organisation which uses peaceful direct
action and creative communication to expose global environmental
problems, and to force solutions for a green and peaceful future.
Greenpeace's goal is to ensure the ability of the earth to nurture
life in all its diversity.
evolutionary
theory
FAITH
AND SCIENCE PROGRAMME FOR GRADES 10 - 12
What is the Church’s stance on Evolutionary Theory?
The ORIGINS CENTRE at the University of
the Witwatersrand works in partnership with the JESUIT INSTITUTE in
its project of teaching evolution to Catholic schools through
Christian Doctrine.
Talks can be arranged for learners on ‘Evolutionary Faith’. This
will include a brief history of the Catholic Church’s response to
evolution – from unease to broad acceptance. It also explores how to
reconcile African and Christian understandings of creation with the
scientific evidence for evolution.
Dr. Merrill van der Walt is a member of the staff of the ORIGIN
CENTRE. She is a practicing Catholic herself, who has been in the
scientific arena for more than 10 years. She initiated the initial
project because of her own questioning and need for reconciliation
on this topic.
Reservations:
Schools can contact the centre to inquire about current programmes
on offer. There is a cost per learner and a minimum number of
participants required per session.
Contact: Should you be interested, you can contact: Dr Merrill van
der Walt: (011) 717 4712
Article about the Theology of Creation by Albert Nolan.
general catholic sites
Catholic
Educator’s Resource Center
Apologetics, Arts and Literature, Catholic Education, Culture and
Civilization, Facts and Misconceptions, History, Catholic Stories,
Politics and Government, Religion and Ethics, Science, Abortion,
Environment, Euthanasia, Feminism, Homosexuality, Marriage and
Family, Media, Medical Ethics, Multiculturalism, Parenting,
Persecution of Christians, Population Control, Sexuality, Social
Justice
Domestic
Church
Intended for Catholic
families, but many of these useful and practical ideas can be used
in the RE classroom
Catholic
Answers
A major apologetics site. Contains a
large number of pamphlet style questions and answers about the Faith
Catholic
Biblical Apologetics
A set of lecture notes used since 1985 to teach the
basis for key doctrines and dogmas of the Roman Catholic Church
How is a Pope elected
Click on the link below to find out
how a pope is elected
http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/the-vatican/come-si-elegge-il-papa/
lesson resources
Year of Faith - Ideas
for Catholic Schools
Walking Through the Curriculum
The workshops
“Walking Through the Curriculum”
provided RE teachers with the valuable opportunity of examining the
Life Skills and Life Orientation curricula, reviewing the 15
processes of Lifebound and Cord and collaborating with colleagues to
decide how best to integrate the requirements of CAPS (which will be
implemented in Grade R – 11 in 2013) with the core aspects of the RE
curriculum.
Download below a
selection of the resource documents organized by phase as
distributed at the workshop.
Foundation Phase
Intermediate Phase
Senior Phase
FET Phase
More
on this, in October 2012 Paul Faller and John McCormick prepared
an alignment of CAPS and the RE curriculum.
Download below the alignment documents.
Life Skills and RE - Introduction Grd R - 3
Life Skills and RE - Grade R
Life Skills and RE - Grade 1
Life Skills and RE - Grade 2
Life Skills and RE - Grade 3
Life Skills and RE - Introduction Grd 4 - 6
Life Skills and RE - Grade 4
Life Skills and RE - Grade 5
Life Skills and RE - Grade 6
Life Orientation and RE - Introduction Grd 7 - 9
Life Orientation and RE - Grade 7
Life Orientation and RE - Grade 8
Life Orientation and RE - Grade 9
Religious Education - CAP & CORD - Grade 10 -12
More RE Resources:
Online
Teaching & learning initiative - Cath. Education Office, Melbourne
Lesson
Plans and Tools for RE
Catholic
Educators News
Catholic Education Resource Centre - Canada
RE
Resources and Lesson Plans
Catholic
Education Service UK Resources
Catholic
Mom
liturgical
calendar /daily lectionary readings
The
Tablet Liturgical Calendar
The website of the 's eminent Catholic magazine, The Tablet, provides a liturgical
calendar which gives every feastday and feria, Sunday of the Year
and solemnity for the whole year.
Catholic
Culture Calendar
Interfaith
Calendar
Primary
sacred times
for world religions.
Reflections
on daily readings
Daily reflections on the lectionary readings, as well as a link to
the text (from the New American Bible) of the readings. From
Creighton
University
, a
Catholic
Jesuit
University
in
Omaha
,
Nebraska
,
USA
founded in 1878.
Universalis
Mass
readings of the current day.
Daily
Mass readings provided by the US Bishops' Conference
Uses
the text of the New American Bible.
prayers
Daily
Prayer in the Classroom
Composed and supplied by the Parramatta Diocese Catholic Education
Office, Australia
Liturgy
of the Hours
Liturgy of the Hours prayers in Adobe Acrobat formats. For prayer groups there are small booklets with Morning Prayer,
Daytime Prayer, Evening Prayer, Night Prayer or the Office of
Readings. For personal use there are formats that display on PCs and mobile
devices, plus a large booklet with all the daily prayers.
Praying
Each Day
A prayer and education site of the De La Salle Brothers in Great
Britain
Reflections and Prayers for each day of the year
religious orders
saints
African
Saints
Saints
proclaimed during the pontificate of John Paul II
Recent
blesseds
Bernadette
Soubirous - Play
Short play for
the feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes
The
Communion of Saints
Teaching of the Church from the Catechism of the Catholic Church
Catholic
Online: Saints and Angels
Èditions
Magnificat
Short
illustrated biographies of a saint for each day of the year
Catholic
Pages: Saints
Domestic-Church
Saint Profiles
Dozens of profiles of saints and activities written for young,
middle and older children.
Catholic
Saints & Martyrs
Biographies for several Saints
Patron
Saints Index
Hundreds of places, conditions, occupations and other topics with
patron saints. Each topic has biographical data and prayers
Saints
Alive
Images of Relics from around the world. Some lists of saints and
beati and their areas of patronage.
Société
des Bollandistes
Site of the priests who research the historical record to determine
what can be proved about the lives of Saints.
Online
Books & Files
Church
History in the Light of the Saints
by Joseph A. Dunney (1945)
Saints For Sinners
Archbishop Goodier, in extremely readable and inspiring style, has
brought the lives of nine unusual saints into remarkably clear
focus.
scripture
Scripture
Catholic
Scriptural evidence for the teachings of the Catholic Church.
Includes links to other Catholic sites.
Catholic
Teachings on Scripture
The website of the Diocese of Saskatoon. What the Church teaches
about the Bible.
Bible
Activity Worksheets
Many worksheets for both the Old and New Testaments
MSSS
Crafts
A directory of children's
Sabbath
School
and Sunday School resources and crafts. Here you will find
free crafts and ideas for over one hundred Bible stories as well as
other activities for devotions and Bible classes. (Not a Catholic
site)
Children's
Sunday School Teacher's Online Resources
Links to useful crafts, pictures and other resources on many Bible
stories and topics
sexual ethics
Contraception
and Catholic Sexual Ethics
Roman
Catholic Sexual Ethics: A Dissenting View
by Charles E. Curran
Ordained in
Rome
in 1958 for the Diocese of Rochester, New York, Curran first came to
prominence in 1968 when he, along with a group of some 600 Catholic
theologians, authored a response to Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI's
encyclical affirming the traditional ban on artificial
contraception. Curran continued to question the Church's
authoritative teaching in various moral issues, including premarital
sex, masturbation, contraception, abortion, homosexual acts,
divorce, euthanasia, and in vitro fertilization throughout the 1970s
and 1980s. Curran was removed from the faculty of The Catholic
University of America in 1986 as a dissident who unapologetically
maintained the right to dissent from official Church teachings which
had not been issued as ex cathedra statements. Since then, Curran
has taken a full tenured professorship at the Southern Methodist
University, and has published personal accounts about his experience
with the Catholic Church, and his viewpoint on the actions of Church
authorities.
Natural Family Planning
by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke of the Archdiocese of
St Louis
Sexuality Education Guidelines for Catholic Schools.
Produced by the Religious Education Department, National Catholic
Schools’ Office, on behalf of the Catholic Schools - Proprietors’
Association (CaSPA), November 2005.
theological questions
Is
Hell Closed Up and Boarded Over?
by the Rev. David Watt, a priest of the Archdiocese of Perth in
Australia
. He holds a doctorate in philosophy from
Cambridge
University
(
England
) and a licentiate in theology from the
Gregorian
University
in
Rome
.
Do
Many Go To Hell?
by John Young, B.Th., who is associated with The Cardinal Newman
Catechist Centre in Merrylands, N.S.W., Australia.
Purgatory:
An Essential Roman Catholic Doctrine
by James McCarthy
Do
Catholics Believe In Purgatory?
by Father William P. Saunders, pastor of Our Lady of Hope Parish in
Potomac
Falls
and former dean of the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom
College
Does
Purgatory Exist?
Article from the Real Truth,
magazine of the Restored Church of God.
tough issues
Umbert
the Unborn
A child-friendly site about abortion, introducing Umbert, the world's most lovable
unborn baby
Holy Communion for Divorced and Re-married Catholics?
by Cardinal Jorge A. Medina Estevez, Prefect emeritus of the
Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
miscellaneous
Harry
Potter and the Paganization of Children’s Culture
Vocations
PowerPoint
Produced by the KZN Vocations Team. Suitable for a class lesson.
Challenging and inspiring.
