Catechesis of the Good Shepherd

Sundays at 10:10 a.m.

Mission:  The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is a Montessori based approach to religious formation based on the conviction that God and the child are in relationship. The child's desire is for us to “help me come closer to God by myself.”

In response an environment is prepared, called an atrium, for children ages 3 through 12. The atrium is a place where they can experience their relationship with God in a meaningful way.

Curriculum At the heart of the curriculum is the development of the religious potential of every child in a loving relationship with God. There is a deep bond between God and the young child. This produces in the child the desire to draw near to God.

The curriculum is developmentally age-appropriate and specific in the method in which it is presented. Each level of the Catechesis explores the fundamental theme of Covenant as we live it in our Liturgy and as reflected in the Bible. Each level has a 3-year cycle of lessons. Each level builds on the knowledge gained from the precious one. Once children experience a lesson, they can choose the various materials to further absorb the message they heard proclaimed during the presentation.

Vision The hope of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is that by the time children reach their middle school years they have deeply experienced God's love for them and their love for God. It is hoped that they have received a solid experience of spiritual formation so that they know of whom they believe. And finally, it is hoped that they will eagerly participate in the community of the faithful knowing their place within it.

Catechist The catechist's role is to prepare the environment and present lessons that “call forth” a response from the child. The young child responds to the love of the Good Shepherd with great joy while older children are inspired to respond and act in a new way.

Children The 3-6 year old child has such a capacity to receive and enjoy the most essential elements of
our faith, that is, the announcement of God's love in the person of Jesus, our Good Shepherd. “I am the Good Shepherd. I call my sheep by name. They hear my voice and follow me.”


It is in the Level I atrium that the child hears about the Good Shepherd and has the opportunity to enjoy a loving relationship with him. The historical events of the life of Jesus, his preaching about the Kingdom of God, and the proclamations about Christ as the Light are presented using three-dimensional materials made for the child to use. This helps make the mystery of God more concrete. Children can begin to understand the elements of the Liturgy by recognizing the articles of the altar, the gestures and the colors of the liturgical seasons.

Once a child reaches first grade, he or she enters Level II for the 6-9 year old child (grades 1-3). Level II builds on Level I themes and broadens them to include a new image of Jesus and our relationship with him. Level II focuses on the story of the Vine and the Branches. “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, bears fruit; for cut off from me you can do nothing.” Older children are ready to deepen their relationships with God, family, friends, and the larger community. They begin to hear about the History of the Kingdom of God and explore moral parables and maxims of Jesus. They delve more deeply into the Bible and look more closely at the structure of the Eucharist. At this level, children begin to plan their own prayer services.

The 9-12 year old child (grades 4-6) enters Level III of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. The focus
broadens as the children take a look at the Plan of God and the golden thread of his presence throughout time. These children look at the bridges people built when they made use of the many gifts of creation God has given us through the work of their hands. The underlying question for the child in this level is
“What is the Kingdom of God and my place in it?” The child recognizes that he or she needs to respond to the generosity of God and the responsibility that comes from receiving God's great gifts. The children learn biblical typology for Creation, The Fall, The Flood, Abraham and Moses. They explore moral parables and the sacraments on a deeper level. They round out their perspective on Jesus through a study of the History of Israel.

------------------------------------------------

How does the program work?
1. The children gather in an “atrium” - a room prepared for them, which contains simple, yet beautiful materials that they use.
2. A trained catechist presents a different subject material each week, which is based on Scripture and Liturgy.

The prepared environment contains materials that are models of things used in the Church's worship. The environment also contains simple, child-sized materials relating to the parables, prophecies, geography of Israel, and the life of Christ.

How do these materials help the religious life of children? In the atrium the child, too young to read, can ponder a biblical passage or a prayer from the liturgy by taking the material for that text and working with it - placing wood figures of sheep in a sheepfold of the Good Shepherd, setting sculpted apostles around a Last Supper table, or preparing a small altar with the furnishings used for the Eucharist. Older children who do read often copy parables from the Bible, learn the sequence for the rite of baptism by putting cards of the various prayers in order, or labeling a long time line showing the history of the kingdom of God.

What is the work of the child?
After a presentation by the catechist, the child is invited to work individually with the materials in a very hands-on manner. During this work, the child will internalize and respond to the presentation and often have a personal conversation with God.

What is so unique about this method?
This method assumes that the youngest members of the Church, already have religious potential. God has already made himself present to them in their deepest being. They are capable of developing a conscious and intimate relationship with God. Through the presentations and working with the materials, children become increasingly aware of their relationship with God and give expression to it. The child, the catechist, and the Atrium assistants find their faith nourished in this process.

-------------------------------

 

What is Catechesis of the Good Shepherd?
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is a method of religious formation for children that is quite different from published programs. In the CGS approach a room is prepared for the children where every object is there to help them come to know God. It is a place of order and simplicity, of work and prayer.

Everything in the room is intended to be appropriate to the age and size of the children who gather there. It is their religious needs that guide the catechesis. CGS provides opportunities for the children to come into contact with scripture and the liturgy of the church.

Why is the place where it takes place called an Atrium?
The word “atrium” was chosen by Dr. Maria Montessori herself, in 1922, when she added a room for the child's religious life to a school in Barcelona. Much earlier the word had been used for the entry to ancient
Christian basilicas, the space where catechumens were prepared for baptism.

Is Catechesis of the Good Shepherd a new approach?
This approach is not new. It began in Rome in 1954 with two women whose work is the foundation of the
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. The first is Sofia Cavalletti, a Hebrew and biblical scholar, a writer, an
educator and lecturer who to this day gathers with a group of children weekly in her home in Rome. Gianna Gobbi is her collaborator. Gianna is a Montessori educator, trainer of teachers and a catechist of children.

Why does it begin with such young children?
Catechesis with the youngest children at age three has become a real gift to the church. One of Cavalletti's insights is that if we delay catechesis until the customary age of six, the child has moved into a new ethical stage in life when God is more likely to be perceived as a judge. Beginning to know God as a loving entity is easier for the younger child who is especially responsive to God's overture of love.

Why is a Hebrew Biblical Scholar teaching children religion?
As Sophia herself proclaimed, “We started without knowing we started.” A friend of hers who had a seven year- old son asked Sophia to teach some lessons in religion to him. The boy, along with two other neighbors' children made up her first group. She had no materials except her Bible. She started by reading the first page of Genesis and was amazed by their unexpected reaction of delight. A short time after this experience she began her collaborative work with Gianna Gobbi.

How were the subjects and materials chosen?
Cavalletti's choices of biblical passages and liturgical moments to present to the children came partly from her scholarship, but even more from her wisdom and acute perception of the child. Her method is grounded in experience. To begin, Sophia and Gianna observed the reactions of children to the materials they made. The purpose of these materials was to make the various subjects concrete. If the children were captivated and repeatedly drawn to the materials, they concluded that the children's religious needs were being met.  The interest, activity and most of all the JOY of the children guided and refined the curriculum. For more than five decades she has given children what seems most essential in the Bible and liturgy.

.