The Good Shepherd and the Child

Season 2 with new episodes of the podcast will begin in October of 2021. CGS and Children of All Abilities with Trinka Hamel originally aired Sept. 30, 2020   “You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb.  I praise you, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are your works! My very self you know.” Psalm 140 13-14   Maria Montessori began her journey with children of “different ab...

Season 2 with new episodes of the podcast will begin in October of 2021. Typology with Ann Garrido originally aired on September 2, 2020.   “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you.” – Job 42:5   “Open your eyes; the mysteries hidden in the visible are revealed to you.” – Gregory of Nyssa   Sofia Cavalletti in History of the Kingdom of God: From Creation to Parousia s...

Season 2 with new episodes of the podcast will begin in October of 2021. The Infant-Toddler with Elizabeth Calanchini originally aired on June 10, 2020   “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you.” Jeremiah 1:5 NAB   The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd exists to serve the religious potential of the child, even the yo...

Season 2 with new episodes of the podcast will begin in October of 2021. God and the Child with Rebekah Rojcewicz originally aired on January 6, 2020 “Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, *  you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3 NAB Does the child already have a connection with God? How can we, as adults, foster it? Why does an encounter with God create a...

“But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Mark 13:32   What is the mystery of Time?  How does God speak to us through this mystery of time? How do we ponder the mystery of time in our work with the children in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd?   Autumn Domingue joins us on the podcast again today to ponder these questions. Autumn Doming...

“I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.” John 15:11   “It is possible to see a clear analogy between the mission of the Shepherd in the Church and that of the prudent and generous educator in the Montessori method, who with tenderness, with love and with a wise evaluation of gifts, knows how to discover and bring to light the most hidden virtues and capacit...

“Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me.” John 15:4   Today we begin our two part book study on Life in the Vine: The Joyful Journey Continues by Rebekah Rojcewicz.  Today we dive into the short first two chapters of the book with Rebekah herself.  Next episode we will dive into Chapt...

“He said to them, ‘Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.” Mark 16:15   Meagan Hofman joins the podcast today to help me share our story of how God helped us build an atrium in Haiti.    Meagan Hofman is president and founder of The Reveye Initiative, a non profit school in rural Haiti. The mission of Reveye is to awaken joy and wonder in education in Haiti. Meagan is t...

Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language?  Acts 2:8 ¿Cómo es que cada uno de nosotros los escuchamos en nuestra propia lengua? Hechos  2:8   Our experiences with children in the atrium show us a place where we can live a contemplative life with greater intention, permeated with an awareness of how to live as Sofia writes, "the whole of one's life," contemplatively. We, as c...

“The unfolding of your words gives light.” Psalm 119:130A Spiritual direction is, “help given by one believer to another that enables the latter to pay attention to God’s personal communication to him or her, to respond to this personally communicating God, to grow in intimacy with this God, and to live out the consequences of the relationship.” (The Practice of Spiritual Direction by William A. B...

“Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me.” John 15:4   For True Vine Sunday, we hear the beautiful parable of the True Vine. In this parable, we find that Jesus has invited us to a relationship that is even closer that the relationship between the Shepherd and his sheep. He is the Vine...

“When we were baptized, we went into the tomb with him and joined him in death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glory, we too might live a new life. If in union with Christ we have imitated his death, we shall also imitate him in his resurrection.” Romans 6:4-5 Baptism is a beautifully dense sacrament with layers of signs and meaning. There are ample connections and “gol...

“Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” John 12:24 We have entered into Holy Week and are about to encounter the culmination of our faith and the Good Shepherd’s total gift of self within the Paschal Mystery. Carolyn Kohlhaas joins us to ponder this great mystery and how it is celebr...

“You shall love the lord, your God, with all your hear and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Matthew 22:37 “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  Matthew 22:39   The lovely Rebekah Rojcewicz joins us again on the podcast to dive into the rich topic of the Moral Life as we present it in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd.  She lifts up the importance of our “doing” being in respons...

A Priest in the Atrium   “He said to them, ‘I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you" Luke 22:15   In 2014, 600 catechists from 22 countries came together in the desert of Arizona to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd.  Many talks and stories were shared throughout the week together.  Today we share with you a talk from Fr Giancarlo Pani, S.J, on what he...

“Even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart” (Joel 2:12-13) The first reading from the liturgy of Ash Wednesday from Joel, invites us deeply into the season of Lent.  We are called to return to God with all our hearts.  The words “even now” allow us to reflect on the gift that it is still not too late to turn our hearts to the Lord, especially during this season of Lent. Mary Heinri...

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” – 2 Corinthians 3:17   Freedom and Discipline are two words usually used as opposites and yet they are at the heart of the Montessori method and our work in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd.  Maria Montessori believed that true discipline comes from within and that freedom is the ability to accept rules without bei...

Abide in my love… you shall bear much fruit.” (John 15:1-17) The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is open to all Christians of various denominations and of different commitments within the church. The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd offers its services to the diocese and therefore works in communion with the bishop. The Characteristics of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd - 32 Points of Reflectio...

"Raise your eyes and look about; they all gather and come to you; your sons come from afar, and your daughters in the arms of their nurses.  Then you shall be radiant at what you see, your heart shall throb and overflow, for the riches of the sea shall be emptied out before you, the wealth of nations shall be brought to you."  Isaiah 60: 4-5   Epiphany is the one-year anniversary of our podcast an...

“And the angel said to her in reply, “The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.” Luke 1:35   Each year we go through a time of preparation, the season called Advent, to prepare ourselves for the celebration of the birth of Jesus. Yes, we give lots of time to preparing our homes, our gi...

“Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me.”  John 15:4   Rebekah Rojcewicz joins us on the podcast again today to discuss her book Life in the Vine: The Joyful Journey Continues which will be available January 6th, 2021.  She tells us about how this book came to be and what needs it wil...

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“Blessed are the eyes that see what you see…, for prophets and kings desired to see what you see…” Luke 10:23-24   The atrium is a place prepared for the religious life of children in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd.   The atrium is also a chamber of the heart.  We have found that the heart of the child is deep and open to the loving call of our Good Shepherd.  We know that when given time and...

“Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.” Psalm 96:3   One of the core characteristics of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is that it “can be realized in any social or cultural setting.” (32 Points of Reflection of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd). Celine Mitchell shares with us how she witnessed the universality of this work as she traveled to different countrie...

“Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” John 12:24   Why is this happening? How long will it last? What will life be like from now on? What can we do? The world is facing unprecedented loss, grief, pain, and anxiety during this time of COVID-19. The losses and the grief we share come...