Ideas for teaching your students about this Sunday’s Gospel, including reflections, sharing
ideas, activities and prayer.
February 7: 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke 5:1-11
Feb 01
Lessons for the Sunday Gospel: Feb. 7
Ideas for teaching your students about this Sunday’s Gospel, including reflections, sharing
ideas, activities and prayer.
February 7: 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke 5:1-11
Reflecting
In school, in our families, in religion class—actually in all of life—we often talk about how important it is to learn new things. Today’s Gospel is especially interesting because we learn about learning.
We hear the account of Jesus going out in a boat a short distance from the shore on Lake of Gennesaret (the Sea of Galilee). He sits in the boat and teaches the crowds. When he is finished teaching, he tells Simon Peter to lower the nets for a catch of fish.
Now Simon Peter knows all about fishing—and he’s been fishing all night, catching nothing. Jesus is a carpenter, not a fisherman. Peter must think to himself, for just a second, “What is he thinking?” But he goes beyond his hesitation and does what Jesus tells him to do. Of course, Peter is astounded when the catch of fish is so huge that the nets start to tear. That’s a lot of fish!
Simon Peter feels terrible about that moment of hesitation. He had just heard Jesus teaching. Yet, in one split second, he fails to keep in his heart the teachings of Jesus. He hears and likely understands what Jesus teaches—but for just a second, he hesitates to act. He has heard and he understands. But he must hear what Jesus says, understand what Jesus says, and then do what Jesus says if he is actually to learn what Jesus teaches.
Hearing Jesus and understanding Jesus are only the beginning of learning about our faith. Learning about our faith involves more than hearing new information, perhaps even memorizing it. Living our faith and learning about our faith involve making choices every day. Truly learning about our faith involves hearing and understanding and doing.
Sharing Ideas
Share about a time when you heard about how to do something but you didn’t really learn how to do it until you did it. (Swimming is an example.)
Acting
At the end of class, name one thing you heard and understand about our faith, and state what you will do before the next class to truly learn what you heard and now understand.
Praying
Loving Jesus, give us the courage and the patience to truly learn about you and our Catholic faith. Amen.
CATECHIST Magazine, January 2010
Copyright 2010, Peter Li, Inc. This article
may not be reprinted or reproduced in any form without permission, except for
use with your classes or families.
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