Lessons and Activities

It started with a "noise like a gust of wind," explained the fourteen-year-old teen we now know as St. Bernadette Soubirous. Today, more than 150 years later, millions of pilgrims still travel to the once-small town in southern France where that gust of wind first heralded the presence of our Blessed Mother. The pilgrims come to pray for healing and reconciliation, to bathe in the waters, and to remember the 18 appearances, or apparitions, of the Virgin Mary to Bernadette at Lourdes.

BY BECKY GROTH "Mom, we read a Bible verse, go around and say what word or sentence jumped out at us, read the verse again,...

Many people live “cafeteria style” lives, self-service only. Catholics try to live life like Jesus, who “did not come to be served but to serve” (Matthew 20:28). The Year of Faith is a perfect time to explore this calling.

With words and a busy free-hand sketch-pad, this video illustrates a lesson on why we confess, and what happens in the Sacrament of Penance...

Practical Strategies for Working with the 2009-2010 Catechist Formation Program

Picking a patron saint for your classroom can be a great way to engage students in learning and praying with the saints.

JEAN LARKIN Here are three reproducible activity pages from our archives that you can use with your students when teaching about the Sacraments. Perfect to...

Caring Person Feast Day: January 12

LEE DANESCO It's no surprise that we all have our own favorite teaching tools. There are those who like to keep the instructional spotlight on...

The Heart of the Missionary Disciple LYNN WEHNER In the Book of Ruth, we hear of Naomi and her daughters-in-law, all widowed in Moab, and of...