Living

in the
Community
A BOOK FOR THE SIXTH YEAR OF CATECHESIS
 Living
in the
Community
A BOOK FOR THE SIXTH YEAR OF CATECHESIS

secretariat for catechesis

segretarjat għall-katekeżi
 Living
in the
Community
A BOOK FOR THE SIXTH YEAR OF CATECHESIS
A publication of the Secretariat for Catechesis
of the Archdiocese of Malta, 2017.
A project commissioned and authorised
by the National Catechetical Commission, Malta.
© 2017 SECRETARIAT FOR CATECHESIS

Script: Sr. Alexandra Chircop, f.c.j.

in co-ordination with the Adolescent Team
Design: Alan Bonello (www.designedbyal.com)
Co-ordination and publication of this book is the work of
Rev. Dr Carl Mario Sultana and Ms Mariosa Micallef.
Proof readers: Sr. Alexandra Chircop f.c.j. and Bertram Portelli.

Thanks are due to Dr Carl M. Sultana, Archbishop’s Delegate

for Catechesis, Fr Stefan Bonanno and his team for their
collaboration at the Media Centre, the parishes, independent
schools and the two sections of the Society of Catholic Doctrine
which participated in the pilot project, as well as the Adolescent
Team. This book is the result of their contributions.

IExtracts from the Bible have been taken from the Catholic Youth
Bible (Revised).

Stampat: Salesian Press

IMPRIMATUR
DATUM IN CURIA ARCHIEPISCOPALI
MELITENSIS, FLORIANÆ
DIE 9A IUNII AD2017
+ CHARLES J. SCICLUNA
ACHIEPISCOPIS MELITENSIS
PRES. CONF. EPISC. MELIT

NIHIL OBSTAT
DIE 9A IUNII AD2017
SAC. HECTOR SCERRI
CENS. THEOL.
Presentation
It is the aim of this book,
with the theme “Living in the
Community”, to be of great help
to catechists who accompany adolescents, both
in preparing them for their Confirmation, as well
as in instructing them on how to live their life in
the community.

May this book help adolescents and their

families to give more space to God in their lives.
May they also be helped to appreciate the fact
that the Church’s teachings and the Liturgy
are necessary companions in their lives as
responsible Christian citizens.

I thank God for his infinite greatness and for the

graces he bestowed on each person who worked
with others, as a team, to produce this book.

I thank each individual, who in one way or

another, helped in this catechetical project.

SR ALEXANDRA CHIRCOP
CO-ORDINATOR OF THIS PROJECT
Introduction
Little by little, we have reached the age of adolescence, and
in a few months’ time we will celebrate the Sacrament of
Confirmation. This is an interesting time of our life, during
which we discover many new things about ourselves and
about those around us. It is also a time for overcoming the
new challenges that we will face throughout our life.

These challenges may present themselves in different ways.

Some may be related to our education and others may be
more social in nature, like the friends we choose, as well as
other persons who will be close to us. But, besides these,
during adolescence we will meet with challenges that concern
our faith and the way we live what we believe in. We are no
longer children and so the challenges will be harder. One of
the greatest challenges that we will meet is the fact that we
cannot live on our own; we have to live with others in the
community.

This is the reason why during this year we are going to

learn more about the Holy Spirit and the way the Holy Spirit
unites us in one community, although we remain individuals,
separate from each other. It is hoped that we will live this
challenge together and that we will grow up and live in the
community as persons who believe, and therefore, wish to
make the best decisions which will give witness to what we
believe in.

REV. DR CARL-MARIO SULTANA

DELEGATE FOR CATECHESIS
Contents
1. CURIOSITY: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT?
I. Discovering the Holy Spirit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
II. The gift Jesus gave us: The Holy Spirit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
III. Participating in our choices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

2. THE HOLY SPIRIT IN OUR LIFE

I. New experiences ever. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
II. Growing up bit by bit every day: the Fruit of the Spirit. . . . . . . . . 50
III. The admirable qualities of the Holy Spirit (Charisms) for
the service of humanity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

3. TRUTH IN LOVE, LOVE IN TRUTH

I. The sources of truth on which we model our behaviour. . . . . . . . 81
II. Discovering and educating our conscience. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
III. Living, Loving and Serving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

4. THE HOLY SPIRIT: A FRIEND FOR EVER

I. Praying using different ways and means. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
II. Discovering the Sacraments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
III. Come Holy Spirit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
 CHAPTER ONE

Curiosity: Who is
1 the Holy Spirit?
THE FIRST THEME

Discovering the
Holy Spirit
There are those who say that we know very little
about the Holy Spirit and, maybe, they are right.
We often hear people talk and preach about God
the Father and about Jesus Christ but very rarely
about the Holy Spirit. Yet, the Holy Spirit has a very
important role as he is God, like the Father and
the Son. This means that the Holy Spirit has been
present since the beginning of creation, is still with
us today, is present in the life of the Church and in
our lives as a community of Christians.

The Holy Spirit has been present since the beginning

of creation. This fact is found in Genesis, the first
book of the Bible, which gives the account of
creation.

“ In the beginning God created

heaven and earth:
Now the earth was a formless void;
there was darkness over the deep
And God’s spirit hovered over the
water.”*.”
GEN 1, 1-2

* The words “God’s Spirit” refer to the Holy Spirit.

1
 1.1 THE MOST IMPORTANT
QUESTION HERE IS:

Wo is the
Holy Spirit?
LET US TRY TO DISCOVER THE HOLY SPIRIT
1 The Holy Spirit is one of the three
persons of the Holy Trinity: the Father, the
Son and the Holy Spirit.

2 The Holy Spirit is one and the same with

the Father and the Son; ithe three together
form the Holy Trinity. They are three persons,
equal to each other. This means that no one
is greater or better than the other. The three
persons work together with much love for us.
Creation is the fruit of the love among them.
Therefore, the Father is equal to the Son and to
the Holy Spirit. The Son is equal to the Father and
the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is equal to the
Father and the Son. They are three persons,
who together are one God.

3 The Holy Spirit is a living person. We

cannot see him with our eyes, but we can believe
in him and relate to him; this means we can pray
to him. Better still, we must pray to him. Like we
pray to Jesus and God the Father, we can pray
to the Holy Spirit with much faith and trust.

2
The Holy Spirit has a very important role in our
life as Christians. He teaches us and guides us
so that we live the life that is expected of us as
Christians.

1.2 THE ROLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN OUR LIFE

AS CHRISTIANS
»» As Christians we cannot live without the Holy
Spirit. We need him in all the areas of our
lives.

»» The principal role of the Holy Spirit in our life

is to help us love just as Christ wants us to.
The more we relate to the Holy Spirit, the
more we learn to love.

»» Another role of the Holy Spirit in our life is

that of lawyer/defender; in other words,
he is somebody who defends. If we pray to
him, he will help us defend our faith in Jesus

3
 Christ; he will help us defend the teaching of
Jesus Christ in the way we speak and in the
way we live our life as Christians.

Jesus himself told us this when he promised

the apostles that he would send them the
Holy Spirit.

“ The Advocate, the Holy Spirit

that the Father will send in my name
– he will teach you everything
and remind you of all
that I told you.”
JOHN 14, 26

»» The Holy Spirit also has another important

role in our life, that of guiding us towards
the truth. For the Christian, the truth is
only found in Jesus Christ. Therefore, the
Holy Spirit guides us to understand better
the mission of Jesus. He does this to help us
discover how to live as Christians in our daily
life.

4
Jesus himself said:

“ But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,

he will guide you to all truth. He will
not speak on his own, but he will speak
he hears and he will declare to you the
things that are coming.”
JOHN 16, 13

»» The Catholic Church is led by the Holy

Spirit. Had the Church been led by persons,
it would have become extinct long ago. Yet,
despite the weaknesses of persons during the
past two thousand years, it is still existing and
it has continued the mission of Jesus.

»» We receive the Holy Spirit , who is still with

us, from the Father and the Son, through the
Church. We receive the Holy Spirit through
all the Sacraments, particularly through
Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders.

5
 1.3 THE HOLY SPIRIT IN YOUR LIFE
You should consider the Holy Spirit as a sincere
friend, particularly during your adolescent
years, as he is always ready to help you.

»» He helps you to understand the words,

teachings, actions and the work of
Jesus; in other words - his mission kliem,
it‑tagħlim, l‑azzjonijiet u l‑ħidma ta‘ Ġesù,
jiġifieri l-missjoni tiegħu.

We get to understand this mission through

the Word of God and the teaching of the
Church.

Therefore, before reading or praying from

the Bible, it is recommended that you pray
to the Holy Spirit so that he will help you
understand the message that the Lord
wishes to transmit to you through his
Word.

»» When you pray to the Holy Spirit he helps

you in your studies and in everything you
are doing or are going to do. Of course,
you must also do your part.

Before starting your studies or before

sitting for an examination, pray to the Holy
Spirit to help you understand what you are
studying or what is asked of you during an
examination.

»» When you pray to the Holy Spirit, who is a

Spirit of love and wisdom, he will help you
to make good choices and decisions.

6
»» The Holy Spirit also helps you FROM JOHN’S
to become holy, which means GOSPEL:
becoming better persons than “But I tell you the
you are. It is very easy for one to truth, it is better for
start a life of vice out of curiosity. you that I go. For
But, when one grows older and if I do not go, the
becomes mature, one will find it Advocate will not
difficult to get out of such a life. come to you. But if I
go, I will send him to
Therefore, it is worthwhile to become you.”
friends with the Holy Spirit and pray JOHN 16, 7
to him to help you to remain good
persons. Pray to him when you sin to “When he comes,
have the courage to confess without the Spirit of truth he
shame and renew your relationship will guide you to all
with God through the Sacrament of truth.”
Reconciliation. JOHN 16, 12

1.4 THE SYMBOLS OF THE

HOLY SPIRIT AND THEIR MEANING
In the Catholic Church we find various symbols
that refer to the Holy Spirit. The most important
symbols are water, fire and the dove. Besides
these, there are symbolic gestures, which are
actions with a meaning behind them, such as the
anointing with oil and the laying on of hands by
the Bishop or a priest during the celebration of
Sacraments.

I. SYMBOLS:
Water: Water is the symbol of the action of the
Holy Spirit in Baptism. St Paul, in his first letter to
the Corinthians wrote:

“ For in one Spirit we were all

baptised…”
1 COR 12, 13
7
 Water is the symbol of the Holy Spirit. Water
gives life; therefore, the Holy Spirit gives life.
When we are born we start our natural life.
Through Baptism we start a new life in Christ. All
this is the work of the Holy Spirit.

Fire: Fire is also a symbol of the Holy Spirit.

Many things are transformed by fire; they take
on new shapes. For example, by using fire, glass
can be shaped into different models. Even iron
can be transformed into various objects and
into different designs by using fire. Fire has the
strength and energy to change things.

8
Let us recall Pentecost. On that day tongues of
fire appeared on the heads of the apostles and all
those who were with them in the cenacle. After this
event, the apostles and those who were present
with them, changed from cowards into courageous
persons, going out to preach and talk about Jesus of
Nazareth.

“ When the time for Pentecost was

fulfilled, they were all in one place
together. And suddenly there came from
the sky a noise like a strong driving wind,
and it filled the entire house in which
they were. Then there appeared to them
tongues as of fire which parted and
came to rest on each one of them. And
they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in different tongues,
as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.”
ACTS 2, 1‑4

The Dove: In the four Gospels we read that at the

Baptism of Jesus, the Holy Spirit came down on him
in the form of a dove. In the Book of Genesis we find:

“ … and God’s spirit hovered over the

water.”
GEN 1, 2

That is why in Christian art we find the symbol of the

dove representing the Spirit of God – the Holy Spirit.

In a wider sense, in art, the symbol of the dove

represents peace, gentleness and beauty, three

9
 qualities that are all present in the Holy Spirit: a
Spirit that gives us peace, gentleness and beauty
in our soul and in all that surrounds us.

II. SYMBOLIC ACTIONS:

ACTIONS WHICH HAVE MANY MEANINGS
Anointing with oil: During the rite of certain
Sacraments, the persons receiving them are
anointed with oil by the priest or Bishop. These
Sacraments are: Baptism (Bishop, priest or
deacon), Confirmation (Bishop or priest), Holy
Orders (Bishop) and Extreme Unction, the
anointing of the sick or dying, (Bishop or priest).
In the Catholic Church, the anointing with oil is
considered as a symbolic action representing the
Holy Spirit.

The Romans used to anoint their soldiers

with olive oil to strengthen them. During the

10
celebration of these four Sacraments the Bishop
or priest (or deacon in the case of Baptism) prays
to the Holy Spirit to descend on that person and
fill him/her with his strength.

The laying on of hands: In the Acts

of the Apostles, we read that people CHALLENGE
received the Holy Spirit by the laying on During this week
of hands. pray to the Holy
Spirit to guide you

“ Then they laid their hands on

them and they received the holy
in all that you are
doing. Try to say
Spirit.” this prayer: Holy
ACTS 8, 17 Spirit show me
what to do. You can
The same thing happens today. When also pray like this:
the priest or Bishop lays his hands Holy Spirit help me
on a person who is receiving the make good choices.
Sacraments, he implores the Holy Spirit
to come to that person.

11
 Diary
Write down or
draw a prayer
to the Holy
Spirit, in which
you express
how you want
him to guide
you or what
kind of help
you need to
be a better
adolescent
than you are.

12
FAMILY CATECHESIS
FROM THE FIRST LETTER OF ST. PAUL
TO THE THESSALONIANS

“ Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise

prophetic utterances. Test everything; retain
what is good. Refrain from every kind of evil.

May the God of peace himself make you

perfectly holy and may you entirely, spirit,
soul and body, be preserved blameless for
the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The
one who calls you is faithful and he will also
accomplish it.”
1 THESS 5, 19‑23

FAMILY PRAYER:
AN EXTRACT FROM THE PRAYER
FOR THE COMING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Holy Spirit, endless love,
come within us with your energy,
come and enkindle our hearts.

13
 THE SECOND THEME

THE GIFT JESUS GAVE US:

THE HOLY SPIRIT
2.1 WHEN JESUS WAS ON EARTH, HE PROMISED THE
APOSTLES THAT HE WOULD SEND THEM THE HOLY SPIRIT

The apostles and the “loss” of their leader

Although the apostles were ordained priests and
bishops during the last supper, they were fragile
persons. After the death of Jesus, they were still

14
overcome with fear, despite the fact that they
believed and Jesus himself appeared to them
after rising from the dead. They had seen with
their own eyes what had happened to Jesus. Quite
understandably, they were afraid for themselves
and for their families.

The apostles were in a dilemma: they wanted to

remain the disciples of Jesus, persons following
his teaching; they also wanted to be apostles,
preaching this teaching. Yet, they were frightened
of taking the risks which this task involved.

It was because of all this that before going to

heaven, Jesus promised he would send them the
Holy Spirit, whom he called “the defender”. They
were to have recourse to this defender, first of
all to overcome their fear and secondly to defend
what they believed in: Jesus and his teaching.
In John’s Gospel we find this:

“ I have told you this

while I am with you.
The Advocate,
the Holy Spirit,
that the Father will send
in my name –
he will teach you everything
and remind you of all
that I told you.
Peace I leave with you,
my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives
do I give it to you.
Do not let your hearts
be troubled or afraid.”
JOHN 14, 25
15
 2.2 THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
TO US AS CHRISTIANS

A. The spiritual gifts of the Holy

REFLECT Spirit at Pentecost
Mention some of
The Holy Spirit bestowed many spiritual
these great gifts,
gifts on the apostles and those who
which you can
were praying with them on the day he
understand and
descended on them. These great gifts
practise in your
represent the attitude of the Church and
adolescence.
our attitude as Christians. They show us
how we are to behave with all persons,
whom we should consider as our brothers and
sisters.

B. The Sense of Community:

The efficacy of praying together
The Holy Spirit descended on the apostles and those
who were with them when they were all praying
together.

This proves the need and the strength of praying

together. We Christians should feel the need and
importance of praying together, because prayer
unites us and reminds us that we need each other.

C. Courage
Through the Holy Spirit, the apostles were filled with
courage in such a way, that from persons overcome
with fear, they went out to preach the news about
the suffering of Jesus, his death and resurrection.
This is good news to us Christians. In this way,
the community of the apostles, together with the
disciples – that is, the Church - began its mission as

16
a Church. The Church began preaching the Good News
to all, all over the world. This showed great courage
on the part of the apostles. People realised that
something had happened because they had never seen
the apostles so filled with courage.

Besides this, another miracle had taken place. While

the apostles spoke in Aramaic – the language spoken
by the Jews at that time – people understood them in
their own language. This is a sign that the Holy Spirit
can help everyone to understand the Good News of
Jesus Christ.

D. An inclusive and missionary attitude

– loving, accepting, helping
and communicating with
everybody
Through the Holy Spirit the
apostles became persons
with an inclusive heart and
attitude, because they went
out in the square to preach
Jesus to everyone. They did
not seek out only the Jews to
speak to them about Jesus,
but they addressed
everyone in the
square, for the
Good News of
Jesus is for
everybody.

17
 The Good News is that Jesus suffered, died and
rose from the dead because he loves us and
wants to save us all. This Good News is for all
people of all cultures, races and nations – it is for
all the world. Therefore, on that day of Pentecost,
the Church began its mission of inclusivity – a
Church that teaches and helps everyone – a
Church without borders. The Church is Catholic – it
accepts, helps and communicates with everybody.

E. Our Sensitivity as Christians

On Pentecost day, the Holy Spirit gave the
apostles a gift, that of speaking in different
languages. This means that while they spoke
Aramaic, people from different nations understood
them in their own languages. Here we notice that
the Holy Spirit wants us to be persons sensitive

18
to the needs of others.
Being sensitive
means being able
to feel with others
and for others; it
means we have
to be persons
capable of loving.
Where there is the
Holy Spirit, there
is love. Where there
is true love, there is
sensitivity. That is why
the apostles had so much
love for Jesus and for the
people whom they taught about
Jesus and his Good News.

F. Peace and Joy

The apostels were all together praying and all
together joyfully went out preaching about
Jesus of Nazareth. The Holy Spirit helped the
apostles to be one united community, all with one
thought, all working together for their own good
and that of others. Where there is Jesus, where
there is the Holy Spirit, there is always joy, peace
and unity.

The Holy Spirit shows us that when we pray,

especially when we pray together, our hearts and
attitudes towards others are motivated by love.
The more we love, the more sensitive we become
towards others, the more inclusive and the more
prepared to share the message with others. We
also become persons of peace and willing to
promote unity.

19
 2.3 DISCOVERING THE FEAST OF PENTECOST
IN THE JEWISH AND CHRISTIAN RELIGIONS

The Feast of Pentecost for the

Jews
In Greek, Pentecost means the
“fiftieth day”. The Jews of the Old
Testament called it “Shouvat”; it
was also known as the Feast of the
Weeks or the Festival of the Weeks
(Exodus 34,22; Deut 16,10), as
well as the Festival or Feast of the
Harvest (Exodus 23,16), or the Day
of the First Fruits or, in Hebrew,
“Yom ha-Bikkurim”. (Numbers
28,26).

Besides, according to the Jewish tradition, Pentecost

commemorates the day when God gave Moses the
Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, fifty days after
their coming out of Egypt. (Exodus 20, 1-10). The
Talmud calculated the days according to the writing
in the Book of Leviticus 23, 15-21.

The Feast of Pentecost to us Christians

To us Christians, the feast of Pentecost, fifty days
after the Resurrection of the Lord, is the day when
the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles and all
those who were praying with them in the cenacle.

Easter is a day of faith because as St Paul writes,

“..... and if Christ has not been raised, then empty
too is our preaching; empty too your faith.” (1 Cor
15:14). Pentecost is a day of hope because when
the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles along with
the whole gathering, he filled them with courage to

20
preach Jesus Christ to everybody. At CHALLENGE
Pentecost, the apostles together with In the coming days,
the small community of Christians, do your best to
overcame their fear and went out all pray to the Holy
together to preach the Good News of Spirit to help you
Jesus. In this way, the newly formed become a person
Church went out to meet people who more sensitive and
came from different countries. On that inclusive towards
day the Church began to show itself as others, especially
a missionary Church. towards those
who you notice are
different from you.

21
 Diary
Write down or
draw moments
when you
showed
courage,
respect and
inclusivity
towards others

22
FAMILY CATECHESIS
THEY HAD EVERYTHING IN COMMON

“ The community of believers was of one

heart and mind and no one claimed that
any of his possessions was his own, but
they had everything in common. With great
power the apostles bore witness to the
resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great
favour was accorded to them all. There
was no needy person among them, for
those who owned property or houses would
sell them, bring the proceeds of the sale,
and put them at the feet of the apostles,
and they were distributed to each person
according to his need. Thus Joseph, also
named by the apostles Barnabas (which
is translated ‘son of encouragement’), a
Levite and a Cypriot by birth, sold a piece
of property that he owned, then brought
the money and put it at the feet of the
apostles.”
ACTS 4, 32-37

LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY

Holy Spirit
strengthen us as a family.
Help each and everyone of us
to be sensitive towards others,
so that we will be persons
who promote peace and unity.
Keep us united as a family
and fill our hearts with the real joy
only you can give.
Amen.

23
 THE THIRD THEME

PARTICIPATING
IN OUR CHOICES
One who complains, does this either because
one likes doing so or because one is not well
informed. Such a person prefers to complain
rather than become informed. Lately , this
complaint has become popular: “I was baptised
without being asked if I wanted to”. This
complaint is an invitation to discover why we
were baptised without being asked about our
wishes.

3.1 THE CONTEMPORARY COMPLAINT:

I WAS BAPTISED WITHOUT BEING CONSULTED!
Elena arrived home after school with a long face.
STORY: Usually she used to run to her grandmother and
ask her what she had prepared for lunch. That
day she barely spoke to her gran who inwardly
wondered what had happened. “Not to worry..... I will
soon know. Let her start to eat,” she thought. And
that is what happened. As soon as Elena started
eating, she turned to her gran and said rather
loudly, “Gran, it’s not fair that I was baptised without
being asked for my consent. Perhaps ......”

Her grandmother, a very experienced lady, listened

to what the girl had to say about her feelings on
the matter. Then she answered, “Elena, if there
is something that you particularly like, perhaps
something which I have given you, like a costly
ring, you would want to treasure it, so that you can

24
leave it to your children one day. Little by little,
this ring will become a family heirloom. Elena was
quick to answer,”Yes, gran. It will remind me of
you and my children will remember me and you.”
“Do you think that your children will complain
that you have left them that gift?” “Certainly not,”
replied Elena. Her grandmother, who was very
intelligent,carried on asking, “Let us suppose that
one of your children wants to sell that ring. How
would you feel?” “If I am still alive, I would be very
unhappy. Yet, if I have given it to him, he can do
what he likes with it. After all, everybody is free to
do what he likes.”

“Dear, let us apply this story, which can easily

happen, to understand why your parents asked
the parish priest to baptise you. Remember
that your paternal grandfather and I are your
godparents. As such, it is our responsibility to
care for you – not only to feed you, clothe you or
give you presents, but also to care for
your soul..” VIDEO CLIP:
Now Elena is going to
Having finished her meal, Elena share with you what
continued to listen, with great she learnt from her
curiosity, to why she had been baptised grandmother. Listen
without being asked. to this story because
it is very interesting.

25
 LET US THINK:
It is quite interesting to listen to adolescents like
you discussing the fact that you were baptised
without being asked whether you wanted to be
or not. This may be considered not merely as a
complaint but even as an effort to understand
better.

When there is something close to one’s heart,

something one believes in as being beneficial, one
would want to pass it on to those one really loves,
knowing that these will also benefit from it – of
course if they take care of it.

Let us take a practical example. If a parent

believes that good and nourishing food and
physical exercise are good for health, then he/she
will instil in his/her children this same belief.
26
3.2 LET US UNDERSTAND THE COMPLAINT:
YOU WERE BAPTISED WITHOUT BEING CONSULTED
Let us continue thinking for a while:

»» Before being born, were you asked by your

parents which country you wanted to be born
in?

»» Were you asked what colour of hair or eyes

you preferred?

»» Were you asked to choose the parents you

wanted?

»» Did anybody ask you what language you

wanted to speak when you started speaking?

»» Did anybody ask you which village and which

family you wanted to be born in?

»» Were you asked to choose which talents you

wanted to be born with?

3.3 WE FEEL MORE RESPONSIBLE

ON HOW TO LIVE OUR FAITH:
The truth is that parents, through biological
love, together with God, give life to a child. Also
through love, they think about giving their child
a religion, because they believe that religion is
important and necessary for the development of
a human being.

Each person, in his life, seeks to have something

which is greater than himself, greater than a
human being, in which to believe.

27
 Parents realise that without faith, and therefore
without religious upbringing, which helps with
the teaching and practice of faith, the children’s
education is not holistic.

In reality, your parents gave you this gift and

baptised you as Christians because they love
you. Therefore, you were baptised in the
Christian faith which is practised and taught by
the Christian and Catholic religion. You should
thank your parents for this gift. When you were
born, you started your natural life; when you
were baptised you started your life of faith –
your religious life.

Moreover, your parents chose godparents

for you to see that you lead a good life both
spiritually and physically.

28
Therefore, the day of your Baptism is a very
important day which you should remember,
because it is your birthday as Catholics.

Ever since you were very little, your parents used

every opportunity, especially in everyday life, to
teach you how to live your faith. They took you
and sent you to centres to continue learning about
this faith, along with other children, who also form
part of the community of Christians. You, together
with children your age, learnt about who we
believe in as Christians and how we can live what
we learn in everyday life. Above all, you started
to learn how to pray so that you would start a
beautiful relationship with Jesus Christ.

You have now grown up and are on the threshold

of adolescence, So, you are now, more or less
responsible for this beautiful gift. There will come
a time when you will ask many questions about
your faith and about the religious practice. Do
not worry. The important thing is that you find
competent persons, who wish you well, to share
with them these queries and with them try and
clear up your doubts.

29
 When you grow up, you might want
to change your religion because of a
whim, new ideas or to copy what your
colleagues do. Think it over carefully
before you do so.

In the learning process

everything moves one step at a
time and we grow and mature
in wisdom. Similarly, with our
faith: learning, practice, and a
life of prayer help us to grow
and mature in faith.

Now that you are adolescents,

more than ever before, you
become responsible for the
religious practice of your faith.
You will not only say that
you believe in Jesus Christ,
but you will begin to do your
best to live what he taught.
Through prayer, especially
personal prayer, you will build
a relationship with Jesus. Through
the Sacraments, especially those
of Reconciliation and the Eucharist,
you will continue to strengthen your
life as members of the Christian
community.

To strengthen your faith and your

religious practice, look for and
develop good friendships.

30
THE WORD OF GOD: NOTE:
FROM THE SECOND LETTER OF ST PAUL Timothy’s mother
TO TIMOTHY was a Jew and his
father a Greek.

“ I am grateful to God,whom I
worship with a clear conscience
as my ancestors did, as I
Timothy came from
Ephesus, today
known as the town of
remember you constantly in my Silcuk in the province
prayers, night and day. I yearn of Ismir in Turkey.
to see you again, recalling your He was one of the
tears, so that I will be filled first to become a
with joy, as I recall your sincere Catholic. He was a
faith that first lived in your disciple of St. Paul
grandmother Lois and in your and he travelled
mother Eunice and that I am with him when they
confident lives also in you. For visited different
this reason, I remind you to stir places to spread the
into flame the gift of God that Gospel.
you have through the imposition
of my hands.”
2 TIM 1, 3‑6

3.4 PARTICIPATING IN OUR CHOICES

Now that, with your parents or with those who care
for you, you have decided to receive the Sacrament of
Confirmation, it would be opportune to involve yourself
in this important phase of your life.

Points about how to involve yourself:

»» Understand that this Sacrament is not a type of
graduation or simply a social event. Therefore as
a Catholic seek to continue learning more so that
you strengthen your faith.

»» Understand that you wish to receive this

Sacrament because you want to continue
31
 discovering how to live as a Christian in a holistic
way.

»» Realise that you should not receive this Sacrament

solely to be able to get married in church in the
future. It is good to note, that a church wedding
does not make a person Christian. It is the persons
who are getting married and who do their best to
live the Christian life that feel the need to have a
church wedding.

»» Realise that when you decide to receive

Confirmation you are confirming: ‘Yes, I wish to
carry on walking in the footsteps of Jesus, I
wish to continue discovering who Jesus is and what
he wants from me.’

»» With your parents, or those who are looking after

you, discuss the choice of a fitting godparent,
who is well adapted to
help you grow into a good
person. Your godparent
will not only help you to
become a good person, but
also a humane person – a
responsible Christian citizen.
This can be done in several
ways: a good word, a good
example or good advice
while he/she accompanies
you in your life.

»» As you are now in your adolescence, very close

to becoming youths, you start feeling somewhat
more responsible for the practice of your faith as
a Christian person. This means that you attend

32
 the celebration of mass,
especially on Sunday,
that you receive the
Sacraments, especially those
of Reconciliation and the
Eucharist, that you allow
yourself time to pray and
that you do your best to
learn and ask about what the
Church teaches.

»» Read more frequently the Word of God and

find ways of learning how to understand it
better in order to be able to live it better.

»» Do voluntary work every week for a few

minutes in your own area – at school, at
the place where you learn catechism or at
other activities. There are always
occasions to help others; thereby CHALLENGE
being of service to humanity. During this week
thank God for this
»» Understand that now, more than gift of faith. Pray
ever before, you are responsible for for your parents
sharing your faith with others as a or those who are
Christian. bringing you up.
In your words and
»» After receiving the Sacrament of actions remember
Confirmation, endeavour to become the teaching of
a member of a Christian group that Jesus. In this way
helps you discover how to grow into you will be passing
a Christian person in today’s society. on this gift of faith
Do your utmost to have good friends. and living it together
with others.

33
 Diary
Write down
the date of
your baptism.
Find out who
were your
godparents at
Baptism. Then,
write down or
draw a prayer
of thanksgiving
to God and your
family for the
gift of life, faith
and religion
which they
passed on to
you.

34
FAMILY CATECHESIS
READING FROM THE LETTER OF ST PAUL
TO THE COLOSSIANS

“ So, as you received Christ Jesus the

Lord, walk in him,
rooted in him and built
upon him and established
in the faith as you were taught,
abounding in thanksgiving.”
COL 2, 6-7

LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY:

Thank you God for the gift of faith.
Help us to become strong in our faith
and in the living of our religion.
We need you to help us to bear witness
to our faith by helping
each other and others.
Amen.

35
 CHAPTER TWO

THE HOLY SPIRIT

2 IN OUR LIFE
THE FIRST THEME

New Experiences Ever

THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT:
COMPANIONS DURING LIFE
The word ‘gift’ means a presentIl-kelma ‘don’
tfisser rigal. You receive seven gifts from the Holy
Spirit at Confirmation; these strengthen those
other gifts which you received at Baptism. These
gifts accompany you through all your life.

1.1 THE GIFTS AND VIRTUES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The gifts bestowed on you at Confirmation
re-enforce the presence of the Holy Spirit you
received at Baptism. These gifts are:
Wisdom,
Understanding,
Counsel,
Fortitude,
Knowledge,
Piety,
Fear of the Lord.

These gifts help each of you in the choice you

have made of following in the footsteps of Jesus
and his teaching, thereby being his witness in
your life.

37
 Besides, these gifts help you in your everyday life
by strengthening the virtues you have. Virtues are
the good things that make you a good Christian;
they are of benefit to yourself as well as to others.

Every person has good characteristics.

REFLECT Some characteristics, however, need
Some of these working on to become better. For instance,
virtues are: sincerity, an honest person does his utmost to
honesty, respect, remain honest all his life. Another person,
generosity, wisdom/ who is prone to tell lies, wishes to become
prudence, courage/ more sincere. A lie is always a lie; if lies
strength, justice, are not controlled, they can create a lot of
self-control, faith, trouble. A habitual liar needs to work on
hope and charity. this side of his/her character to become
more sincere.

38
SSt Thomas Aquinas and the Catholic Church declare
that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are very important
because:

»» They help you improve your character to

become more responsible Christians especially
in the way you behave and in the choices you
make, for your own good and that of others;

»» Through these gifts you get to know better the

Holy Spirit. You appreciate him more, pray to him
more and allow him to become a part of your life.

1.2 THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE BIBLE

THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

From the Book of the Prophet Isaiah

“ But a shoot shall sprout from the stump

of Jesse,
and from his roots a bud shall blossom.
The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him:
A spirit of wisdom and understanding.
A spirit of counsel and of strength,
a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the
Lord.’
ISAIAH 11, 1‑2

The Prophet Isaiah lived about 800 years before Jesus

Christ. In the Old Testament Book, the Prophet Isaiah
mentions the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. In the
passage above, the Prophet states that a shoot would
emerge from the roots of Jesse, who was David’s
father. The Prophet Isaiah was here announcing the

39
 birth of Jesus, who would come from the race of
Jesse and David.

In the last line, the “fear of the Lord” means

respect and love; that is, Jesus, as a human
being, respected God, his Father.

We also read, “The spirit of the Lord shall rest

upon him”. This means that as a man Jesus was
filled with the Holy Spirit and, therefore, had all
the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

40
Therefore, every time that Christians receive
a Sacrament, they are strengthened by these
gifts of the Holy Spirit in order to live a good
Christian life.

THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

IN OUR LIFE
Wisdom
This gift of wisdom teaches you that the most
important thing in your life is God. You may
have pots of money and possess many other
goods, but if you do not have God, your heart
and your life are empty and worthless.

This gift helps you to understand how

important it is to leave each day a space for
God, to believe in God and to believe in your
need for him. The gift of wisdom helps you to
understand, appreciate and strengthen your
trust in him.

Do not kid yourself or let others

mislead you when they tell you that FROM THE BOOK
you do not need God. The wise person OF PROVERBS
knows that God exists and that he is “… For Wisdom is
important in life.This gift fills you with better than corals,
a strong faith in God and in yourself. and no choice
It fills you with trust in God and with possession can
peace, which only God can give. compare with it.
I, Wisdom, dwell
with experience, and
judicious knowledge I
attain.”
PROVERBS 8, 11‑12

41
 Understanding
The gift of Understanding teaches you how to
be more receptive in your heart and mind to
the Word of God. It helps you to understand
better the message that God wants to pass on
to you through his Word and the teaching of the
Church.

FROM THE BOOK The gift of Understanding sheds new

OF PROVERBS light on the importance of giving
“Mine are counsel God the place he deserves in your
and advice; mine life; it also helps you to understand
is strength; I am that God loves you. This gift enables
understanding. By you to become more sensitive about
me kings reign, and yourself and others while you are in
lawgivers establish the process of maturing in age and
justice; By me princes experience.The Word of God and the
govern, and nobles; teaching of the Church will make it
all the rulers of the easier for you to understand yourself
earth.” and others, thus becoming more
PROVERBS 8, 15‑16
tolerant, loving, receptive and ready
to communicate with others.
42
Counsel FROM THE BOOK
This gift relates to the way you OF PROVERBS
judge things in order to distinguish “Folly is joy to the
the good from the bad and avoid senseless man,
sinning. Temptations always present but the man of
themselves. How to deal with them is understanding goes
your choice. Do you give in to them or the straight way.
do you do your utmost to avoid them? Plans fail when there
is no counsel, but
This gift complements the gift of they succeed when
Understanding as well as the gift counsellors are many.
of Knowledge. With these gifts, you There is joy for a man
are able to understand what you are in his utterance; a
taught and, with the help of the Holy word in season, how
Spirit, you are able to distinguish the good it is!”
good from the bad and understand PROVERBS 15, 21‑23
the reason for your judgement and
your choice.

This gift also helps you to defend your faith and

your religion as Catholic Christians.

Fortitude
By means of this gift, the Holy Spirit FROM THE BOOK
fills you with courage, strength and OF EXODUS
much self-confidence to overcome “My strength and my
your fears and face new challenges in courage is the Lord,
life. and he has been my
saviour. He is my God,
This gift of Fortitude makes you I praise him …”
able to defend what is good and EXODUS 15, 2‑3
just according to God’s wish and
the teaching of the Church, which is
aimed at the good of everyone.

43
 Knowledge
FROM THE BOOK Like the others, this gift is very
OF PROVERBS necessary in your life, because through
“You simple ones, it the Holy Spirit enables you to choose
gain resource; you and evaluate well the teaching and
fools, gain sense. information you receive. This is of great
Give heed, for noble value in helping you to decide on your
things I speak; choices in life. In today’s society, access
honesty opens my to information is easily and readily
lips. Yes, the truth available. But, what you read and
my mouth recounts, discover is not always beneficial to you.
but wickedness my This gift enables you to choose what to
lips abhor. Sincere see, hear and believe.
are all the words of
my mouth, no one When you are well informed with good
of them is wily or and correct teaching, which benefits you
crooked.” and others, you are in a better position
PROVERBS 8, 5-8 to make good choices.

44
Piety FROM THE GOSPEL
The gift of piety helps you to pray ACCORDING TO ST
better and to foster in yourself great MATTHEW:
and sincere respect towards God. It “Take care that
shows you how to adore God and hold you do not perform
no other god, except him. righteous deeds so
Piety is very much related to the that people may
practices of our religion. A pertinent see you doing them.
question is this: do you show respect Otherwise, you will
towards God, especially during prayer have no recompense
and during liturgical celebrations, such from your heavenly
as the mass and other functions? Father.”
MATTHEW 6, 1

45
 This gift invites you to ask yourself whether you
are doing something to praise God or for the sake
of impressing others.

You cannot say that you love God when you have
no respect towards the Church and the Christian
community, of which you form part.

As Catholics, you are not only living members

of the community, but you also have the duty to
pray with the community and for the community,
especially during Sunday mass. You are also
obliged to participate in socio-religious activities
organised by the Christian community.

46
Fear of the Lord
The phrase “fear of the Lord” does not FROM THE BOOK
mean that God is fearsome. God is not OF PROVERBS
someone who is ever ready to punish “The fear of the Lord
you. Far from it! God is loving and just; is to hate evil. Pride,
that is, while God loves you, God is also arrogance, the evil
just – good is good and bad is bad. way and the perverse
mouth I hate.”
The words “fear of the Lord” mean PROVERBS 8, 13

to show respect and love towards

God. When you love someone, you
are careful not to offend or hurt that
person. The same applies to God. This gift helps
you to make choices and decisions, in which you
always and everywhere acknowledge God as being
great, merciful, full of love and just. Hence, God
deserves respect and love.

This gift helps you to strengthen your hopeful

expectations, and is, therefore very important
in your life. Hope, based on your trust in God, is
full of faith, thus empowering your life in all its
aspects.

CHALLENGE
During this week,
make an effort to
pray to the Holy
Spirit to help you
remember and
practise, as much as
possible, these gifts
in your everyday life.

47
 Diary
Write down or
draw how you
are practising
any one, or
more of these
gifts in your
daily life.

48
FAMILY CATECHESIS
LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY
Eternal Father,
in the name of your Son Jesus,
and through the intercession
of the Immaculate Virgin Mary,
fill me with the Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit, eternal love,
come to us with your vitality
and enkindle our hearts.

49
 THE SECOND THEME

Growing Up Bit By Bit

Every Day: The Fruit Of
The Spirit
The fruit of the Holy Spirit consists of the virtues
which grow and develop together with your human
and Christian formation. Indeed, these virtues are
closely related to the formation of your character, with
Jesus Christ being the model of these virtues.

50
2.1 THE FRUIT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
The fruit of the Holy Spirit grows inside your
heart, your very consciousness. The closer your
relationship with God, the richer is the fruit of
the Holy Spirit within you. These virtues are
considered as fruit because they help you develop
your character. Indeed, gradually, you yourself
will notice and enjoy a well formed character,
from which those near you are also bound to
gain.

Like a farmer who works tirelessly to grow good

fruit, you should work with God to foster in you
good values. These become attitudes; later they
turn into principles, and finally develop into
virtues. This does not happen overnight! It is
a life-long job. You begin in a small way; the
more you grow, the more you will mature
and become firm in your ideas. The good
behaviour that is the result of all this, is
the fruit of all the good choices that you
have made.

The truth is that when a person

lives these virtues, that person
is admired by those around him.
That person may think that he/
she is strange or different from
the others, but actually these
admire such a person and
wish to be like him/her.

When you receive the

Sacrament of Confirmation,
you take on the responsibility

51
 of becoming the witness of Jesus Christ by word
and example. You will be able to do this because,
through the fruit of the Holy Spirit, you will
continue with your growth into a Christian with a
good character.

Everybody admires adolescents and youths who

have a good character. So, make an effort to
remain in a good relationship with Jesus Christ
and try to build a good Christian character.

A good Christian character is built and

strengthened by:
»» Reading the Word of God, especially the Gospel,
»» Personal prayer and communal prayer together
with the Christian community, especially during
Sunday mass,
»» Receiving the Sacraments, especially those of
Reconciliation and the Eucharist,
»» Following the good examples of
various people, including
those of the saints,
»» Receiving an on-going
Christian formation in
order to learn more and
to practise how to be a
good Christian.

52
2.2 DISCOVERING THE FRUIT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

LOVE
Nowadays the word “love” is used very commonly.
However, being able to really love is not common at
all; in fact, it is quite rare. Every person is created
to love. If you were asked to say what “love” means
to you, the answers given would be various. This is
within reason. Yet, love is the thing every person
yearns for.

It is a pity that not everyone knows how to love

truly. Still, it is a fact that you cannot keep love
locked up in your heart; you have to share it with
someone. Otherwise, it is not love but selfishness.

True love is not merely a question of feelings; it

involves good actions which sometimes require
sacrifices from a person. True love does not allow
you to look only at the defects of others, but helps
you to discover the good in them. True love means
sharing with others not only what is beautiful, but
53
 also the challenges and pain that life offers. The
person who truly loves, does not love conditionally,
how or when it suits him/her, but loves always
and for ever. A relationship may change, but love
persists and keeps wishing the others well. True
love does not make one jealous because others are
in a better position. Indeed, one who really loves
always thinks of others first.

There is no love without sacrifice. Jesus Christ is

a clear example of this. Because he loves us, he
wanted to save us. To do so, he gave us himself and
has remained with us in the Eucharist.

There are many attitudes and

LOOK UP behaviours which are the products
Look up the hymn of love. It is impossible to mention
on love which St them all. But, St. Paul, in his hymn
Paul wrote in his on love, found in his first letter to the
first letter to the Corinthians, summarised the essence
Corinthians, Chapter of love.
13, verses 1-8 and
verse 13. The more you believe that God loves
you, the more you are able to love
others.

54
JOY/HAPPINESS
Joy and happiness are different from each other.
You can be joyful and happy, but you can also
be joyful and not happy. Happiness is external;
happiness is acquired from things. A person can
be happy when buying something which has been
desired for a long time; or when presented with
something he/she likes; or when he/she passes
an examination or succeeds in a business deal.

One can be joyful even when one does not

possess all such things, because joy does not
depend on how many things one owns, but on the
degree of a good relationship one has with God.
Joy increases in your heart according to how
much you try to live life to the best of your ability
and according to how much you help others, even
in small things. Yes, joy comes from your own
inside.
55
 Joy is a feeling that a person experiences. The
more you are glad for the success of others,
the more joyful you feel. There is no joy in the
presence of jealousy.When you use your talents
and capabilities to do good to others, your joy
increases.

PEACE/BLESSING
Peace of mind and of the heart is the result of a
good relationship with God. Where there is peace
there is justice, because peace and justice can
never be separated. The more you put your trust
in God, the more at peace you are bound to feel.

STORY: Sean, an adolescent, had a friend called Kenneth,

whom he had known since they attended
kindergarten together. Once, Kenneth began
spreading rumours against Sean, who became
very upset when he heard about the matter. He
fretted and even wept as he tried to find a reason
why Kenneth was doing this to him. But, he could
find no answer.

One day, Sean felt the need to talk to God about

the situation. He said to Jesus, “Jesus, I don’t know
what is happening. I only know that I am hurt. I
am leaving the problem in your hands.” Although
he was in this awkward situation, Sean felt at
peace in his heart, because it was not he who had
caused all this anxiety.

About six months later, Kenneth approached

Sean, apologised and asked to be forgiven. The
relationship between them had now changed, but
the bad feeling towards each other decreased.
56
 Sean, now at peace with himself, thanked Jesus
for his help. Sean realised how important it is for
a person to trust in Jesus, because then he/she
is at peace with himself/herself and is able to
bring peace to others. On the other hand, where
there is pride, there is no peace of mind or of
heart both in the person himself and in those
around him/her.

TOLERANCE/PATIENCE
Tolerance and patience are related to each other but,
at the same time, they are a little different from each
other. Considering your adolescence, we are going
to talk mostly about patience,. We often hear the
expressions “Everybody is impatient” or “Everybody is
in a hurry and has no patience for anyone or anything.”
Sometimes, you are not even patient with yourselves.

57
 It is very important to be patient with yourselves
because, otherwise, you will become very nervous and
have expectations which may be difficult to achieve.
Everybody has wishes and dreams, but we must also
know our limitations. If these can be overcome, well
and good; but when our wishes cannot be satisfied, we
have to accept facts and be patient with ourselves.

We cannot have everything we want in life; neither can

we grow up all of a sudden ... everything takes its time.
Unfortunately, we are living in the push-button age,
where we expect things to happen at the push of an
electronic button. But life is very different.

When you are on the verge of becoming impatient or

losing your patience, remember how, every single
moment, God has been very patient with you and
everybody else. Try to reflect on how many
times you have promised God to amend the
way you speak, behave and live, but you
have not! God is patient with everybody.
Where there is true love, there is
patience.

It is not easy to be patient. You need

much love and self-control which,
however, are not impossible virtues.
When you are alone, reflect on this:
if God is so patient with me, why
shouldn’t I be patient with myself
and with others? Don’t you think
that others are patient with you,
too? Think! Wouldn’t it be better if
you controlled your hasty feelings
and anger and learned how to be
patient?

58
MERCY
Pope Francis dedicated a whole year to mercy so that
each one of us fully understands how merciful God is to
us. If we understand this, then we will grow in mercy.
Being merciful does not mean pitying yourself or others.
It means that, while trusting in God, you do your best to
live your life better and help others to do so as well.

STORY:
Once there was a poor man who lived near a river
and begged for food every day. Everybody knew him
and many gave him some food to eat. One day, a man,
carrying two fishing rods, met the poor man and asked
him, “Do you know how to fish?”
“No,” replied the poor man.
“Come with me to learn. If you learn how to fish, you will
no longer beg for food, because you will have enough to
eat and may also sell some of the fish you catch. In this
way, you will re-build your life.”
The poor man was very pleased. He learned to fish and
his life changed dramatically. After a few months, the
same man again passed that way and saw the once
poor man fishing. He was dressed well and looked
much better. They greeted each other and the man
said,”Now that you are leading a better life, do not forget
to be merciful towards others.”

This story can take different forms in everyday

life.

Mercy is also related to forgiveness. When we

remember God’s mercy towards us, why cannot
we ourtselves be merciful towards others? Why
do we quarrel about everything? Why do we not
forgive? Why do we refrain from teaching others
how to improve their life? Jealousy, pride and a
59
 sense of revenge overpower mercy. If you want
others to be merciful to you, you must show
mercy to others. You tend to be more merciful
towards others if you keep in mind God’s mercy
towards you.

Mercy and forgiveness are very much alike. We

often hear Pope Francis saying that God is always
waiting to forgive us. Reflect: when you forgive,
you are not denying what has happened, as
things that have happened cannot be cancelled.
It is not easy to forgive, but when you do really
forgive, you will feel peaceful in your hearts.
Truly, forgiving makes your heart more peaceful.
Have you ever asked for forgiveness and been
forgiven? How did you feel?

Besides, it is important that first of

FROM THE LETTER all you forgive yourself and learn
OF ST PAUL TO THE from your mistakes. Be nerciful to
yourselves and then you will be in a
EPHESIANS:
position to have mercy on and forgive
“Be kind to
others with serenity and peace. You
one another,
can achieve all this with the help of
compassionate,
God.
forgiving one another,
as God has forgiven
you in Christ.”
EPHESIANS 4, 32

60
PIETY/GOODNESS
You will spread goodness around you if you are
good. Being a good person does not mean letting
everyone ride roughshod over you. However,
a good person is not a weak person. On the
contrary, being good means having a strong
character.

To become mature youths and good, gentle

adults, you need to keep a good relationship with
God, especially by praying, reading the Word
of God, receiving the Sacraments frequently,
especially the Sacraments of Reconciliation and
the Eucharist and being friends with other good
adolescents.

The choice of friends is very important FROM PSALM 34

because friends can help you or hinder “Turn from evil and
you. Keep your hearts, eyes and ears do good: seek peace
clean by not watching or listening to and pursue it.”
violence. Always do good and it will PSALM 34, 15
rebound on you.

FAITHFULNESS/LOYALTY
If you are loyal, then you are faithful, something
which is admirable. You have to be loyal first to
yourself and then to others in all your behaviour,
in all that you do and say. You need a strong
character to be loyal; it is not an easy task but it
is not impossible.

Today, faithfulness among friends has become

a rare virtue. When you find a loyal friend, one,
whom you can trust, you have found a treasure
which you should regard as being very precious.

61
 First, however, be true and loyal to yourselves by
being honest with yourselves.

For example: if you have made a mistake, accept

the fact, excuse yourselves, learn from your
mistake and then carry on with your lives. If you
have sinned, go to confession and become friends
again with God. If you have hurt somebody, try
to make amends. In this way, you will have been
honest with yourselves and with others. If you
have a talent use it, as God gave it to you for
yourself and also to share it with others. Being
loyal even means being able to praise someone
and not make fun of him/her.

Your friends will believe in you and trust you

if you are loyal and honest with others. Where
there are lies, honesty and faithfulness are
absent.

Faithfulness helps you to grow into honest

Christian citizens, trusted by everyone, working
for the good of society and the Church. St
Theresa of Calcutta says, “Do not seek to be
persons of success, but to be faithful ones.” This
means being loyal.

Do not forget that God is always

FROM THE BOOK faithful to us and will never betray
OF PROVERBS us. Being loyal/faithful to God means
“The trustworthy giving God the place he deserves in
man will be richly your heart and not merely seeking him
blessed…” only when you need him.
PROVERBS 28, 20

62
DOCILITY/GENTLENESS
A person shows that he/she has a FROM THE BOOK
strong character by being gentle OF PROVERBS
in thought, word and behaviour. “A mild answer calms
Gentleness brings out the best in wrath, but a harsh
everybody. A rough person is usually word stirs up anger.”
insecure and a coward, capable only PROVERBS 15, 1

of creating trouble. A gentle person

possesses a strong character and is
educated; his gentleness is revealed in his words
and behaviour towards others.

A gentle person weighs his/her words and

gestures as these can mean much. All of us are
fragile; so, if you want others to treat you gently,
you yourselves have to be gentle with others.

63
 A gentle person, who is gentle even
FROM THE LETTER OF with himself/herself respects himself/
ST PAUL TO TITUS herself and respects also others
“They are to slander everywhere and without distinction.
no one, to be Gentleness requires much control on a
peaceable, considerate, person’s emotions, especially in difficult
exercising all moments. A person who is rough in
graciousness toward speech and behaviour is always a loser,
everyone.” even when he/she is in the right. The
TITUS 3, 2B docile person is always a winner.

SELF-CONTROL/TEMPERANCE
Imagine a sportive person. This person makes
many sacrifices to reach his/her goal. There
is always daily training and strict discipline in
various areas of that person’s life. In other words,
this person must exercise self-control.

64
This does not refer solely to persons practising
sports, but to everyone. Self-control means that
you say no, when you have to say no, especially
when your self respect and the respect of others
are at stake.

It sometimes happens that you start doing

something with a good intention, but in the
process, things start going wrong. You may be
obstinate and carry on regardless, or you may
be wise enough to stop. This capacity, of knowing
when to stop as soon as things start going wrong
for you or for others, is a sign of great maturity
and great self-control.

Even when you are doing a good thing, you

sometimes need to use control. It may be that
the thing is good for you but bothers someone

65
 else. For instance, you may wish to celebrate by
listening to some music. There is nothing wrong
in this, but you should ensure that only you can
hear the music because it may be bothersome to
others who may not be in the mood to celebrate
like you.

Besides, remember that self-control keeps you

away from all forms of addiction. If you can
control something from the beginning, you will
never become addicted to it. This is relevant not
only when the thing is good, but also when it
starts as a good thing but later degenerates.

66
SOME SUGGESTIONS ABOUT HOW
ONE MAY DEVELOP SELF-CONTROL
»» Think carefully about what you want from life.

»» Make a list of good rules/values/principles to

help you in your life.They should be your road
map – guide lines of your life.

»» Be capable of challenging yourselves. When

there is the need of saying no, say no; your
no is said not out of pride but in the sense of
self-control.

»» Think of the consequences if you FROM THE BOOK

do not exercise self-control. For OF PROVERBS
example, think like this: What The man of
will happen if I do not control my discretion keeps his
tongue or my anger or any other knowledge hidden .
strong emotion? What will be the PROVERBS 12, 23

consequences?

»» Practise self-control as much as you

can.

»» Pray to God to help you.

All these suggestions are a clear

guarantee that your life and your
CHALLENGE
environment will change for the better.
During this week,
practise the fruit
If you want more love, more money,
of the Spirit on
more goodness, more docility and
yourselves and with
gentleness together with a good
others.
dose of patience, and if you truly
wish to be blessed and have peace,
then you need to practise self-control.

67
 Diary
Write down or
draw a fruit
of the Spirit
which you wish
to practise
more. If you
are already
practising one
fruit of the
Spirit, write
about or draw
how you are
doing it and
how your life
has changed
because of it.

68
FAMILY CATECHESIS
JESUS IS THE TRUE VINE

“ I am the true vine,

and my Father the vine grower.
He takes away every branch in me
that does not bear fruit,
and every one that does
he prunes so that it bears more fruit.
You are already pruned because of
the word that I spoke to you.
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, 1-3

LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY

Lord Jesus,
bless our family.
Help us to keep you
as our greatest friend.
Mary, Mother of Jesus,
take care of our family.
Amen.

69
 THE THIRD THEME

The Admirable Qualities Of

The Holy Spirit (Charisms)
For The Service Of Humanity
THE MEANING OF THE WORD “CHARISM”
The word ‘charism’ can be compared to the
words “talent” or “admirable quality” - a gift that
the Spirit of God gives to each person to be used
for the service of the community and the whole
of creation.

70
3.1 THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE GIFTS, THE
FRUIT AND THE CHARISMS (ADMIRABLE QUALITIES) OF
THE HOLY SPIRIT

THREE IMPORTANT PILLARS IN YOUR LIFE

»» The gifts of the Holy Spirit may be likened to
companions who accompany you during
your life. They give you the human and
Christian energy you need to live your life to
the full.

»» The Fruit of the Holy Spirit helps

you to build your character
in order to live a human and FROM THE LETTER
Christian life as expected of you, OF ST PAUL TO THE
The fruit of the Holy Spirit is ROMANS
modelled on the life, character, “Since we have gifts
values and attitudes of Jesus that differ according to
Christ. the grace given to us,
let us exercise them: if
»» The admirable qualities - prophecy, in proportion
charisms - of the Holy Spirit are to the faith; if ministry,
gifts donated to each person for in ministering; if
the service of the community. one is a teacher,
Each person is given one or more in teaching; if one
of these qualities. Each person exhorts, in exhortation;
is expected to give service to if one contributes,
others. The Christian believer in generosity; if one
gives this service in Christ, is over others,with
through Christ and with Christ. diligence; if one does
acts of mercy, with
Therefore: cheerfulness.”
»» The gifts help you to lead a good ROMANS 12, 6‑8
life in a relationship with God and
everybody.

71
 »» The fruit of the Spirit helps to build your
character.

»» The admirable qualities - charisms - are

beneficial to the community and thw whole of
creation.

3.2 DISCOVERING THE CHARISMS AND HOW THEY

CAN BE USED FOR THE SERVICE OF THE COMMUNITY
AND SOCIETY

The Charism of Prophecy

To be a prophet does not mean being able to see
the future, because the prophet is not a wizard.
The prophet analyses the present situation,
prays God to show him what to do about it and
then sees that what is decided is beneficial to
himself and the community. The prophet is never
a selfish person thinking only about himself. On
the contrary, the prophet is someone who thinks
primarily about others.

The Charism of the Ministry

This charism refers to the person who is always
ready to serve others. In today’s world, this
service may be given in various ways. Simple
examples are: showing by words your acceptance
of everybody, giving help when needed, visiting
aged people to listen to them, converse with
them and make them feel welcome. Even when
you pay sincere compliments to another, you are
giving service as you are thereby showing love
and respect. Making someone feel accepted,
welcome, respected and integrated with the rest
of the community is a sign of excellent service to

72
others. There are many more examples of how
you adolescents can render a service to others,
such as praying for or praying with others af all
ages, races and cultures. If you really want to give
service, you do not seek to be served first, but very
often you actually forget yourself while serving
others.

The Charism of Teaching

Everyone can teach by word and example, but,
to be a real teacher you must know
not only how to love but also love
everyone without distinction.The
charism of a teacher shows
itself when the teacher is
humble. Indeed, a person
who proudly believes that
he/she knows everything
cannot teach others; such
a person is not making
use of the charism given to
him/her by God’s Holy Spirit.
Every baptised person tends
to possess this charism,
as everybody has
something to
teach to others.

73
 However, there are persons, who besides this
charism, have a great capability to teach others,
thus rendering a big service to society and to the
Church.

The Charism of Exhortation (encouragement)

This charism is beneficial to the community as
it offers hope and encouragement to others,
especially when they are going through difficult
times. There are those who discourage people
who are downcast but, fortunately, there are
others who, by the help of God, work wonders
by lifting up the spirits of those who are
suffering. These people are a gift from God. It
is easy to pick out the person who succeds to
exhort people, because he/she understands
the situation, showing empathy with the one in
trouble, encouraging, praying for and walking
with the one in need, so that the latter goes

74
forward, without losing heart. Very often, these
exhorters are persons of prayer and great faith.

The Charism of Contributor

A contributor is a person who is capable of
distributing goods, thereby satisfying the needs
of others. Such a person believes in divine
providence. There are many persons gifted with
this charism. Some are well known, while many
others work in silence and remain unknown.
They are charitable and are always seeking ways
how to obtain money and goods to give to the
needy. A contributor has great trust in God, can
communicate lovingly with others and is ready to
make sacrifices for the good of others. In Malta,
there are many such volunteers in every area of
society.

The Charism of Leadership/Authority over

others
This charism is related to leadership. However,
not everyone is expected or called to be a leader.
A true leader has vision and is able to share it
with others, knowing that he/she cannot work
alone. A leader must not exclude anyone, for he/
she appreciates that each person may be useful.
The Christian leader bases his/her vision on the
teaching of Jesus Christ and when he/she is
about to put it into practice with others, he/she
keeps the values and teaching of Christ in his/her
heart and work. The true leader has first to follow
in the footsteps of Jesus himself/herself and
then lead others to follow this vision. Even if the
vision is a social one and not religious, it must be
based on the teachings and values preached by
Jesus Christ. Leadership is very beneficial for the

75
 community, including the Church and society.

The proud and arrogant can never be good

leaders because they think that they do not need
anyone. A good leader can work with others and
for others, excluding no one. He even discusses
things with them, while a bad leader never listens
to anybody. Finally, a good leader never seeks to
be served, but to serve others, as Jesus Christ,
who is the best leader, used to do.

The Charism of Mercy: A person who is

capable of being merciful (mercy and
forgiveness go together)
This is a particular charism, as God gives it to
everyone, but not everyone is able to use it.
Not everyone is capable of being merciful and
forgiving and doing so with joy. The family, the

76
community, society and the world would be
better, if people practise this charism. The world
would be a place of peace and joy, like the Lord
wishes it to be. We can practise the charism of
mercy if we perform the seven acts
of mercy - those which deal with the
body as well as the others which are CHALLENGE
related to the soul. During this week,
try to discover the
Everyone wants others to be merciful charisms which the
and forgiving, but only those having Holy Spirit of God
a good relationship with God are has given you to be
disposed to be merciful and forgiving. of service to the
Therefore, it is important for a community. Try to
person to have a continuous good use them to the best
relationship with God, in order to use of your ability. Ask
this charism. Mercy and forgiveness God to help you.
are services which show love in
action.

77
 Diary
Write down or
draw how you
are using the
charisms which
God gave you
for the good of
the community.
Then, write a
prayer to the
Holy Spirit
asking him to
carry on helping
you to use these
charisms well
during your life.

78
FAMILY CATECHESIS
EXCERPTS TAKEN FROM “AMORIS LAETITIA:
THE JOY OF LOVE” - POPE FRANCIS (2016)

“ If we accept
that God’s love
is unconditional,
that the Father’s love
cannot be bought or sold,
then we will become capable of
showing boundless love
and forgiving others,
even if they have wronged us..”
PARAGRAPH 108

“ The family is called

to join in daily prayer,
to read the Word of God,
to share in
Eucharistic communion
and thus to grow in love
and become even more fully a
temple in which
the Spirit dwells.”
PARAGRAPH 29

79
 CHAPTER THREE

Truth In Love,
3 Love In Truth
THE FIRST THEME

The Sources Of Truth On

Which We Model Our
Behaviour
When we talk of Christian morals, we mean that
our behaviour and decisions are based on truthful
teaching passed on to us from reliable sources
and not from what is popular, easy, sensational
or convenient to us. To live a good moral life,
we badly need the Holy Spirit of God – the Holy
Spirit.

THE MEANING OF THE WORD “MORALS”

»» The word “morals” is derived from the Latin
word “moralis”, which means a set of princi-
ples which guide the behaviour of a person so
that he/she will do good.

»» Therefore, morals are related to a person’s

character, to the choices the person makes
and therefore, to the person’s behaviour.

81
 THE SOURCE OF MORAL TRUTH
It is important to understand that the source
of all moral truth is God. Therefore, we will
understand the truth better, both with our mind
and with our heart, if we have a good relationship
with God.

God passed moral truth to us firstly by means of

the Scriptures and later through Jesus Christ
and the Church, whose teaching is still being
renewed today. This teaching covers a period of
more than two thousand years.

Our conscience is formed, built and kept

up to date by what God teaches us in the
Commandments, by what Jesus teaches us
in the Gospels as well as by what the Church
teaches us.

Jesus did not come to destroy what is found in the

Old Testament with his teaching, but to perfect it
and, consequently, help us to understand it better,
so that our aims and priorities become clear. For

82
example, in the Old Testament we find the law,
“an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”, while
Jesus teaches us, “Love your God and love your
neighbour as yourself. This is the first and the
greatest commandment.” All this is explained
fully in Matthew 5, 38-42. Jesus teaches us that
the law without love is nothing but a set of rules.
When rules and laws are intended to help people,
they are observed because people realise that the
rules actually protect them.

The teaching of the Catholic Church comes down

to us through the Magisterium, that is, through
the Pope and the Bishops.This teaching involves
many years of study by several experts. Even
lay people are consulted so that the resulting
conclusions are based on the Word of God and
the teaching of Jesus Christ. These conclusions
respect the Tradition of the Church and the needs
of the people of all cultures today.

83
 Moreover, there is what we refer to as the
Natural Law. St Thomas Aquinas wrote about
the Natural Law. He was born approximately in
1225 and died on the 7th March 1274. He was a
Domenican Friar and a great scholar, especially of
theology. He wrote about the Natural Law which,
he says, God placed in the mind and soul of every
person so that everyone is able to do good and
avoid evil. St Thomas also says that apart from

the Natural Law, a person needs to look for other

sources which provide the truth. This enables the
person to prefer good over evil and make good
choices in life. This Natural Law given by God is
universal, because it is given to all people of all
races, religions and colour.

To understand better what we are discussing, let

us consider two examples:
»» A small child, who is still untaught, knows
84
 when he/she has done something good just
as he/she knows when the thing done is not
good but bad.

»» People, who live in primitive areas of the

world where there is no teaching, know
how to distinguish good from bad, both for
themselves and for those around them, by
reasoning and using their feelings.

In each of these two situations someone makes

use of the Natural Law which God gives to
everybody. In the first instance, there is the child
who is too young to learn while in the second
one, we note that the people have no means of
learning. However, in both cases, those concerned
can still make their choices. Of course, those
who have opportunities of learning, have other
85
 sources, apart from the Natural Law
FROM THE GOSPEL to learn the truth, to learn to do good
ACCORDING TO and to avoid evil, thereby making good
ST MATTHEW: choices.
“You have heard that
it was said ‘an eye for The sources of moral truth for us
an eye and a tooth Christians are:
for a tooth’. But I »» God,
say to you, offer no »» The Bible, in which we find the ten
resistance to one who Commandments,
is evil. When someone »» The teachings of Jesus Christ, which
strikes you on your we find in the Gospels,
right cheek, turn the »» The teachings of the Church which
other one to him as are based on Scripture and Tradition,
well. If anyone wants including the letters and writings in the
to go to law with you New Testament, such as the Letters of
over your tunic, hand St. Paul, St. Jacob, etc.
him your cloak as »» The Natural Law that God gives to
well. Should anyone each person in his/her heart and mind.
press you into service
for one mile, go with
him for two miles.
Give to the one who
asks of you, and do
not turn your back
on one who wants to
borrow.”
MATTHEW 5, 38-41

86
In everyday life, we find important people who
can help us understand the teachings found in
these sources of truth. Among them, we find
members of our family, who show us what is right
and wrong, and correct us when necessary. There
are also teachers, catechists and good friends
who point out our mistakes and encourage us to
do good, because they wish us well. We must also
include the Christian formation groups, which help
us to keep a good relationship with God and teach
us how to become stronger Christians.

These sources of truth enable us to form and keep

updating our conscience.

Personal prayer and the Sacraments,

especially those of Reconciliation CHALLENGE
and the Eucharist, sustain our During the coming
Christian moral life. The Sacrament of week, do your best
Reconciliation shows us where we are not to be offended
wrong, so that we can mend our ways but accept the advice
and when we receive the Eucharist we of those who show
are helped by Jesus to live as Christian you that you have
persons in today’s society. done something
not morally correct.
Remember, anybody
who tries to correct
your wrongdoing,
does so because he/
she wishes you well.

87
 Diary
Write down or
draw how you
feel when you
draw a friend’s
attention to
the fact that
he/she is doing
wrong.Write
a prayer of
thanksgiving
to Jesus for
giving you
persons, who
love you so
much that
they correct
you when
necessary.

88
FAMILY CATECHESIS
READING FROM
THE BOOK OF PROVERBS

“ My son, keep my
words, and treasure
my commands.
Keep my commands
and live,
my teaching as
the apple of your eye.
He who gains intelligence
is his own best friend;
He who keeps understanding
will be successful.”
PROVERBS 7,2-3. 19,8

LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY:

Lord, help us
to distinguish good from bad.
Deliver us from evil,
bless our family and
help us to do good to everyone.
Amen.

89
 THE SECOND THEME

Discovering And
Developing Our
Conscience
Conscience is the most secretive thing each person
has, because it is something between a person
and God only God speaks to each person in his/her
conscience. We can define conscience as a light
guiding a person’s life. It shows what is good
for him/her to choose, what to avoid and what
to do.

2.1 CONSCIENCE
In simple words, we can explain conscience as the
voice of God which is inside each person. It is
not a voice which you can hear like when a person

90
speaks to you. It is a silent voice in your heart.
One can compare conscience to the GPS which
one uses when travelling. Without the GPS it is
difficult to arrive at one’s destination. At such
moments, the GPS is appreciated as a gift, even
as a companion. Similarly conscience; it is a gift
given to us by God in our hearts to show us what is
good for us. It is a constant reminder that we are
not alone, that God is with us, wishing us well. It is
therefore important to listen to and heed the voice
of conscience, especially when we need to make
choices or take decisions.

CONSCIENCE AND OUR RESPONSIBILITY

Each person is responsible to form his/her
conscience and keep it well informed. Your
conscience renders you responsible for what
you do. If your conscience is good, you do good,
but, if your conscience is flawed, you are still
responsible for what you do – both the good and
the bad.

91
 When we make mistakes or make dubious
choices, we feel uneasy in our conscience. This is
a good sign, because it shows that our conscience
is alive and doing its work. Therefore, we must
heed the voice of our conscience, as a good
conscience helps us distinguish between what
is good and what is bad.

On the other hand, a faulty conscience does

not work in your favour, does not make you feel
uneasy when you commit mistakes. This is not a
good sign. A person may make many mistakes,
including sins, when his/her conscience is faulty.
This offends God and is not good for either the
person concerned or for those around him/her.

92
TYPES OF CONSCIENCE
A. A faulty conscience
This occurs when a person’s conscience is not
well formed or when a person persists in his/her
ignorance because he/she believes that he/she
knows enough. Such a person refuses to learn
any more, does not ask for advice and does not
accept it when it is offered.

This type of person prays very little and

rarely receives the Sacraments, especially
Reconciliation and the Eucharist. Moreover, such
a person is easily influenced by those pretending
to be friends when actually they are not. He/
she fills his/her head with lots of mistaken
information and is usually on the look out for that
which is popular and sensational. Moreover, such
an individual is liable to waste time on seeing,
listening to and reading material which, instead
of helping him/her to mature by fostering a
good conscience, fills his/her mind with filth. If
a person’s mind and heart are filled with good
things, then that person is influenced to do good
things to the best of his/her ability. If, on the
other hand, the person fills his/her mind and
heart with things that are not good, it is very
probable that he/she will not grow into a mature
and responsible Christian.

B. A lax conscience
This is that type of conscience where all is
permissible and where there is no wrongdoing.
This conscience is not a mature one, doing things
on the spur of the moment, without considering
anything. It shows no respect towards God,

93
 towards the person himself/herself and even less
towards others.

With this type of conscience, everything is licit,

everything is permissible. There exist only
grey areas, that is, there are no principles, no
standards and very few good values to speak
of. With such a conscience, it is difficult to make
good choices and, therefore, it is easy for small
weaknesses to develop into vices and probably
even sins.

94
One should remember that a bad thing never
leads to a good thing. Those, who assume that
out of a bad thing some good may emerge, are
mistaken. This can never happen.

C. A scrupulous conscience
A person with a scrupulous
conscience considers all deeds to REFLECT
be bad, to be sins. He/she has a Where conscience is
conscience which sees everything involved, we cannot
as being either black or white, with rely only on what
nothing in between. It is very difficult we feel, but we need
for a person with such a conscience intelligent thinking
to make good choices. A person and reasoning. A
with a scrupulous conscience finds it good conscience
difficult to lead a happy life because shows us that we
he/she feels that all is bad. Such an always have to do
individual needs help both spiritually good to everybody
and professionally from competent and we should not
persons. be embarrassed or
afraid to do so.
D. A Good Conscience
This is a balanced type of conscience,
which is well formed and also well
informed with good teaching and healthy advice
from competent people. One having a good
conscience seeks good role models and learns
from the ways these live.

95
 HOW TO FORM AND KEEP WELL INFORMED
YOUR CONSCIENCE AS CHRISTIANS
»» Look for the truth from good sources. Do
not try to find the truth from sensational
sources or from people who only offer popular
opinions. Rather, you should seek information
from persons who are experts in the subject
you want to learn more about.

»» Receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation

frequently and try also to receive the Eucharist
often.

»» Pray, study and read the Bible.

»» Do your utmost to be well informed about the

teaching of the Catholic Church.

96
»» Reflect carefully about the choices you make
daily. Good choices lead to good attitudes and
customs, while bad choices lead to vices and
sins.

»» The English say,”garbage in garbage out”.

Keeping this in mind, read inspiring stories,
which help you to become good persons. If you
fill your minds and hearts with good things,
you give out good things. But, if your minds
and hearts are filled with things of dubious
values, then, your behaviour and the choices
you make will not be in keeping with the
teaching of Jesus Christ and of the Catholic
Church.

»» Every day try to learn from the experiences

and from the choices you have made. Keep

97
 on doing the good things, while learning from
the not-so-good things and avoiding them in
the future. It will be a good thing if, during the
day you reflect for some time on the good you
have done and thank God for it. Reflect also
on the other not-so-good things and ask God’s
pardon for them. If you have even slightly
offended anybody, make amends and learn
from such an experience.

»» Before going to bed at night, look back

and meditate on the deeds and choices of
the day. You will be doing what is called
the examination of conscience, that is,
contemplating about your thoughts, wishes,
deeds and choices. This examination helps you
to think more on yourselves (your behaviour
and actions) vis-a vis your relationship with
God.

»» Look for good and sincere friends who are

able to give you good advice and enlighten you
when you are doing wrong. You should look for
persons who can help you grow into good and
mature Christians.

As adolescents, friends are a very important

factor in your lives. It is a fact that everybody
needs friends. The greatest challenge for you
adolescents is choosing good friends who
influence you to do good.

98
2.2 FRIENDS, FRIENDSHIPS AND THEIR INFLUENCE
During adolescence, more than at any other time,
friends are very important. Often, they become
more important to you than your parents or
those who bring you up. Although friends are
very important, they should never take the place
of the adults who are taking care of you. It is
essential that you acquire good friends, but, at
the same time, you need to foster a relationship
of respect and trust with those who bring you up
and those who wish you well in your lives.

Unfortunately, there are adolescents who

consider their friends as the voice of their
conscience. Friends influence your decisions, the
way you think, the way you talk and even how you
behave. Therefore, it is very important that you
also have a good relationship with responsible

99
 adults, especially with members of your family.
Remember that when somebody does not agree
one hundred per cent with you, it does not mean
that the person does not respect you or does not
wish you well. Consequently, think carefully who
to trust and what to trust. However, do not feel
afraid of trusting – but with caution, thus showing
maturity. In your family, there is always someone
who understands you and respects you.

A good friendship is a gift from God and you need

to strive for it, both on a personal as well as on
a group level. The basis of a good friendship is
the trust and loyalty towards every member
of the group and the relationship itself among
the members of the group. In other words, it is
important to respect each person in the group.
Being loyal to the relationship among you
requires no back-stabbing comments.

100
A good friendship helps a person to mature and
get along in life, while a bad friendship leads to
the ruin of persons. A person who gets involved
in a not-so-good frienship, should move out of
such a relationship urgently, learn from such an
experience and get on with life.

Pray to Jesus to provide you with

good friends.You should stick to good REFLEECT
friends as they are very rare to find. In the Bible, in the
As you grow older, you will find that Book of Sirach,
the true and the best friend, you chapter 6, verses
can ever find, is Jesus. He always 14-16, we read that
understands you, wishes you well and whoever finds a
if you talk to him seriously in your friend to trust, has
heart, you will hear him telling you found a treasure.
what is good or bad for you.

101
FROM THE BOOK SOME IDEAS ABOUT CHOOSING
OF PROVERBS GOOD FRIENDS
Some friends bring Personality and Character
ruin on us, but a true There is a difference between personality
friend is more loyal and character: personality is that which
than a brother.” shows on the outside and character is
PROVERBS 18,24 that which comes out of a person; that is
why it takes many years for a character
to be formed. There are persons with
FROM THE GOSPEL
a very good personality but with a
OF ST JOHN
character which pushes you off. On the
“No one has greater
other hand, there are persons whose
love than this, to lay
personality is not brilliant, but whose
down one’s life for
character is very good. Ideally, one
one’s friends.”
should have a good character and a good
JOHN 15,13
personality. In the Gospel we read, “by
their fruits you will know them” (Matthew
7, 16). Therefore, a person with a good character
thinks well, speaks well and does his/her best to
make good choices and, consequently, lives well.

Some qualities of true friends:

»» True friends are those who still love a person
with all the weaknesses/faults he/she has.
They wish the person well to the extent that
they help him/her control and conquer such
weaknesses/faults.

102
»» Real friends are loyal; they do not FROM THE BOOK
speak about you behind your backs OF PROVERBS
or divulge what you have talked “Be not friendly with a
about. Loyalty is a very important hotheaded man, nor the
quality in friendship. companion of a wrathful
man, lest you learn his
»» Real friends are not selfish; they ways, and get yourself
share with you what they have, are into a snare.”
sincere and wish you well. PROVERBS 22, 24-25

»» Real friends pray for each other and

give each other good advice. FROM THE FIRST LETTER
OF ST PAUL
Some qualities of not-so-good TO THE CORINTHIANS
friends: “Do not be led astray,
»» They are jealous of you and do not Bad company corrupts
allow you to develop your talents good morals.”
and capabilities. 1 CORINTHIANS 15,33

»» They speak behind your backs

FROM THE BOOK
without your permission.
OF QOHELETH
“TTwo are better than
»» They use their influence to make
one; they get a good
you lie, especially to your family and
wage for their labour.
to people in authority.
If the one falls, the
other will lift up his
»» They are not honest and sincere
companion. Woe to the
either in their thoughts and words,
solitary man! For, if he
or in their choices and behaviour.
should fall, he has no
one to lift him up.”
»» They do not encourage you to
QOHELETH 4,9-10
approach the Church or to receive
the sacraments, nor to pray or
associate with groups which help you to keep
learning how to lead a Christian life.

103
 STORY: Anna and Mariah had been great friends for
THE HIKE many years and their families approved this
friendship. One day, the school authorities
organised an educational excursion. The two
friends were eager to go, but on the day of the
outing, Mariah felt ill. Anna, at first, was going
to stay away as well, but Mariah urged her to go.
During the hike, Anna walked with Josianne,
another friend who had been their classmate for
many years. Josianne had always wanted to be on
better terms with Anna and Mariah, but, though
they were friendly with her, the two friends had
never felt the need to include her in their special
relationship.

104
During the hike, Josianne praised Mariah as
being a nice and intelligent girl. Anna was pleased
hearing her praising Mariah, but later she heard
Josianne saying things which did not put Mariah
in a good light. For example, Josianne said that
though Mariah was good at Mathematics, yet
she tended to show off. Josianne added that
Mariah did not speak openly but liked to keep
certain things to herself. Anna listened to all
this; considering this information she felt that
Josianne was warning her to be wary of Mariah.

In the evening after the hike, Anna did not go to

see Mariah; instead she phoned her and invented
the excuse that she was tired. Mariah believed
her, though she thought it strange. After this hike,
the frienship of the two girls deteriorated.

105
 STORY: David, an eighteen year old adolescent, had a
FACE TO problem managing his time. He had no regular
FACE WITH time to do things, but did what took his fancy at
REALITY the moment. If he felt like doing his homework
he did it: but if he felt like playing with the Play
Station alone or with his friends, he did so. His
family often asked him about his homework
and studies but he became adept at making up
excuses. His friends did not encourage him to
study but to spend time on other activities. His
family did not know that David was doing this. He
himself sometimes felt uncomfortable.

106
Time management meant nothing to David.
Time tables did not exist. He wasted a lot of time
with those he considered his friends and then
complained to his family that he did not have time
for anything.

It was not the first time that he did not do a school

project and then he pretended that he had left it at
home.

Once, he looked reality in the face. He arrived

at school and found that they were having a
test, which he had forgotten about. All the other
students were well prepared for it, but not David.
Two days later he received the second shock: his
result of the test. This incident and many others
brought him face to face with reality.

Alone in his room that evening, he realised that

things were not right. Though he was not a youth
who loved to pray, as he only prayed when he
needed something, this time he felt the need to
open his heart to Jesus and ask for his help. It was
not only the case of waste of time, but also the bad
habit of excuses he had fallen in. There was no
control in his life. His conscience was troubling
him and it was time to do something.

David felt that that he needed to make three

decisions: one was to place Jesus more into his
life, as he only prayed when he needed something;
the second was to manage his time well,
especially after school and during the weekend;
and thirdly, and most importantly, to be sincere
with himself and with the members of his family
about the time he spent with his friends.

107
 These were tough decisions and challenged his
determination. His friends phoned him to spend
time playing together, but he told them that he had
a lot of study to do, or did not answer the phone
call at all. They mocked him but he ignored them
for he wanted to take control of his life. He faced
many difficulties, one of which was the necessity
to change his friends. It was not easy at all, but,
with determination and praying to Jesus for help,
things started gradually getting better.

108
In a few months, he got better results in his
examinations and also finished his school project.
He found new friends with whom he found time
to study and play on his Play Station. With them
he attended catechesis lessons and went for bike
rides at the weekend. There was time for him to
study, pray and go to mass on Sunday. As often
as not, he was accompanied by his friends, but
now there was no reason for excuses and lies. He
felt more comfortable with his family and with
himself.

Jesus became a part of David’s life. He and Jesus

became great friends. David put his trust in Jesus
and used to pray to him fervently to help him keep
his decisions. He even started keeping a
personal diary, where he wrote down
all that he felt. While jotting down his CHALLENGE
thoughts, he could reflect about his In the coming days,
life. With Jesus in his life, David could at the end of the day,
take on the challenges that life threw check about those
at him. He could face difficulties more good things that you
calmly. have done and thank
Jesus for them. Pray
to Jesus for help
about those things
which you could have
done better. Pray for
a strong character
to enable you to face
these difficulties and
get the better of
them, for your own
good.

109
 Diary
Write down or
draw the good
qualities of
your friends.
Write about, or
draw how your
friends are
influencing you
to be a good
adolescent.
Finally, write
a prayer to
Jesus asking
him to help
you strengthen
your friendship
with him and
with your
adolescent
friends.

110
FAMILY CATECHESIS
FROM THE BOOK OF PROVERBS

“ Walk with wise men and you will

become wise, but the companion of
fools wll fare badly.”
PROVERBS 13, 20

LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY

Lord, help us as a family
to follow your teaching
and also that of the Church.
Help us to keep
our conscience alive.
Take care of us
so that we can help each other.
We also ask you
to bless our friends.
Amen.

111
 THE THIRD THEME

Living, Loving
and Serving
INTRODUCTION TO THE SOCIAL TEACHNG
OF THE CHURCH

THE SOCIAL ASPECT OF GOD’S LOVE AND

THE SOCIAL TEACHING OF THE CHURCH
Because God the Father loves us, he sent his
son Jesus Christ among us to show us his love
and save us. Through his mission and his whole

112
life while among us, Jesus showed us the social
aspect of God’s love. The teaching of Jesus
revolves round the love we should have for God
and for our neighbours. Moreover, because we
have been created in God’s image and God is love,
we have been created to love universally.

3.1 THE BASIS OF THE SOCIAL TEACHING

OF THE CHURCH
The social teaching of the Church reflects that
which God communicated to us by various ways
and means along the ages, that is, that God is the
Trinity, three persons: the Father, the Son and the
Holy Spirit. God, who is one, is a community of
love.

Because we are created in the image of God, we

are precious to God. Jesus suffered, died and
rose from the dead to save us because he loves
us. Every person is precious to God. Therefore,
every person has his/her own dignity and
it is expected that this dignity is respected
always and everywhere. This respect towards
a person’s dignity is also social. First of all this
respect is shown towards the whole of creation,
including man. This respect includes also service
to others. It is important that all forms of life are
respected and preserved. All this is the basis of
the Social Teaching of the Church.

In the Book of Genesis, first chapter, verses 26-

27, we find that man is created in the image of
God. This does not mean that our faces resemble
God’s face, but it means that each one of us
reflects God. To do this, we have to be creative,
by treasuring and respecting the liberty that

113
 God gave us, by respecting the liberty of
others and by treasuring and making good use
of our ability to love. All this, together with
a hunger for justice, gives man his dignity as a
person who is created in the image of God.

God created us free. The dignity of each person

requires the freedom that carries with it
responsibility. The greater one’s freedom, the
greater one’s responsibility in thought, word and
behaviour.

Unfortunately, the world is not perfect, because

the original sin of our first parents, Adam and
Eve, made us weak, with the consequence that
there are those who prefer to do bad instead of
good. There exist injustices which hurt, debase
and break the dignity of a person.

In the Bible we find many instances which reflect

lack of justice among people. Enlightened by the
Word of God and looking at the reality of man’s

114
life all over the world, the Catholic Church has
always written, taught and put into practice its
Social Teaching.

This teaching enlightens the minds and hearts of

people of all races, colours, cultures and religions,
so that there will be more awareness of
injustices and other offences against
the dignity of the person, all over the
world.
Moreover, the Social Teaching of the
Church is there for all the people of
the world. It offers ideas so that
there will be more justice in the
world and so that both the
dignity of persons and the
whole of creation will be
respected.

115
 3.2 3.1 JUSTICE IS THE PRINCIPLE ON WHICH
THE SOCIAL TEACHING OF THE CHURCH IS BUILT.
By justice we mean fairness, where each person
merits what he/she deserves, where everybody is
treated in the same manner, where there are no
preferences.

By justice we mean that every person has that

which he/she needs. For example, a man needs
more food than a boy. This does not mean that
there should be preferences; it means that the
needs are different. What is important is that
they both eat.

Justice requires that those in authority treat

everbody fairly and provide for the human,
religious and spiritual needs of all, especially
those who are poor and vulnerable.

It is important to understand that without justice

there is no peace.
116
HOW CAN WE WORK FOR JUSTICE?
We can start by taking action ourselves. We can
do charitable deeds and help those in need to the
best of our ability.

We can also work for justice by becoming

interested in and asking about what is
happening to others. This shows the type
of conscience we have and where our social
responsibility lies. Besides, we can offer our
suggestions for the presence of more justice
in the world. We can ask, for example, why not
everybody has food and water and offer solutions
to problems like these.

Everybody can do good; it is important not to

be indifferent but to think of others. Let us be
persons who care for others.

In the Old Testament, in the Bible, we clearly find

what God wants of us in the Book of the Prophet
Micah.

“ You have been told, O man, what is

good and what the Lord requires of
you: Only to do the right and to love
goodness, and to walk humbly with
your God.”
MICAH 6, 8

3.3 THE THEMES OF THE SOCIAL TEACHING OF THE

CHURCH
THESE THEMES ARE:
»» Respect towards the dignity and life of each
person

117
 »» We are called to live and participate in the
family and in the community
»» Rights and responsibilities for each person
»» Preferential choice and love for the poor and the
vulnerable
»» The dignity of work and the rights and
responsibilities of workers
»» Solidarity among us
»» The duty and responsibility of taking care of our
common home – creation

RESPECT TOWARDS THE DIGNITY AND LIFE OF EACH PERSON

This theme demands respect towards the dignity
and life of each person, of every race, culture,
religion and economic means. This signifies that we
should show respect towards a person who is rich,
middle class or poor. Each person, whoever he/she
is, deserves respect for his/her humanity, culture
and religion.

The lack of respect towards the dignity and life

of a person, manifests itself when human needs,
like education, are not provided. Other basic
needs include spiritual and religious needs as well
as physical, psychological and emotional needs,
which are present, for instance, when a person
is submitted to bullying, both of the verbal and
physical kind.

Our dignity is there not because we have done

something to obtain it or because we own things
but because we have been created by God.

WE ARE CALLED TO LIVE AND PARTICIPATE

IN THE FAMILY AND IN THE COMMUNITY
Man was not created to live by himself but to live
in a community. Man was created to participate
118
in family life and in the community. On the other
hand, he should be helped by both the family and
the community to grow and mature and be able to
reach his aims responsibly as a Christian citizen, for
his own good and that of society.

“ For as in one body we have many parts,

and all the parts do not have the same
function, so we, though many, are one
body in Christ and individually parts of
one another.”
ROMANS 12, 4‑5

119
 EACH PERSON HAS RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
»» Respect towards the dignity and life of the
person asks for various rights. The universal
charter of human rights, which was signed
in Paris on 10 December 1948 and which
was translated into 500 different languages,
gives great value to the dignity of each
person, whoever the person is, wherever he/
she comes from and whichever belief he/she
professes.

»» Rights are not enough. There should also be

duties and responsibilities.We cannot always
be on the receiving end but we should also
contribute to the members of our family, to
the community and to society. If we really
believe in the common good, then we should
learn which are our responsibilities and our
duties. The more responsible we are, the
better we are able to know our rights and
those of others.

120
»» The person who thinks only of rights
but not of duties, grows into a
selfish and individualistic person. FROM THE FIRST LETTER
We have been created to live in a OF ST JOHN
family and in a community, which “If someone who has
becomes mature when we consider worldly means sees a
not just our rights but when we take brother in need and
on the responsibility of others. refuses him compassion,
how can the love of God
»» Life is a balance between remain in him?”
responsibilities/duties and rights. 1 JOHN 3,17
This balance helps to make
things safe for man, society and
the country. Thus, every type of FROM THE GOSPEL
discrimination will be eliminated OF ST MATTHEW
and there will be wider justice. “For I was naked and you
clothed me, ill and you
»» Ever since its beginning, the cared for me, in prison
Catholic Church has been writing, and you visited me. Then
preaching and spreading its the righteous will answer
teaching about the responsibilities him and say,’Lord, when
and rights of man. The basis of the did we see you hungry
Church’s attitude is the dignity of and feed you, or thirsty
the person who has been created and give you drink? When
in the image of God. Systematically, did we see you a stranger
since 1891, the Popes have and welcome you or
published many important naked and clothe you?
documents about the Social When did we see you ill or
Teaching of the Church. in prison and visit you?’
And the King will say to
them in reply, ‘Amen I
PREFERENTIAL CHOICE OF AND LOVE FOR say to you, whatever you
THE POOR AND THE VULNERABLE did for one of these least
»» In the Bible, both the Old and the brothers of mine, you did
New Testament exhort us to give for me.”
priority to the needs of the poor and MATTHEW 25,36-40
the vulnerable.
121
 »» The Catholic Church has always worked and
taught in various ways to help the poor and the
vulnerable. In our country, the Church
FROM THE BOOK was the first to establish institutions
OF PROVERBS to help the poor and the vulnerable.
“He who has Examples of this are the homes for
compassionon on the orphans and children, homes for the
poor, lends to the Lord, elderly, the services of Caritas, centres
and he will repay him for of rehabilitation, the Dar tal-Providenza
his good deed.” (a home for the care of the disabled),
PROVERBS 19, 17 Dar Nazaret and several others.

»» Poverty should be eliminated. Jesus himself

said, “The poor you will always have with you,
and whenever you wish you can do good to
them.” (Mark 14, 7).

»» It is our duty as Christians to work in favour of

the poor and the vulnerable. We should not do
this because we pity them but because this is
what social justice is all about.

122
THE DIGNITY OF WORK, THE RIGHTS
AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF WORKERS
There is no right without a duty or responsibility.
While it is the duty of the State to provide
work for people, workers have the duty and
responsibility to do their work well. This means
being on time for work, wasting no time during
work hours, producing regularly what
is asked of them and respecting the
material and information involved in
FROM THE BOOK
the work, as well as showing respect OF DEUTERONOMY
“You shall not defraud
towards their superiors and colleagues.
a poor and needy
hired servant, whether
On the other hand, an employer should
he be one of your
feel responsible for his/her employees.
country-men or one
It is the duty of the employer to pay the
of the aliens who live
employees the agreed wages according
in your communities.
to the law of the State and to pay them
You shall pay him his
on time. The employer is in duty bound
day’s wages before
to care for his/her workers in such a
sundown, on the day
way that they feel respected by those
itself, since he is poor
in authority, there is reciprocal respect
and looks forward to
among themselves, there is safety
them.”
at the place of work and they feel
DEUTERONOMY 24, 14
appreciated.

It is the workers’ right to join unions

that protect them as workers. FROM THE BOOK
OF GENESIS
All this forms part of the respect and “The Lord God then took
justice inherent in the dignity and life the man and settled him
of persons, both those who work, as in the garden of Eden, to
well as those who are part of society in cultivate and care for it.”
general. GENESIS 2,15

123
 SOLIDARITY AMONG US
Solidarity reminds us that we are one family,
notwithstanding our nationality, culture, race,
colour or belief. We are all brothers and sisters
and, therefore, we have a duty to care for each
other. The world has become a global village and
this makes caring for each other a necessity. We
practise solidarity with each other not because
we pity each other, but because solidarity is a
must for the presence of justice and the dignity
of the person.

The need for justice and peace is at the heart

of solidarity. Pope Paul VI said that if we
want peace in the world, we should work
for justice. In the Gospel, when Jesus speaks
about the Beatitudes, he teaches us to be
persons of peace, that is, persons who are just.
We can say that the Evangelical basis of the
Social Teaching of the Church consists of the
Beatitudes.

124
As adolescents, generally speaking, you can show
your solidarity by offering money and goods to
people in need and also by praying so
that there will be peace and justice in
the world and so that the dignity of FROM THE FIRST LETTER
persons is always respected. OF ST. PAUL TO THE
CORINTHIANS
You should show solidarity not only “Now the body is not a
at a world level, but especially in the single part but many ....
family, with your friends or in the if one part suffers, all the
community you live in. There are parts suffer with it; if one
many other ways, besides donating part is honoured, all the
money, whereby you as adolescents parts share its joy. Now,
can show your solidarity. you are Christ’s body, and
individually parts of it.”
1 CORINTHIANS 12, 14.26.27

125
 THE DUTY AND RESPONSIBILITY OF
FROM THE BOOK TAKING CARE OF OUR COMMON HOME –
OF GENESIS CREATION
“Then God said,’Let The Church, enlightened by
us make man in our the Word of God, has for a long
image, after our time been teaching, writing and
likeness. Let them spreading information about the
have dominion over way we should be taking care of all
the fish of the sea, the creation. Many Popes expressed
birds of the air, and themselves on this subject, but
the cattle, and over all Pope Francis has been very insistent
the wild animals and about the matter and has even
all the creatures that issued an Encyclical (a letter to the
crawl on the ground.” whole world ) called Laudato si.
GENESIS 1,26

In this Encyclical, the Pope insists

that we we have a duty to care for
all of creation, including the seas and all marine
resources.

126
Everything is a gift from God and CHALLENGE
merits to be cared for, not only During this week, try
for ourselves, but also for future and show solidarity with
generations. a colleague, a friend, a
family member or with
Pope Francis says that creation has somebody you do not
been greatly damaged over the particularly like. Do
past two hundred years. Therefore, this responsibly, both
there is the need to care better for your own good, as
for our environment. Each of us is well as for the good of
responsible for creation. society. You can show
this solidarity anywhere:
at school or during extra
curricular activities..

127
 Diary
Write down
or draw an
experience
when you
showed
solidarity with
somebody.
Express what
you felt and
learnt from the
experience.

128
FAMILY CATECHESIS
LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY
Lord Jesus,
We pray that you open our hearts
to the needs of others.
Give us the courage and help
not only to believe
in the dignity of persons,
but also to respect such dignity
and work for it.
We ask you to help us
not only to love and cherish
justice and peace,
but to strive for them as well.
Mary, Mother of Jesus,
take care of our family
and help us to be
persons of peace.
Amen.

129
 CHAPTER FOUR

The Holy Spirit

4 A Friend For Ever
THE FIRST THEME

Using Different Ways

and Means to Pray
Praying is necessary, as it is part of our life. Prayer
helps us to mature and think of others.

Prayer can take different forms and can be used in

various ways.

STORY:
A hermit lived by himself, like a monk, in the
desert. He had a small room and a tiny chapel,
as well as a small field which he worked to
supply himself with vegetables. He spent his
days praying, fasting and making sacrifices.

One day, a young man approached and begged

the monk to teach him how to pray. The monk
replied, “When you are walking in the desert
and happen to meet someone, pray in your
heart, ‘How great you must be, O Lord, for
creating so many wonderful things!’” The young
man queried, “ How many times do I pray?” The
monk replied, “Every time you draw breath.”
The young man did as he was told and he
realised that the more he observed the beauty
of creation, the more he praised God until this
prayer became part of his life. He learnt to talk
to God and praise him for all created objects,
including all human beings.

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 After six months, the young man returned to
the hermit and said,”The prayer you asked me
to repeat has become part of my life. Can you
now teach me to pray using the Word of God?”
The hermit replied,”Find a quiet spot, take the
Bible in your hands, collect your thoughts as
much as possible and ask God: Lord, what do
you want to tell me by means of your Word?
Then, be silent and listen. Observe and see what
is happening around you.”

The young man asked,”How many times do I do

this?” The hermit answered, “With every breath
you draw, because the words you read in the
Bible mean all the moments of the day until
man is alive.”

That day, the young man realised that the Word

of God strengthened his whole life. He also
understood that there were many ways how to
pray. Most of all, he learnt that prayer not only
forms part of a person’s life, but it gives life to
that person.

1.1 WHAT DOES PRAYING MEAN?

We always start our prayers by making the sign
of the Cross; thereby praying in the name of
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and also
asking their help.

The Holy Spirit, who is the Holy Spirit of love,

teaches us to trust in the Lord during our prayers
and to pray with pure love for ourselves and for
others.

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PRAYER AND THE ATTITUDE TOWARDS PRAYER
To pray properly, we have to foster in ourselves an
attitude for prayer. A prayer is not a prayer at all,
but only a dramatic show when it is said because of
need or as a last resort or to put on a show in front
of people.

Prayer is a conversation with God – you talk and

you listen. You can talk to God any time and tell
him all you want. You can open your heart to
God about your happiness, sadness, emotions,
fears, anxiety, nervousness and all your wishes
and desires. Talk to him as you would to a friend.
Better still, you can open out to him more than to
a friend, because you do not feel embarrassed as
he is invisible. He is never going to betray you or be
disloyal to you. All he wants is your love. The more
you trust God, the more you show God that you are
accepting his love for you.

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 Many ask,”If God knows everything, why do I have
to tell him everything?” The answer is simple. First
of all, when you open your heart, you are already
sharing your worries and you feel better. Moreover,
a person opens out to somebody whom he/she
trusts knowing that he/she can be helped. All this
easies a heavy heart and gives peace of mind.
During prayer, just as in a conversation, there are
moments when one talks and there are other
moments when one listens. The more one listens,
the more one shows that one believes in the
person one is talking to.

TAKING A FANTASY TRIP TOGETHER

Let us imagine two friends who are embarking
on a long trip together. There is something they
share in common – their love of music. It is this
common love that has brought them together
and has made them become great friends,
trusting each other and believing in each other.

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Because of their friendship, they talk to each
other and listen to each other. They wish each
other well and will never betray or abandon each
other. Being friends, they are not embarrassed
to tell one another their joys and worries, nor
are they afraid of asking each other for help.
They do their best not to hurt each other, but, if
this happens, they quickly forgive each other and
move on. Moreover, they do not take each other
for granted and care for each other and for their
relationship.

If this can occur between two humans, how

much more can it happen between us and God,
especially during prayers?

Prayer strengthens our frienship with God during

our whole lives.

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 GRADUALLY DISCOVERING THE NEED FOR PRAYER
BY ANSWERING THE FOLLOWING THREE QUESTIONS
Why should we pray?
We may lack certain things and, therefore, we
pray to receive them. We pray for ourselves as
well as for those around us. We pray for those
whom we see and those whom we do not see,
but who, however, also form part of humanity.
We pray for all of creation and it is important
that we cultivate inclusivity in our prayers.

To whom should we pray?

We pray to God who is omnipotent. We pray to
God, our Father and also the best friend who
will never betray us. We pray to God who is love,
but also just. We pray to God who is merciful
and forgiving and who is ever ready to provide
occasions for man to approach him.

How should we pray?

When we pray we should never lose heart, but
always pray with all our hearts and with faith and
humility and even with a sense of thankfulness
(gratitude). It is a pity that we pray so insistently
when are are in need of something but then we
forget to thank God when we receive what we
have been praying for.

Praying with all our heart

When we pray we should fully open our hearts to
God. We should not say prayers by heart or as a
routine, without knowing or understanding what
we are saying.

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We should pray always and without losing
heart
During prayer our relationship with God should
be like that of two friends, who seek each other
not only when in need, as otherwise it would
not be friendship but a meeting of convenience.
The same thing applies to our relationship with
God. We talk to him always, at good times and
bad times. There may be times when we are too
hurt to pray but we need to talk to someone who
is greater than we are. God is there to listen;
he will understand. Do not remain closed up in
yourselves, go on talking to the Lord. Just the
same, go into a prayer mode and be silent. Let
your heart talk to the Lord in silence. Do not lose
heart. The Lord never lets anyone down.

It is important to remember that God’s time is

not like ours. God sees much farther than we do.
He knows the future, so wait and trust him.
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 Praying with thankfulness (gratitude)
This means that we pray with an attitude of
gratitude for what God has done, is doing and
will do for us. There are many things that happen
in our life for our benefit but we are not aware
of them. God knows how to take good care of us
and we should remember to make it a habit to
thank the Lord.

Praying with faith and humility

It is important that we learn to leave everything
in God’s hands and show him that we trust him.
During prayer, we cannot tell God what he should
do; we have to show that we really believe in
God, that we trust God in everything and not in
bits here and there. To believe, to love and to
trust God, go hand in hand.

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A proud person does not pray for he/she believes
that he/she is all powerful like a god, and that
with his/her own resources can get anywhere. A
humble person prays because he/she knows his/her
limitations and knows he/she needs God. The humble
person prays because he/she believes in God’s power,
in a benevolent God who is trustworthy.

For what and for whom should we pray?

We should pray for everything and for everybody and
for all creation. We should pray for those who respect
us and love us, as well as for those who do not
respect and love us. It is not easy to pray for these,
but we must, so that these persons stop hurting us
and others.

1.2 PRAYING, USING DIFFERENT WAYS AND MEANS

A. PRAYING WITH THE PSALMS
In the Bible, in the Book of Psalms we find 150
psalms. The Jews look upon the Book of Psalms
as their prayer book. Bible scholars tell us that
the psalms were composed by different persons.
King David is considered to have written the most
psalms. The psalms express every imaginable
human emotion – psalms of praise and thanks,
psalms asking for forgiveness, psalms begging
for help during temptations .... There are psalms
to support us when we are frightened or are
losing heart. Other psalms guide us when we seek
knowledge in order to take decisions or make
choices.
EXAMPLE
In the psalms we find words When you feel lonely,
expressing each condition of read and pray Psalm
the heart or the life of a person. 23 or 42.

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 EXAMPLES OF PSALMS Moreover, the Psalms teach us that
FOR DIFFERENT thousands of years ago, man felt
OCCASIONS IN LIFE the need to open his heart to God.
It is wonderful to think how so many
Asking for forgiveness
years ago, the psalmists felt the same
Psalm 51
emotions and needs, like we do, and
Wishing God’s help in they were not afraid to express them
difficult moments by word and writing to the Lord.
Psalm 25, 1-8
Wanting to learn how The Method
to praise God and Find a quiet spot – in a chapel, in
asking for his blessing church, at home in a secluded part or
Psalm 66, 1-7 in the country or near the sea.

Praising God’s love and From the Bible, find Psalm 23 – The
mercy Lord is my Shepherd. Pray God to
Psalm 103, 1-22 help you understand this Psalm with
Becoming a good your heart. Read it all. Keep silent for
youth by leading a a while. Then read it again and look
good life for the word or words that strike you
Psalm 119, 9-16 most.

Keep these words in your mind and

heart and ask God to help you understand them.
Open your hearts to God and tell him all that you
are feeling and what you desire.
With total trust in the Lord, ask him to remain
with you and give you what you wish for, if it is for
your own good. Re-read the Psalm and thank God
for everything.

B. PRAYING BY USING BIBLICAL PASSAGES

OR PERSONALITIES
1. Young Daniel and His Friends
Let us seek and discover who Daniel was, his
story and the context in which he lived. Let us

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be silent and invite the Lord to help EXAMPLES OF
us understand his Word. Let us read PASSAGES FOR
Chapter 6 of the Book of Daniel. (If this BIBLE SHARING
is done in a group, one person is asked Mark 4, 35‑41 –
to read aloud the chapter.) Jesus calming the
tempest. Imagine
The Process of Bible Sharing for you were one of the
Adolescents: apostles on the boat.
1. Before Bible Sharing takes place, What would you have
either in a group or on an individual done? What have you
basis, research should be carried out learnt from this event?
about the persons mentioned in the
chosen passage, as well as the context Ruth 1, 6‑16 – The
in which the passage was written. friendship of Ruth and
Knowledge about the author, whether her mother-in-law. If
from the Old Testament or New you were Ruth, what
Testament, will be also helpful. would you have done?
What have you learnt
from this woman about
real love?

Joshua 1, 9 - What
impression has this
verse made on your
life?

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 EXAMPLES OF PASSAGES 2. We prepare ourselves to achieve
FOR an atmosphere of prayer and invite
BIBLE SHARING Our Lord to help us understand his
1 Timothy 4, 12 - What Word.
challenge do these
words of St. Paul offer to 3. We read the text from the Bible.
Timothy? We keep silent for some time to think
about what we have read.
Jeremiah 29, 11 - As an
adolescent, what do you 4. We share our thoughts about
think about these words the passage with the members of
of the Lord to Jeremiah? the group and – we talk to the Lord
about what has struck us most from
Psalm 55,17 - Praying the Bible reading.
often.
5. We seek to learn from this
Matthew 5, 44 - Praying personality (it could, however, be
for our enemies. a parable, a Biblical story or some
Biblical verses). So we ask ourselves
Matthew 18, 19‑20 - what we would have done or how we
Praying with others. would have behaved if we were that
character.
James 5, 13‑14 -
Praying for the sick and 6. From what we have thought and
those in need. reflected, what challenge has this
personality presented us with? (It
Luke 1, 39‑45 - Mary could be a parable, a Biblical story
is the model of love or some Biblical verses). Let us take
(charity). on this challenge on a personal level
this coming week.
John 19, 25 - Mary is
a model of faithfulness, 7. We end by saying a prayer to our
for she accompanied her Lord.
son throughout his life
and was with him also C. PRAYING BY USING THE WORDS OF
when he was crucified. SPIRITUAL WISE PERSONS
During our meetings, all our
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discussions should take place in an atmosphere of prayer.
Here are some examples:

“ Never forget the three powerful tools you

can use whenever you want to. These are:
love, prayer and forgiveness.”
H. JACKSON BROWN, JR.

“ To remain alive, we need to breathe; to be

real Christians, we need to pray frequently.”
MARTIN LUTHER

“ GWe need to pray more with our heart than

with our lips.”
ADAM CLARKE

D. PRAYING BY USING A DIARY

We can also pray, that is, open our hearts to God, by
using a diary. This is done daily by simply writing down
or drawing what we wish to tell Jesus: the good, the
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 bad, the daily challenges etc. We tell – draw/write
– about our emotions in certain situations such
as a tiff with friends, being happy for someone
or when we are praised for doing or writing
something good.

We tell everything to Jesus and thank him for

everything as well. We ask him to take care of us
and others, especially those we know who need
help badly.

In our writing, we can offer everything to Jesus

and tell him that we are ready to leave our life in
his hands, because he knows best what is good
for us.

Keeping a diary is, therefore, another way of

praying, of opening our hearts to Jesus as our
best friend. In time, you will realise that this
type of prayer is a way of opening your hearts
to God and of trusting him; it is also a means
of remaining calm. When, after some time, you
read over what you have drawn or written in your
diary, you will find that, little by little, you have
matured in a holistic way, even in your journey of
faith and trust in the Lord.

Praying through a Centering Prayer

This means repeating a short prayer in our
hearts, several times a day. The more we repeat
it, the more it will become a part of our lives. In
this way, our friendship with Jesus grows for we

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will be thinking of him in our hearts
much more often. CHALLENGE
During this week, do
Examples of Centering Prayers: your best to find time
Heart of Jesus, I trust you. for personal prayers,
Jesus, take care of us. coming from your heart
Jesus, be the joy of my heart. and not only from your
Jesus, I love you. lips.
Jesus help me to love others as well.
O Mary, pure lily,
you deserve all honour.

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 Diary
Write down
or draw a
passage from
the Bible which
impressed you.
Say why it has
had this effect
on you and
what you have
learnt from it.

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FAMILY CATECHESIS
LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY:
Lord, we wish to present
every member of the family to you.
Bless us, take care of us
and deliver us from all perils.
Never allow us to lose heart
when faced with life’s difficulties.
We ask you this together
with Our Holy Mother Mary who,
like us, lived in a family.
Thank you Jesus.
Amen.

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 THE SECOND THEME

Discovering The
Sacraments
The Seven Sacraments are found only in the
Catholic and the Orthodox Churches. This does
not mean that the Church “invented” them. One
can find the basis of the Sacraments in the life,
words and actions of Jesus, when he was still
among us and even after he rose from the dead,
before ascending into heaven.

2.1 WHAT ARE THE SACRAMENTS?

The Sacraments are visible signs of invisible
things, that is, the graces of God. These visible
signs which we can see, hear, touch, smell and

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taste with our senses, stand for an EXAMPLE
underlying meaning. The symbol is Let us consider bread
something we use in every day life, and wine. These are
but its meaning is profound for man symbols that we see
to understand. For example, a ring, and taste as well. But,
which we can see and touch, may by a miracle that we
mean a wedding ring to some but it cannot understand, they
may mean a sign of frienship or an become the real body
engagement ring to others. and blood of Jesus at
We, as a Church , as a community the words of the priest.
of Christians, celebrate the love
of God for us when we receive the
Sacraments or participate in them. When we say
that we receive the graces of God, we mean that
we believe that God,who is full of love for us, is
present in the world. We receive these graces
through Jesus Christ, who suffered, died and
rose from the dead to save us. Jesus Christ is
truly present in each Sacrament. Moreover, the
Sacraments help Christians to achieve salvation.

The Sacraments are very important in

the lives of Christians, helping them to
become saints, that is, to make them better
Christians. They help them to improve their
lives both as individuals and as members of a
community at the social level.

2.2 JESUS AND THE SACRAMENTS

We find the basis of the Sacraments in the
life, mission and actions of Jesus. Through the
Church, the Sacraments continue what Jesus
started in his ministry, that is, the work or
mission he was engaged in when he was among
us, even after rising from the dead and before
ascending into heaven.

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 After he rose from the dead, Jesus entrusted
the apostles with the task of carrying on with
his mission. When the apostles received the Holy
Spirit at Pentecost, they were able do what he
had taught and shown them, thereby continuing
the mission and orders given to them by Jesus.

The Holy Spirit helped them to understand and

interpret well the words, gestures, actions and
work of Jesus, so that they could pass them on to
the Christians who made up the first community
of Christians.

Therefore, the Sacraments are not an “invention”

of the Church. The Church is only an instrument
administering them and delivering them to
Christians. In time, after much prayer and study,
the Church structured the Sacraments better,
so that they would be better understood by
Christians, who would recognise their greatness
and recognise the need of these Sacraments in
their lives as Christians.

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2.3 DISCOVERING THE IMPORTANCE
OF THE SACRAMENTS IN THE LIFE OF CHRISTIANS

1. BAPTISM
Through Baptism, Jesus introduces babies, as
well as adults, to a new spiritual life within the
Christian community – the Christians. Baptism is
the first Sacrament and, therefore, opens the way
to the other Sacraments. We find clear references
to Baptism in the Gospel of St Matthew.

“ Go, therefore, and make disciples

of all nations, baptising them in
the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching
them to observe all that I have
commanded you. And behold, I am
with you always, until the end of the
age..”
MATTHEW 28, 19‑20

IL‑MAGĦMUDIJA FIL‑ĦAJJA TAN‑NISRANI

Through Baptism, the baby or adult:

»» Is spiritually born again, with a new identity, as

a brother/sister of Jesus Christ.

»» Is welcomed by and forms part of the

community of Jesus Christ – becomes a
Christian.

»» Begins the spiritual pilgrimage of faith and

the Christian religion which, through maturity,
enables him/her to accept readily God’s plan
for his/her life. This pilgrimage lasts a lifetime.

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 »» Starts to participate and to shoulder the
responsibility of living; also helps others to live
the teaching and mission of Jesus Christ as
well as the teaching of the Catholic Church.

»» Receives the Holy Spirit who fills the person

with love, thereby undertstanding more how
much God – the Father, the Son and the Holy
Spirit – loves him/her.

»» Can receive the other Sacraments.

The three sacraments – Baptism, Confirmation

and the Eucharist – are the three sacraments
of initiation. They are so called because through
them a person becomes a full member of the
Christian community. The word “initiation” means
“a beginning”. In this case, persons begin their
Chistian life within the Catholic Church.

The initiation into the Chistian life occurs through

the three sacraments together:
»» Baptism is the beginning of a new life, when
we become Christians. We start to belong to
Christ.

»» Confirmation strengthens this life. We

become more responsible for our faith and
for our lives as Catholic Christians. We are
confirmed in Christ.

»» The Eucharist sustains us as Christians –

imparts to us the spiritual strength to be
disciples of Christ – so that we can grow in
faith and in the Catholic religious practice. We
are strengthened in Christ and through
Christ.
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2. THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION
The word “confirmation” means “anointing” with
oil (chrism). This oil is used for the sacraments of
Baptism and Holy Orders, besides Confirmation.
This oil is consecrated by the Bishop during the
morning mass on Maundy Thursday.

The Sacrament of Confirmation reminds us that

Jesus shared with others the strength of the
Spirit which was within him.

“ Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be

with you. As the Father has sent me,
so I send you. And when he had said
this, he breathed on them, and said
to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’.”
JOHN 20:21‑22

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 CONFIRMATION IN THE LIFE OF A CHRISTIAN
The Sacrament of Confirmation helps a person
to mature in his/her personal and Christian life.
Consequently, when a person accepts to receive
the sacrament of Confirmation, he/she will be
improving in his/her Christian maturity.

Through Confirmation, you take on more

responsibility as Christians, not only for
yourselves, but also for other Christians, as well
as non-Christians. This happens because, through
your words and behaviour, these will understand
what it means to be a real Christian. This new
responsibility will induce you to ask for and to
seek the truth of what it means to be a Christian
and to live like a Christian.

It would be a pity and a show of immaturity, if

we look at the life of a Christian as a set of rules
which should be obeyed and things which should
be believed. In every religion, one finds things of
faith, rules and practices of communal prayer and
certain attitudes that help believers to live that
religion wholly.

»» The Sacrament of Confirmation is also called

the Sacrament of the Holy Spirit because
through it, you receive special graces
from the Holy Spirit, which enable you to
bear witness more responsibly, by word and
example, to Jesus and all that that you believe
in as Christians.

»» The Sacrament of Confirmation helps you

to confirm, that is, to strengthen with more
responsibility, what you received at Baptism,

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 namely, your belief in Jesus.

»» Through the Sacrament of Confirmation your

wish to follow Jesus Christ is re-enforced
and you demonstrate this by the way you
live your life, by your words and the good
examples you give to others. The Holy Spirit is
the source of all this.

»» When you were younger, you started learning

and discovering what a Christian is; now you
are growing up and maturing. Now you are
adolescents and you can understand better
what it means to be a Christian and how to
live as Christians, following the teaching of
Jesus.
We can receive this Sacrament only once in our
lives.

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 3. THE SACRAMENT OF THE EUCHARIST
In the Sacrament of the Eucharist, Jesus reminds
us that he gave himself to us because he loves us.

The account of when Jesus instituted the Eucharist

(during the Last Supper) is found in the Gospel
according to St. Luke, as well as in the First Letter
of St. Paul to the Corinthians. Here, the account is
according to St Luke:

“ Then he took the bread, said the

blessing, broke it and gave it to
them, saying, ‘This is my body, which
will be given for you; do this in
memory of me.’ And likewise the cup
after they had eaten, saying, ‘This
cup is the new covenant in my blood,
which will be shed for you’.”
LUKE 22, 19‑ 20

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In the Gospel according to St. John, we find the
words of Jesus referring to the Sacrament of the
Eucharist. These words show that Jesus is really
present in the Host we receive – he is the living
Bread.

“ I am the living bread that came

down from heaven; whoever eats this
bread will live for ever; and the bread
that I will give is my flesh for the life
of the world’.”
JOHN 6, 51

THE SACRAMENT OF THE EUCHARIST

IN THE LIFE OF THE CHRISTIAN
This Sacrament of love is a mystery of faith.We
cannot understand it with our small minds, but
we can believe it. Every time we receive Jesus,
he becomes part of us. Jesus wishes that we
live this Sacrament by really loving each other.
Therefore, when we receive the Eucharist, we
get nearer to Jesus and nearer to each other.

Through this Sacrament, you will start sharing in

the meal of the Lord. The Eucharist is the food
which strengthens you spiritually so that you will
be able to live a good life. This Sacrament is a gift
to us from Jesus. The word “Eucharist” means
“thanks” – thanks to Jesus for being among us,
thanks to him for deigning to come inside us and
thanks to him for this gift of himself. When, as
a community we receive the Eucharist, all of us
together will be saying Thank You to Jesus for
his love for us. The Eucharist is a celebration of

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 gratitude - of thankfulness as a community. The
central message of Jesus is love. Consequently,
every time you receive the Eucharist, that is,
every time you receive Jesus, you will be receiving
the Sacrament of love, because Jesus is really
present in the Eucharist. He is present with his
body, blood, soul and his divinity. Jesus can give
only love; so, every time we receive him, he fills us
with love and wishes that we share this love with
others.

We can receive this Sacrament frequently, even

daily.

4. THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION (CONFESSION)

The Sacrament of Confession or Reconciliation
reminds us of God’s great mercy; he never gets
tired of forgiving us. We read in the Gospels that
during his stay in this world, Jesus forgave the
sins of various persons.

Many times Jesus asked people to repent and

become converted. This call of Jesus for the
conversion of sinners and the fact that Jesus can
forgive sins form the basis of the Sacrament of
Confession.

JESUS “Some days after Jesus returned to Capernaum,

HEALING A it became known that he was at home. Many
PARALYTIC gathered together so that there was no longer
MAN room for them, not even around the door, and
MARK 2, 1-5; he preached the word to them. They came
OTHER
PASSAGES bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men.
MATTHEW 9, 1‑8; Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd,
LUKE 5, 17‑26
they opened up the roof above him. After they
had broken through, they let down the mat on

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which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw
their faith, he said to the paralytic, ’My son, your
sins are forgiven’.”

After rising from the dead, Jesus said to his apostles,

Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me,

so I send you.” And when he had said this, he
breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the
Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven
them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
JOHN 20, 21

In these words which Jesus said to his apostles, we find

the mission which Jesus gave to them and, therefore,
to the Church, to teach God’s love and forgiveness of
sins.

THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION

IN THE LIFE OF THE CHRISTIAN
Many ask, “Why do we have to go to a priest in order to
confess? Can’t we confess by talking directly to God?

In the Catholic Church the Sacrament of Confession is

administered by a priest, through whom God forgives
us. The priest is a bridge between God and us. It is God
who forgives through the beautiful words the priest
says: “I forgive you in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” With these words
and at the moment of saying these words, the priest
delivers forgiveness in the name of God.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is a Sacrament of

healing in every aspect. After we confess to the priest
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 what is making our life a burden, he forgives us
by the grace of God and by the authority given to
him by the Catholic Church.

It is also a Sacrament of joy because forgiveness

renews the relationship with ourselves, with the
Lord and with others. This is why we feel happy.
God always forgives us but, sometimes, we find
it very difficult to forgive ourselves.
REMEMBER It is important to learn to forgive
Even the priest goes ourselves, because it is only then that
to confession. He also our happiness is complete.
needs forgiveness,
mercy, love, hope The Sacrament of Reconciliation is
and growing more in one that gives much love, hope and
faith. Therefore, there faith because through it we feel how
is no need to feel much God loves us. God never tires
embarrassed when of forgiving us. It promotes hope
you go to Confession. because God does not want us to lose
heart because of our sins. It inspires

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faith because this Sacrament helps us believe in God’s
love and great mercy towards us, which are transmitted
to us by the priest.

WHAT HAPPENS BEFORE AND DURING

THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION:
Prepare for a good confession by reflecting well upon
your sins, that is checking your conscience properly.

Repent your sins, that is, you should feel sorry that
you have committed these sins.

You should feel sorry, because first of all you have

offended God, secondly because you have broken your
relationship with God and thirdly because you have
offended others. Even if you have sinned privately
without anybody seeing you, you have spiritually broken
off your relationship with others, because we are one
family, united spiritually with Christ.

When you sincerely repent, you would be saying to

yourselves,”I do not want to continue committing
these sins in my life.” If you fall again, then again go to
confession, since you are on a voyage towards maturity.
You should be on the alert so that, as far as possible, you
do not commit the same mistake/sin many times.

Confess all your sins. Do not confess only what you

fancy, but be sincere with yourselves and tell the whole
truth.

You show that you are really sorry for your sins by
reciting the Act of Contrition during Confession.

During absolution, the priest forgives you your sins by

making the sign of the cross, looking at you and saying,
“I forgive your sins in the name of the Father, of the Son 161
 and of the Holy Spirit.”

Do your penance, that is, the priest suggests that

you say a prayer or make a small sacrifice so that you
yourself may show to others the same love that God
has just shown you.

We can receive this Sacrament more than once; in fact,

it is good that we go to Confession frequently.

5. THE SACRAMENT OF THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK

In this Sacrament we are reminded of the many times,
Jesus in his work and mission on this earth healed the
sick. The work and actions of Jesus are the basis of
the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick.

“ Jesus went around to all the towns and

villages, teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness
MATTHEW 9:35

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In the early days of the Church, the apostle James,
strengthens and explains clearly the need and
greatness of this Sacrament in chapter 5 of his letter.

“ Is any one among you sick? He should

summon the presbyters of the church,
and they should pray over him and
anoint him with oil in the name of the
Lord, and the prayer of faith will save
the sick person, and the Lord will raise
him up. If he has committed any sins,
he will be forgiven.”
JAMES 5, 14‑15

THE SACRAMENT OF THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK

IN THE LIFE OF A CHRISTIAN
The Catholic Church offers this Sacrament to
the sick, but not necessarily to those who are
on the point of dying. For this Sacrament to be
administered, the person should still be alive. The
dead do not receive it, although the priest prays
upon them.

It is called “the anointing of the sick” because the

priests anoints indicated parts of the body with oil,
which is blessed on Maundy Thursday. While he is
anointing a sick person, that is, making on him the
sign of the cross with oil, the priest prays for the
spiritual and physical healing of the person.

This Sacrament shows the Christian that:

»» God loves him/her even when he/she is sick and
suffering.

»» God heals the spirit of the person through the

prayers of the priest and of those around him/her.

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 God fills the person with courage, peace and
patience so that the sick person bears what
he/she is undergoing with a Christian attitude
and does not rebel against God.

»» The rising of Jesus from the dead, fills us with

hope that our lives do not end with death;
rather, after death we begin a new life with
Christ, for after this life there is another one.
At the end of the world, we will rise in Christ,
not in this body which rots, but in a glorious
body which never decays.

»» Similarly to Confession, this Sacrament is a

Sacrament of healing, because it forgives sins.

We can receive this Sacrament often, according

to our needs.

From the sacraments of healing – Confession and

the Anointing of the Sick – we now proceed to the
Sacraments of Vocations. These Sacraments
are Marriage and Holy Orders. These
Sacraments are part and parcel of a person’s
vocation or mission.

In marriage this mission is accomplished in

the relationship between the couple and their
offspring, whom they bring up. In case there
are no children, the couple may be of service to
others.

In Holy Orders, this mission is achieved in the

service of love towards everybody, without
distinction.

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6. THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS
In this Sacrament we are reminded of Jesus who
cared for the people around him, especially in
spiritual matters. Jesus instituted this Sacrament
when he said the words:

“ …Do this in memory of me.”

LUKE 22,: 19

The Bishop is compared to a

shepherd who takes care of his
sheep – his flock – who are the
Christians. The Bishop’s mission
is also that of ensuring that
those who are not Christians
live with the respect and
dignity deserved by people
created by God.

In the Acts of the Apostles

there is a reference to the
work both of the priest and the
Bishop.

“ Keep watch over yourselves and over

the whole flock of which the Holy
Spirit has appointed you overseers,
in which you tend the church of God
that he acquired with his own blood.”
ACTS 20, 28

THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS

IN THE LIFE OF THE CHRISTIAN
Through Baptism, we all received what is known
as the common priesthood for the baptised, which
means that through Baptism we are all called
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 and have the mission to help people to love and be
reconciled with God. We can do this by word and by
example.

Moreover, we can all be prophets by teaching the

truth about God and spreading the Good News of
Jesus Christ. We are all called to be leaders who in
the name of God serve all of creation. As leaders,
we should do our best to live as Christians just as
Jesus wants us to. We should also live in such a
way that others follow our example and copy us.
These three roles are called the ministries of all
the baptised (Christians). We have to remember
that leaders do not command but serve. Therefore,
we Christians are called to live and be of service to
others in various ways and without any distinction.

When we talk of Holy Orders, we are talking about a

Sacrament whereby men, who are called by God, are
consecrated by the Bishop. They are endowed with
holy powers by Jesus Christ through the Church, for
the service of God’s people, the whole Church and
society.

This authority given to priests goes back to the time

of the apostles, when Jesus himself ordained them
as priests and bishops during the Last Supper. In the
Catholic and Orthodox Churches the Bishops are the
successors of the apostles and, therefore, only they
can ordain – consecrate – deacons, priests and new
bishops.

In the Sacrament of Holy Orders there are three

important stages: the deaconship (when one helps
the priest), the presbyterate (when one becomes
a priest) and the episcopate (when one becomes a
bishop).
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The work of the Bishop is mainly:
»» To take care of and direct liturgical
functions, to bring the people of God to the
liturgy and to administer the Sacraments. In
all this, we see the Bishop as a priest.

»» To teach the people of God about God’s truth

and about the teaching of the Church and
to apply all this to the time in which the
people of God are living. Here we see the
Bishop as a prophet.

»» To take care of the pastoral

needs of God’s people. Here
we see the Bishop as a leader
who serves.

Besides these roles, the Bishop takes care

of his diocese and the spiritual needs of the
persons in this diocese, while communicating
with civil society and with persons of other
religions, cultures and races. A diocese is
made up of a number of parishes, containing
a number of families in towns and villages.

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 THE WORK OF THE PRIEST
The priests are the collaborators of the Bishop;
together with the Bishop, they are resposible
for directing the liturgy and administering the
Sacraments (except that of Holy Orders). It is their
responsibility to teach the people of God and to
serve in parishes. If the priest is a parish priest,
then he has to see to all the needs of his parish.

THE WORK OF THE DEACONS

Deacons are directly connected to the Bishop.
They collaborate with the Bishop and the priests;
they can explain the Gospel, preach, help the priest
during mass, direct funerals, baptise, marry people,
work in areas of charity and show mercy to all,
especially the weak. They do their best to serve
the people of God. One can remain a deacon and
not become a priest. In this case, one is called a
permanent deacon.

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7. THE SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE
Jesus was loyal/faithful to God, his Father, whom
he called “Abba Father”; he was also faithful/loyal
to the mission entrusted to him by God. In the
same way, Jesus expects those whom he chooses
to follow the vocation of marriage, to be loyal/
faithful to each other and to their relationship.

St Paul among his many writings, wrote this

about marriage:
A SHORT NOTE:
“ Husbands love your wives, even
as Chist loved the Church …”
What St Paul wrote
about men applies
EPHESIANS 5, 25 also to women.

Jesus Christ gave his life for the

Church. Likewise, married persons should be
faithful to each other and to their relationship
and give their lives to each other.

THE SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE

IN THE LIFE OF THE CHRISTIAN
Let us try to understand in a very simple
way how a friendship grows by taking an

169
 example. Quite often two persons become friends
because they have something in common. It may
be that they like the same type of music or they
like the same football team.

In this example, it is the music or the football

team, more than anything else, that keeps them
together. Even if they quarrel, there is something
that unites them. This common factor causes
them to forget their egoism and to concentrate on
what is common and permanent between them,
thereby motivating them to stay together and to
keep trusting each other.

TOWARDS A CHRISTIAN MARRIAGE

Two persons feel that they have a vocation to
marry. Both love God very much and both ask
God to find a good and fitting person with whom
to share a married life.

Rather mysteriously, two persons meet at a

certain place and at a certain time and feel
attracted towards each other. Each one loves
God. God, therefore, is the common and
permanent element between them. The more
that God – who is love – remains their common
element, the more they become attracted to
each other, the more they seek to discover each
other, to respect each other, to love each other
and to trust each other. Little by little, they move
on to seal their love by receiving the Sacrament
of a Christian Marriage. Naturally, difficulties will
arise. But, as long as God remains the common
element between them and, as long as they
continue to treasure him in their lives, both as

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individuals and also as a couple, then, they can
together face the challenges that arise.

So long as God remains present in the life of the

couple, their love becomes stronger, even during
difficult times.

A Christian marriage is a human experience

and a symbol of faith, love and hope of the
married couple towards God, towards each
other and towards society.

Above all, a Christian marriage is a promise

and not a just a contract between the couple.
A contract stipulates a period of time and
many conditions for the deed to be valid, and if
something happens to one partner, the contract
becomes null.
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 The model of a Christian marriage is the promise
of God with his people. This pact means:

a. the total giving of God in his Son Jesus

Christ for the salvation of mankind;

b. loyalty, because God will always love his

people;

ċ. God’s love given with great freedom for the

salvation of everyone;

d. the great love of God who, because he

loves his people, remains with them to
care not only for them, but even for
future generations and for the whole of
creation.
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In a Christian marriage, the love of a couple for
each other in this pact, is the voyage of God with
his people. Therefore, their love should be:

»» Totali: love which is not conditional but real;

»» Loyal (Faithful): loyal to each other and to

their relationship. Even when the persons are
not present, they should still be respected;

»» Free: both the marriage and the relationship

should be free and not conditioned by
anybody or anything;

»» Fruitful: Children are the fruit of the love

between the couple: in case there are no
children, love can be deployed in a service to
society and to the Church. Real love cannot
be self-centred.

These four very important stages of a Christian

marriage continue maturing within the life of
the married couple and are strengthened by
God’s grace, given through the Sacrament of a
Christian marriage and through the prayers and
encouragement of the Christian community.

The marriage will remain strong if the couple

keeps God in its life, both individually and as a
couple. Keeping God alive in the family by praying
together and frequenting the Sacraments will
overcome the many difficulties and sacrifices a
married couple faces and will actually strengthen
the marriage.

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 2.4 THE SACRAMENTS WHICH LEAVE A “CHARACTER”
Have you ever heard that there are three
Sacraments that leave a character? These
Sacraments are: Baptism, Confirmation and Holy
Orders.

Character or spiritual seal means that these

Sacraments graft us with Jesus Christ for ever,
spiritually and in a special manner. They also
make us share in the work and mission of Jesus.

No sin can eliminate this seal. It is a seal,

character and mark that remains for ever. That is
why a Christian can receive these Sacraments only
once in a lifetime.

BAPTISM
Baptism seals a Christian with a spiritual seal or a
mark in the soul which is never erased (character)
and shows that that person belongs to Jesus
Christ.

A baptised person is baptised for life and remains

baptised even though the person leads a bad life.
No sin can erase the spiritual character which has
been given to a person at Baptism. A baptised
person belongs to Jesus for ever. If the person
leads a life of sin away from Jesus, the latter still
waits for him/her. If the person wishes to return to
Jesus, he/she can do so by confessing his/her sins.
A person can be baptised only once and cannot be
baptised again.

CONFIRMATION
Through Confirmation, this spiritual character/
seal is strengthened and, at the same time,

174
strengthens the person who receives it, so that
that person can keep following Jesus and live his/
her life as a Christian more responsibly, especially
as a witness to Christ.

If, for one reson or another, the person who

receives Confirmation does not live a good life,
the seal – character - is not cancelled; the person
remains confirmed, that is renewed in Christ. If
he/she wishes to lead a Christian life, then he/she
must go to Confession. Though a person leaves
Jesus to lead a bad life, Jesus keeps waiting for
him/her.A person can receive the Sacrament of
Confirmation only once.

HOLY ORDERS
A person becomes a priest for ever. This
Sacrament can be received only once.

If for some reason, a priest does no longer

function, that is, he does not do his duties as
a priest, he still remains a priest. He has only
stopped working as a priest.

Let us take an example. There is an

emergency, say an accident, and
someone who “has been a priest” is
CHALLENGE
During this week, try to
present; he is in duty bound to assist
receive the Sacraments
the injured person, hear his/her
of Confession and
confession and bless him/her. This can
the Eucharist. Be
only be done in case of an emergency.
more respectful when
receiving the Eucharist.
Make an effort to live
the Eucharist by really
loving your neighbour.

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 Diary
Write down
or draw your
spiritual
experience
when you
received the
Sacraments of
Confession and
the Eucharist.

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FAMILY CATECHESIS

“ Beloved,
let us love one another,
because love is of God;
everyone who loves
is begotten by God
and knows God.”
1 JOHN 4, 7

LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY

Lord, bless
each and every one of us.
Help us to love each other
and share this love with others,
especially those who are in need
and those who have nobody
to love them.
Amen .

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 THE THIRD THEME

Come Holy Spirit

I LONG FOR YOU, I WANT YOU, I NEED YOU

Holy Spirit, I long for you, I want you, I need you.

Come, Holy Spirit. Do not allow that I feel this
longing only while preparing for the Sacrament
of Confirmation, but will last my whole life. It is
therefore important that I understand well the
greatness and the necessity of this Sacrament
and of the Holy Spirit of God.

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3.1 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE SACRAMENT
OF CONFIRMATION AND ADOLESCENTS
The Sacrament of Confirmation can be
celebrated by the Bishop or a priest
delegated by the Bishop.
THE LAYING ON OF HANDS
The principal actions, that is, the The Bishop prays so that
principal signs made during the rite, the Holy Spirit comes
are the laying on of hands and down and showers each
the anointing with the oil of the adolescent with his gifts.
Sacrament of confirmation. This
oil, which is often called chrism oil,
is consecrated on Maundy Thursday, during the
mass celebrated in the morning.

The prayer said by the priest or Bishop during

the rite (celebration) of the Sacrament is a prayer
to God so that the Holy Spirit strengthens the
adolescents in their lives as Christians. This
prayer shows the strong and deep relationship
between God and adolescents.

The Prayer:
Dear children (or Dear brothers and sisters),
Let us pray to God our Father,
who is all powerful,
for these adopted children of his,
who at Baptism
have already been re-born
to eternal life:
we pray that in his goodness
he will give them the Holy Spirit,
to strengthen them with his numerous talents,
and with his anointing will give them a full likeness
to Christ, the Son of God.

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 THE ANOINTING WITH THE CHRISM OIL
When the Bishop (or priest) makes the sign of the
cross with oil on the forehead of the candidate
who is going to receive the Sacrament, he says,
“Take this seal.” This means that the person now
belongs to Jesus Christ and is marked for ever as
a witness to Christ.

THE GODPARENTS
A SHORT NOTE: The role of the godparent is to
The godparent can be accompany the adolescent and help
a male for a female him/her in his/her life in all its human
adolescent and a and especially Christian dimensions.
female for a male With the help of the godparent,
adolescent. the adolescent grows into a good
Christian youth and adult as well as a
responsible citizen.

The godparent is a witness when the adolescent

is receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation,
that is, when he/she is renewing the vows of
Baptism and while the Bishop or priest is sealing
the adolescent with chrism oil, that is, when the
adolescent is being confirmed.

Godparents are not only witnesses but also

responsible to accompany the adolescents
throughout life, especially by the way they
themselves live their lives as responsible
Christians.

WHY ARE THE VOWS OF BAPTISM RENEWED?

They are renewed because there is a connection
between the Sacrament of Baptism and that of
Confirmation. At Baptism, you became Christians,
while at Confirmation at your own free choice and

180
together with that of your parents or those who
bring you up, you show your wish to be confirmed
in the Catholic faith.

In the Sacrament of Confirmation, you renew what

was promised at Baptism. This time, however,
instead of having your godparents speaking for
you, you yourselves speak. Individually you
yourselves renew the vows taken at Baptism.

This indicates that now as

adolescents you are going
to make an effort to be
more responsible about
your journey in the footsteps
of Jesus and about living as
Christian citizens.

You renew these vows with your

replies to a few questions you are
asked by the Bishop or priest.

RENEWING THE BAPTISM VOWS

The Bishop/priest: Do you renounce the
devil and all his evil actions?
You answer: Yes, I do.

The Bishop/priest: Do you believe in God the

Father omnipotent who created heaven and
earth?
You answer: Yes, I believe.

The Bishop/priest: Do you believe in Jesus

Christ, his only Son and our Lord who was
born of the Virgin Mary, suffered and died
and was buried, rose from the dead and is

181
 on the right hand side of God?
You answer: Yes,I believe.

The Bishop/priest: Do you believe in the Holy

Spiruit, the Lord who gives life and who, today, in
a special way, is going to be given to you in the
Sacrament of Confirmation, like he was given to
the apostles at Pentecost?
You answer: Yes, I believe.

The Bishop/priest: Do you believe in the Holy

Catholic Church, in the community of saints, the
forgiveness of sins, in the resurrection from the
dead and in life everlasting?
You answer: Yes, I believe.

The Bishop/priest: This is our faith. This is the

faith of the Church, which we confess in the name
of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Everybody answers: Amen.

THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION CONTINUES

TO STRENGTHEN YOU TO BEAR WITNESS TO JESUS
Through Confirmation, the Holy Spirit descendes
upon you and strengthens you by his graces to
be the witnesses of Jesus wherever you are.
This means that you will do your best to be real
Christian citizens.

Being witnesses of Jesus means:

Keeping a good relationship with Jesus,
especially by praying as an individual and also
as a member of the Christian community,
participating actively (not just sitting and merely
observing) in the Sunday mass.

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Continuing your Christian formation by keeping
on learning what the Catholic Church is teaching
today. Thereby, you will be able to know better
what the Catholic Christian religion expects from
you; moreover, you will be able to talk about it
with others, especially persons of other religions.
Obviously, you cannot talk about or discuss
something if you are not well informed about
it.

Respecting and loving everybody like Jesus

does and like he asks us to do. You should love
everybody, without any distinction of race, colour
or religion because we are all brothers and
sisters, children of one Father – God.
CHALLENGE
Looking for the good in others and In the coming days,
doing good to everyone. Thus, you will frequently say a
be practising what each Catholic should prayer to Our Mother
foster. You will also be putting into Mary so that you
practice both the Commandments and prepare yourselves, as
the Beatitudes. adolescents, for the
coming of the Holy
Spirit in your hearts.

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 Diary
Write down or
draw what you
are feeling as
an adolescent,
now that you
are preparing
yourself to
receive the
Sacrament of
Confirmation.
Explain what
this Christian
Catholic step
in your life
means to you
as a Christian
adolescent.

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FAMILY CATECHESIS
LET US PRAY TOGETHER AS A FAMILY
Holy Spirit,
eternal love,
come to us
with your ardent love and
enkindle our hearts.

Glory be to the Father

and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
who was in the beginning,
is now and always
and will be for ever and ever.
Amen.

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 secretariat for catechesis

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