For Parents To Teach To Their Children
This week is our last art project for summer. I enjoyed making and posting summer art projects that corresponded with the weekly Gospel, as well as other related topics.
Religious Education class in my church begins mid- September. I am eager to get started and have decided to begin the class with a discussion about The Meaning of the Cross. I am happy to have a First Holy Communion class, with second and third graders. We’ll all being wearing masks again, but we will be meeting in a classroom, instead of working by ZOOM.
Please explore the meaning of “The Cross” with your children. According to Britannica.com:
“Cross”
“…the principal symbol of the Christian religion, recalling the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the redeeming benefits of his Passion and death. The cross is thus a sign both of Christ himself and of the faith of Christians. In ceremonial usage, making a sign of the cross may be, according to the context, an act of profession of faith, a prayer, a dedication, or a benediction.”
My first Religious Education students will receive a small painting I made featuring a cross, to take home. I want the children begin to think about the meaning of “The Cross” and to discuss it at home. Students will also have an in-class drawing session of the Cross. Below are three crosses for the students to enjoy. I hope they will design their own cross as well. Please check back for my weekly class updates, the weekly Gospel, and art projects. The first part of the class curriculum is “Preparation for First Reconciliation.” First Confessions will be celebrated in December. After Christmas vacation, we’ll begin learning about “The Holy Eucharist.” Children will receive First Holy Communion in May, 2022. Have a great school year with your child’s Religious Education program. Sincerely, Connie Goldin
September 14, 2021–The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Alleluia from USCCB.org
“R. Alleluia, alleluia.
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you,
because by your Cross you have redeemed the world.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.”
Source: USCCB.org
“The cross is today the universal image of Christian belief.”
Source: Franciscan Media
Our Art Gallery
On-Line and Classroom Enrichment Materials for First Holy Communion Families
“Welcome to Religious Education Class, September, 2021-May, 2022”
Materials Used–Acrylic Paint in Tubes, Pre-fab 5 by 7 Inch Canvas, and Brushes
The Meaning of the Cross In Song
“Lift High The Cross”–Sacred Hymn
Our Prayers
Sign of the Cross
“In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Why Do Catholics Cross Themselves When They Pray?
Source: LearnReligions.com “How and Why Catholics Make the Sign of the Cross”
Making the Sign of the Cross may be the most common of all actions that Catholics do. We make it when we begin and end our prayers; we make it when we enter and leave a church; we start each Mass with it; we may even make it when we hear the Holy Name of Jesus taken in vain and when we pass a Catholic church where the Blessed Sacrament is reserved in the tabernacle.
So we know when we make the Sign of the Cross, but do you know why we make the Sign of the Cross? The answer is both simple and profound.
In the Sign of the Cross, we profess the deepest mysteries of the Christian Faith: the Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit–and the saving work of Christ on the Cross on Good Friday. The combination of the words and the action are a creed—a statement of belief. We mark ourselves as Christians through the Sign of the Cross.
And yet, because we make the Sign of the Cross so often, we may be tempted to rush through it, to say the words without listening to them, to ignore the profound symbolism of tracing the shape of the Cross—the instrument of Christ’s death and our salvation—on our own bodies. A creed is not simply a statement of belief—it is a vow to defend that belief, even if it means following Our Lord and Savior to our own cross.
Our Art Project–Fun Cross Art for Kids and Families
Here are three different types of crosses. Invite your child to try a watercolor painting, on watercolor paper or mix media paper, for fun and enjoyment.If those supplies aren’t available, use what you have at home.
Our Materials
